Valley Park

Valley Park, Missouri was founded in the late 19th century. Railroads played a big role in the town at that time. In the late 1800's and early 1900's, 88 trains a day stopped in Valley Park. The Missouri Pacific and the Frisco-Valley were the big lines at that time (now it is Amtrack, Union Pacific and Burlington Northern.) St. Louis City families would board the trains for summer vacations and head to Valley Park for the weekend, or their second family home along the Meramec River. Valley Park as well as Castlewood Park were known as summer resort areas. Valley Park began to boom with the building of the it's glass factory and other industries. Grocery stores and restaurants opened and simple mission churches became large congregations. Today there are some twenty churches in Valley Park.