Reaching Mill Creek: Social Outreach Programs

Reaching Mill Creek: Social Outreach Programs

As with most neighborhoods, Mill Creek Valley was the site of a couple YMCAs that were integral to a sense of accomplishment and community. The Pine Street YMCA was not only home to many social events and community outreach programs, but also the location for other community associations such as the People’s Finance Corporation. In 1945, the Pine Street YMCA was even host to a training camp by champion boxer, Joe Louis, who was widely admired across the country by all races for his respectful demeanor and commitment tor his sport and nation.

Pine Street YMCA. Admission ticket for Joe Louis Training Camp, St. Louis, Missouri. 1945. The Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture, St. Louis, MO. https://nmaahc.si.edu/object/nmaahc_2010.34.16?destination=edan-search/collection_search%3Fedan_q%3D%252A%253A%252A%26edan_fq%255B0%255D%3Dp.edanmdm.indexedstructured.name%253A%2522Pine%2520Street%2520YMCA%2522%26edan_fq%255B1%255D%3Dplace%253A%2522Saint%2520Louis%2522

Naffziger, Chris. “Centers of community that were destroyed in the Mill Creek Valley.” St. Louis Mag, September 26, 2019. https://www.stlmag.com/history/architecture/centers-of-community-that-were-destroyed-in-the-mill-creek-v/

The Editors of the Encyclopedia Britannica. Encyclopedia Britannica, 8th ed, s.v. “Joe Louis.” Chicago: Encyclopedia Britannica, 2020. https://www.britannica.com/biography/Joe-Louis