Founding St. Louis: First City of the New West by J. Frederick Fausz, History Press, 2011.
Founding St. Louis: First City of the New West helps fill many gaps in the history of St. Louis and the Mississippi River Valley. Author J. Frederick Fausz's extensive research yields a history that helps readers understand St. Louis as a true multicultural city. Covering the years 1764-1804, the author describes how Pierre Laclede, the Chouteaus, Osage Indians, and French Americans from Illinois, Canada and Louisiana came together to create St. Louis and how they lived a relatively peaceful existence together during the Colonial era. There have been many good histories written about St. Louis, but this one stands apart because it focuses on the city's early development and the unique elements that helped forge this first true western city.
