File:Gateway Arch, Gateway Arch National Park, St. Louis, MO - 53052544661.jpg

English: Built in 1963-1965 and inaugurated in 1967, this Modern monument was designed by Eero Saarinen and Severud Associates to serve as the centerpiece of Jefferson National Expansion Memorial in downtown St. Louis, Missouri. The 630-foot (192 meter) tall structure is the world’s tallest arch, the tallest memorial in the United States, and the tallest habitable structure in the state of Missouri, as well as the tallest structure along the Mississippi River downstream of Minneapolis. The catenary arch is a relatively simple structure, clad in stainless steel panels, with small windows for the observation deck at the top, several sunken entrances with concrete retaining walls, which provide access to the interior of the arch and the visitor center and museum at the base, and a semi-circular sunken entrance on the west side of the arch with stainless steel panels on the walls and a large storefront facing Downtown St. Louis and a land bridge over a freeway to the west. The observation deck is accessed via a unique tram system that is reminiscent of an amusement park ride, where guests are transported inside cylindrical pods that run on a track. The arch is the most recognizable and distinctive feature of the St. Louis skyline, and was listed on the National Register of Historic Places and designated a National Historic Landmark in 1987. Today, the arch sits in the middle of Gateway Arch National Park, the former Jefferson National Expansion Memorial, which was designated a National Park in 2018, and sees about two million visitors annually.