Lewis and Clark. Daniel Boone. Nearly everyone knows at least the names (if not all the details) of these American pioneers and explorers, for whom St. Charles was an important place to start and return from their journeys, and in Boone's case, to call home.
French Canadian fur trader Louis Blanchette founded St. Charles as Les Petites Cotes (The Little Hills) way back in 1765 - before the American Revolution.
The town was the first permanent white settlement on the Missouri River, and was incorporated in 1809.
From 1821 to 1826, St. Charles was the first capital of Missouri.
Now, as the county seat, St. Charles serves as the hub of government and industry in the fastest growing county in Missouri, and is establishing itself as a major employment center in a metropolitan region that covers 16 counties in two states. |
