Oct. 28, 1965: The last piece of the Arch is fitted into place. See the stunning construction photos
The Gateway Arch is strikingly simple in design — a sweeping curve of stainless steel rising 630 feet above the ground. Its 142 welded pieces are equilateral triangles, one of nature’s most durable forms.
But there was nothing simple about building it.
The Arch is embedded deep into limestone bedrock and held in place by foundations made of 26,000 tons of concrete, more than 2,000 truckloads. The engineers had to be precise in measurements and calculations, from their drafting boards to fitting the last piece. Much was at stake — a “miss” of the two legs at the top would be a mortifying and expensive embarrassment, to say the least.
The triangles, known to the workers as “cans,” were double-walled structures of carbon steel inside and stainless steel exterior skin. For the first 312 feet, workers poured concrete between the walls and ran continuous reinforcement rods. Above that height, welds held everything together.
The engineers and iron workers knew their stuff. Each time a can was installed, engineers would measure the tips to a tiny fraction of a degree. Then the iron workers would grind, shim and weld the next can to keep the legs true. When the final piece was installed on Oct 28, 1965, the legs were only three-eighths of an inch off, making for an easy fit.
A 1948 drawing of Eero Saarinen's winning design for a 590-foot Arch near the levee and a forested park. When built, the Arch was on higher ground and 40 feet taller. The Old Stone House, prominently displayed beneath the northern leg of the Arch, was never re-erected, an arcade on both sides of the Arch, was not built, and the elegant tree-lined avenue leading to the Old Cathedral was never constructed. Drawing courtesy of Kemper Art Museum
An aerial view of the cleared riverfront and downtown in 1961, before construction began on the Arch. Much of it had been used for downtown parking since the 1940s. Note the old S.S. Admiral excursion steamer, moored at right. Post-Dispatch file photo
Oct., 1963----A bulldozer serves as a locomotive to pull a completed piece along temporary train tracks to the arch legs. (Post-Dispatch)
The first train through the tunnels and cuts in the riverfront park in November 1961. The line replaced an old steel trestle that had run along Wharf Street for 70 years. The federal government made its removal a condition for the project, and it took two decades of negotiating with the Terminal Railroad Association to make that happen. Photo by Arthur L. Witman, St. Louis Post-Dispatch
The south leg of the Arch rises behind the Old St. Louis Cathedral in May 1963. Standard cranes hoisted the pieces until the legs reached 70 feet, when the creeper derricks took over. The derricks climbed on rails bolted to the legs. Photo by Arthur L. Witman, St. Louis Post-Dispatch
Double-walled panels arrived from mills in Pennsylvania by rail to the Arch site, where they were assembled and welded into triangles, then hoisted into place. Photo by Arthur L. Witman, St. Louis Post-Dispatch
A bulldozer serves as locomotive to pull a completed piece along temporary train tracks to the arch legs. Story ran in "Pictures" in May of 1963. (Post-Dispatch)
Workers strain to tighten one of the bolts that held the creeper derrick track onto the Arch. The scene is on the north leg at about 300 feet in September 1964. Photo by Arthur L. Witman, St. Louis Post-Dispatch
A detail photo shows a torque meter used in the construction of the Arch. Photo by Arthur L. Witman, St. Louis Post-Dispatch
Workers prepare to pour concrete between the double walls of the north leg of the Arch. Concrete and stressed reinforcement rods were used to 312 feet, nearly halfway up, to strengthen the monument. Photo by Arthur L. Witman, St. Louis Post-Dispatch
Construction workers are photographed near the creeper derrick. A system of sturdy cables and pulleys hefted the 100-ton derricks upward along their tracks. Photo by Arthur L. Witman, St. Louis Post-Dispatch
During Arch construction, two workers in the foreground monitor the round hydraulic-pressure gauges to ensure that two jacks are widening the Arch legs at the same speed. Seated at rear right, with hand to face, is Hans Karl Bandel of Severud & Associates, New York, who led the engineering work on Eero Saarinen's design. In the background is the second Busch Stadium, under construction at the same time. Photo by Arthur Witman of the Post-Dispatch
Sept. 1964-----A worker threads wedges onto the ends of reinforcement bars that run through the interior walls of the arch. This work is being done at the 300-foot level. The wedges would allow powerful hydraulic jacks to grab the reinforcement bars and stretch them to a tension of 71 tons to strengthen the arch. (Post-Dispatch)
An architect representing Saarinen checks the alignment of joints during the construction of the Arch. Photo by Arthur L. Witman, St. Louis Post-Dispatch
High above the city, a worker straddles a beam that is part of a creeper derrick track. Photo by Arthur L. Witman, St. Louis Post-Dispatch
A "can" is lifted into place as work on the Arch nears completion. Photo by Arthur L. Witman, St. Louis Post-Dispatch
Construction crew works on the top catwalk of the south leg creeper derrick at about 500 feet above ground. Photo by Arthur L. Witman, St. Louis Post-Dispatch.
