Historic Horse Stables, Forest Park

Formerly an aircraft hanger, this facility was donated by the U.S. Army to the City of St. Louis in 1919. It was briefly used by the U.S. Postal Service from 1920-1921, when the Forest Park Airmail Service was established to transport mail between St. Louis and Chicago. Later, the City converted the building into horse stables, which then served as the equine facility for the Forest Park Division of the St. Louis Mounted Patrol Unit from 1970 to 2009. The discovery of lead paint and asbestos in the building led to its temporary closure. Following a fund-raising effort from Forest Park Forever, a major renovation of the stables was completed in 2013. The renovation included the creation of new interior office space for the officers, along with landscaping, fencing, and a new roof. The Mounted Patrol Unit and its horses moved back into the historic building in 2013.

The historic horse stables building in Forest Park was originally an aircraft hanger used by the U.S. Army, and later by the U.S. Postal Service. The building was thus briefly connected to a runway, which required 100 acres to be cleared through Forest Park.

Following World War I, the U.S. Postal Service established its first airmail route, which stretched from the east coast to the west coast. At that time, the postmaster of St. Louis suggested that a new branch might also be established within Forest Park in order to transport mail via aircraft between St. Louis and Chicago. In 1919, the U.S. Army donated its former aircraft hanger in Forest Park to the City of St. Louis for use as part of the new airmail transport service.

The first flight took place on August 16, 1920, carrying 150 pounds of mail. Transport took less than 4 hours between the two cities (St. Louis and Chicago) with the aircraft traveling around 77 miles an hour. However, when Congress failed to provide the funding necessary to continue the operations, the Forest Park Airmail Service closed only a year later.

Thereafter, the building was converted into an equine facility. It served as the horse stables for the Forest Park Division of the St. Louis Mounted Police Department from 1970 to 2009. Due to the discovery of lead paint inside the building, it temporarily closed for renovation from 2009 to 2013, until adequate funding could be obtained.

An anonymous donation of $900,000 resulted from a fund-raising campaign led by Forest Park Forever, and the stables underwent a major renovation. Lead paint and asbestos were removed. The renovation created expanded office space for the officers, as well as a new roof. In addition to interior upgrades, the exterior landscaping was improved. The facility reopened in 2013, when the Mounted Patrol Unit and its horses moved back into the historic building.

The Forest Park Mounted Patrol Unit is part of the Traffic Safety Division. It oversees approximately 1,300 acres in Forest Park around the clock each day. The Mounted Patrol Unit also assists with crowd control for major events held in the park, and it participates in yearly parades sponsored by the City of St. Louis. Currently, four horses are housed in the historic stables. Each of the horses' photos are proudly displayed on the unit's website.

St. Louis Mounted Police Horse Stables, Forest Park Forever. Accessed May 16th 2022. https://forestparkmap.org/st-louis-mounted-police-horse-stables.

SLMPD Mounted Patrol, St. Louis Mounted Police Dept.. Accessed May 16th 2022. http://www.slmpd.org/mounted_patrol.shtml.

Phillips, Nicholas. What's the Story Behind the Stable in Forest Park, St. Louis Magazine. August 4th 2020. Accessed May 16th 2022. https://www.stlmag.com/history/st-louis-sage/what%E2%80%99s-the-story-behind-the-stable-in-forest-park/.