Florissant MO Moving Companies

Florissant, Missouri

Florissant, Missouri is a community of over 50,000 people situated in North St. Louis County. It is a progressive and thriving town with a reputation for being warm and friendly. Florissant offers many wonderful services and a wide variety of amenities for residents of all ages from toddlers to senior citizens. It is one of the safest cities of its size west of the Mississippi River. Those moving to Florissant will truly discover that it is a great place to reside.

History:
French settlers arrived in the area during the 1760s and declared it "un vale fleurissant," or "flourishing valley." But it was the Spanish who first set up the first civil government and laid out the grid of streets now known as Old Town in 1786. The Spanish called it San Fernando, which was anglicized to St. Ferdinand. The locals called it Florissant, which caused much confusion until the name was officially changed in 1939. The Jesuits established St. Stanislaus Seminary just outside of Florissant in 1823. It was the site of the first Catholic school for Indian girls in the United States. St. Stanislaus became a nearly self sufficient community, covering hundreds of acres that included a winery,an orchard, wheat fields, a butcher shop and a bakery. The beautiful "Rock Building" was completed in 1840, constructed of massive limestone blocks quarried by the brothers and hauled from the Missouri River bluffs. The seminary closed in 1971, and the Gateway College of Evangelism purchased the buildings. St. Ferdinand was first incorporated in 1829 and chartered as a city in 1857. During that era, large numbers of German immigrants settled the valley. Tired of attending services in French, they established the Church of the Sacred Heart at St. Denis and Jefferson Streets in 1867. The quiet country village received a big boost when a narrow gauge railway line linked it to St. Louis in 1878. A trolley line replaced it in 1890. Just 682 people called St. Ferdinand home in 1920. That figure increased to 1,369 in 1940. After World War II, a massive building boom transformed the once sleepy town. The population shot from 3,737 in 1950 to 65,908 in 1970.

Economy:
Greater St. Louis ranks thirteenth in the United States as a headquarters location for Fortune 500 companies. The city boasts three of the nation's 100 fastest-growing companies: Talx, Panera Bread, and Engineered Support Systems. St. Louis supports a strong manufacturing sector; the three major American automakers—General Motors, Chrysler, and Ford—operate assembly plants in the area. St. Louis is also the base for the Eighth Federal Reserve District Bank and several national insurance and brokerage firms. In March 2002, Fortune magazine recognized St. Louis as "among the regional hubs in the United States for both agricultural and health care biotechnology"; the city is emerging as a center for major new economy industries. Industry giants such as Pfizer and Centocor conduct excellent research and development in plant and life sciences; St. Louis is becoming known as the heart of the bio-belt for progress in this arena. The city boasts of a high concentration of information technology jobs. With an already-strong manufacturing base, St. Louis is a center for advanced manufacturing; the area boasts of 190,000 jobs and 4,000 establishments applying advanced technology innovations. Preliminary 2010 employment data for the St. Louis MSA shows total manufacturing employment was flat, but employment increased in the durable goods manufacturing sector. Employment also increased in the education and health services, the trade, transportation and utilities, leisure and hospitality, and the government sectors. Employment in the information, financial activities, other services, and professional and business services all experienced over-the-year declines from December 2009 to December 2010.

Tourism:
For family fun, head over to the Par-Tee Recreation Center. Par-Tee Recreation Center offers miniature golf, batting cages, arcade and concession. Par-Tee Recreation Center offers groups rates and hosts parties. Next, head over to the Jamestown Mall. The Jamestown Mall is smaller than most shopping malls in the St. Louis area, which makes it a great place to window-shop without worrying dealing with crowds. All of the aisles are wide and lit during the day by rows of sky panels. There are four department stores there, including Sears, JC Penney, Famous Barr and Dillard's; plus a movie theater, 28 specialty stores and a food court with a kids' play area.

Colleges/Universities:

• University of Missouri-St. Louis
• Saint Louis University-Main Campus
• Washington University
• Lindenwood University
• Saint Louis Christian College
• Saint Louis Community College-Florissant Valley
• Saint Louis Community College-Forest Park
• Florissant Valley Community College
• Lewis and Clark Community College

Interesting Facts:

• The city derived its name from a French term meaning "flowering."