photo by Diana Linsley
Clayton, the administrative and economic center of St. Louis County, shares a relationship with St. Louis that is both symbiotic and affronting. In 1876, residents of the city grew tired of seeing their tax contributions distributed to what was then a small population spread across a vast area; reasoning that the city would be unlikely to ever grow beyond its current border, legislation was drafted that would formally separate the city, and its 300,000+ residents, from the county, with its measly 20,000+. If the situation had remained forever as it was then, this move would have made sense, especially since the much larger city required exponentially more funds to extend services to its residents. However, not long after the split was made final (a move known as The Great Divorce), St. Louis was already pressing against its boundaries, which did not prevent growth from occurring outside of them, and in fact, exacerbated new development within the city limits. In the long history of St. Louis, no decision had more deleterious an effect on the stability of the municipality than deciding to form an independent city, seceded from St. Louis County.
Still, one might feel compelled to ask, were there any benefits to the Divorce? The answer is yes, for Clayton.
