St. Louis, the “Gateway to the West,” was a thriving metropolis and trade center during the 1800s. Explorers, fur trappers, hunters, merchants, and settlers all passed through the busy hub on the Mississippi River.

Leon Pomarede, a Frenchman who immigrated to the US around 1830, lived and worked in St. Louis for over 50 years. Here, he captured the bustling activity of ferryboat traffic. He took this view from the Illinois side of the river, looking west toward the city on the opposite bank.