St. Louing

The Great Divorce

The City-County split that divides St. Louis

In the mid 1800s, St. Louis was the 4th biggest city in the country. The city was on an upswing, seeing a massive boom in population and industry that continued into the early 1900s when the city hosted the Olympics and the World’s Fair.

The population reached a high of 850,000 in the 1950s, but now has under 300,000 residents. A series of factors (such as white flight, highway development, redlining, and the economy shifting away from the river) left the city in continuous decline since then, but one of the significant issues for the region is the City-County split known as “The Great Divorce”.

The City-County Split#

In 1876, the City of St. Louis voted to separate from St. Louis County, becoming one of only a few independent cities in the U.S. Most other cities sit inside a county - Chicago is a city inside Cook County, for example, but St. Louis City and County are completely separate entities.

This separation permanently froze the boundaries of St. Louis at 66.17 square miles, which resulted in a slew of unforeseen consequences for the city.

Frozen Borders#

Most other cities continued to grow and expand during this period. Chicago had dozens of annexations of its surrounding towns and villages, during which it expanded from 36 square miles in 1880 to 234 today, but St. Louis remained the same size.

CityArea in 1880Area in 2020
Chicago36 sq. mi234 sq. mi
St. Louis66 sq. mi66 sq. mi

Chicago and St. Louis size in square miles from 1880 to 2020

If St. Louis had followed in the footsteps of other cities, it would have absorbed many of the surrounding areas like Clayton, Maplewood, Richmond Heights, Webster Groves, and Kirkwood.

As it stands, St. Louis City is not even close to being in the top 150 largest (by area), yet the Greater St. Louis area has the 23rd highest population in the U.S.

YearCity populationCounty population
1880350,51831,888
2020301,5781,004,125

St. Louis City and County population from 1880 to 2020

The suburbs have rapidly expanded over this time period, but the city has stagnated.

The Most Dangerous City?#

St. Louis has long been infamous for being the murder capital of the U.S. In 2024, St. Louis had the highest murder rate among mid-sized cities.

But while parts of St. Louis are legitimately dangerous, this stat doesn’t tell the whole story. St. Louis City only represents 10% of the population of its Metro area - in stark contrast to the nearly 30% that Chicago represents, as a comparison.

CityMetro populationCity populationCity share of metro
Chicago9,618,5022,746,38828%
St. Louis2,820,253301,57810%

City population as a share of its metro, 2020

Crime is reported by geographic boundary. Since St. Louis hasn’t expanded its borders in 150 years, its lower-crime suburbs fall outside the city line and never enter its stats, so the rate reflects only the dense urban core, not the wider region that encompasses St. Louis.

Thought Experiment#

If St. Louis City and County were to be one combined entity, what would the stats look like?

Measured across the City and County together, the rate drops to 27 per 100k. If treating that combined area as a single city seems contrived, consider San Antonio, Texas, which covers comparable ground with a comparable population.

PlaceAreaPopulationHomicidesRate per 100k
St. Louis City66 sq. mi301,57826387
St. Louis County523 sq. mi1,004,125919
St. Louis City + County589 sq. mi1,305,70335427
San Antonio461 sq. mi1,434,6251289

St. Louis City + County compared with San Antonio, 2020

Obviously, changing the crime statistic does not make the dangerous parts of the city any less dangerous, and that’s a serious problem. But St. Louis could be viewed in a more reasonable light if it was set up in a more comparable way to other cities.

Though there are some misconceptions to address.

  • Misconception: “The crime stats in St. Louis are not judged fairly because it’s an independent city”
  • Reality: Cities are still compared with other cities. St. Louis City is compared with the City of Chicago, for example, not Cook County.

And another:

  • Misconception: “If the City rejoined the County, the crime stats would improve.”
  • Reality: They wouldn’t change immediately. The number is high because the borders froze in 1876. St. Louis would need to expand its borders to improve the crime stats.

The City and County finding a way to work together would not immediately fix the all problems from the last 150 years, but it seems like it could be a step towards healing. I think if St. Louis was not on the top of every “most dangerous city” list, people would be more likely to visit and move here.

Sources#