Workers ease one of the triangular pieces, which they dubbed "cans," into place on the south leg. Each leg consists of 71 cans, which meet at the top in a weld line. There is no "keystone" piece. Photo by Arthur L. Witman, St. Louis Post-Dispatch
Bob Mohr, a federal construction inspector, checks reinforcement rods in the south leg of the Arch. In the background is the S.S. Admiral excursion steamboat. Photo by Arthur L. Witman, St. Louis Post-Dispatch
A worker straddles the derrick track to help sling a catch net between the narrowing gap of the two Arch legs. Beneath them is the truss that secured the legs as the project rose above 530 feet. Photo by Arthur L. Witman, St. Louis Post-Dispatch
Work in the tight quarters of the north leg is easily visible in the final weeks of construction. Photo by Arthur L. Witman, St. Louis Post-Dispatch
A worker perches himself on the north leg 600 feet above ground. Photo by Arthur L. Witman, St. Louis Post-Dispatch.com
Rays from a 30-inch carbon arc searchlight produce more than 400 million candlepower, creating an aurora borealis-like effect above the St. Louis riverfront. The St. Louis Army Mobility Equipment Center put on the demonstration. The light, which was placed on the Jefferson National Expansion Memorial grounds just east of Third Street, was powered by a mobile generator and was 100 times more powerful than the searchlights used in World War II. Post-Dispatch file
The next-to-last piece is lifted from the ground on Oct. 19, 1965. (Post-Dispatch)
Workers install part of the seating areas in Busch Stadium on Oct. 26, 1965, two days before the final piece of the Arch is slipped into place. (Post-Dispatch)
It took great engineering to get things this close. (Post-Dispatch file photo)
A "can" is lifted into place as work on the Arch nears completion. Photo by Arthur L. Witman, St. Louis Post-Dispatch
The final piece of the Arch, dubbed "One North," is moved slowly into place on Oct. 28, 1965. It was slipped between the two legs after heavy hydraulic jacks carefully widened the gap. After all the careful calculations and adjustments, the legs were only 3/8ths of an inch off, making for an easy fit. Photo by Arthur L. Witman, St. Louis Post-Dispatch
Walter Mallory, construction superintendent for Pittsburgh-Des Moines Steel Co., surveys the scene as the last piece is put into place on October 28, 1965. Photo by Arthur L. Witman, St. Louis Post-Dispatch
On October 28, 1965, "Topping Day," the last piece of the arch is set into place. Photo by Arthur L. Witman of the Post-Dispatch
Derrick foreman D.J. Clayton watches from the south leg of the Arch as the jacks do their work on Oct. 28, 1965. Photo by Larry Williams of the Post-Dispatch
Workers use heavy jacks to force the legs to 8.5 feet apart on the morning of Oct. 28, 1965. They had rested only 2.5 feet apart. At the moment this photo was taken, the separation was at six feet. The final piece was eight feet wide. (Renyold Ferguson/Post-Dispatch)
The next-to-last piece is moved into place on Oct. 19, 1965. Later, workers with their hydraulic jacks would stretch open the gap to make was for the last one. (Jack January/Post-Dispatch)
The final piece of the Arch is lowered into place on Oct. 28, 1965. The legs were held apart by jacks to make space. As the piece was put into place, the crew released pressure on the jacks to secure the fit. Photo by Lester Linck of the Post-Dispatch
"Topping Day." The last piece of the Arch is fitted into place to fanfare and boat horns on the crisp morning of Oct. 28, 1965. It took two years and eight months to raise the stainless-steel monument from its foundation - and three decades from the first serious planning for a riverfront memorial to Thomas Jefferson and westward expansion. Photo by Renyold Ferguson, St. Louis Post-Dispatch
The Arch on the sunset of Topping Day, Oct. 28, 1965. Photo by Arthur L. Witman, St. Louis Post-Dispatch
"Gateway Arch Shadow Over Downtown" (1965) by Arthur Witman. Arthur Witman Arch Photograph Collection, State Historical Society of Missouri–St. Louis
Post-Dispatch photographer Renyold Ferguson, prone on top of the Arch, photographing the city below in February 1967. Photo by Arthur L. Witman of the Post-Dispatch
Post-Dispatch photographers Renyold Ferguson (left) and Arthur Witman photograph atop the Arch in February 1967. Photo courtesy Witman Collection
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