Every vacation destination that tourists visit has at least one must see stop. Doesn't matter if you're visiting Paris, France, Troncones Mexico, Toronto, Ontario or St. Louis, Missouri. Each one of those cities has something everyone has to see while they are there. You don't go to Toronto without seeing the CN Tower, you don't go to Paris without visiting the Eiffel Tower and when it comes to St. Louis, you don't leave without making a stop at the Gateway Arch. Really, what would be the point of going to Pisa in Italy on your vacation away from your pipeline strainers factory job and not seeing the Leaning Tower of Pisa?

The Gateway Arch in St. Louis is also commonly referred to as the Gateway to the West. It was designed in 1947 by architect Eero Saarinen and structural engineer Hannskarl Bandel. Eero Saarinen's design was chosen out of 147 entries in a national architectural contest that was held by the famous architect George Howe. Once the field was narrowed down to a smaller number of entries, Saarinen's was a unanimous winner. Eventually construction on the arch began in 1963 and was completed in 1965. It opened to the public in July of 1967. Like the saying goes, "Rome wasn't built in a day."

The Gateway Arch was built to honor the United States westward expansion and is also a part of the Jefferson National Expansion Memorial. Former president Thomas Jefferson had a vision of what the continental United States would one day look like after expansion and the arch was built to remind everyone of his forward thinking vision. Any visitors who go to St. Louis to see the Gateway Arch at the Jefferson National Expansion Memorial will also get the opportunity to see the Old Courthouse and the Museum of Westward Expansion. That should make any vacuum truck services vacationer happy.

In 1987, the Gateway Arch was added to the U.S. National Register of Historic Places as well as the U.S. National Historic Landmark list. Two mighty fine accomplishments to a monument that is now considered St. Louis' most famous landmark. Any person on vacation from their farm fencing job owes it to themselves to see the Gateway Arch while in St. Louis.

The Gateway Arch is both 630 feet wide and tall. Which makes it the tallest standing monument in the United States. You'd have to line up a whole lot of water treatment chemical supplier trucks to match the size of the landmark. St. Louis is a city rich in history and anyone who lives in the city will gladly stop what they are doing to tell you all about the historic moments St. Louis has gone through. Why should you listen to stories when you can see the history for yourself at the Jefferson National Expansion Memorial? The Gateway Arch is a sight that needs to be seen with your own two eyes.