Established as a French trading post in 1764, St. Louis served as a gateway to the west after the Louisiana Purchase and as a major port for steamboats traveling the Mississippi. Today the city's landmark is the soaring, shining steel Gateway Arch, designed by Eero Saarinen in 1966 to commemorate western-bound pioneers. Though visitors often make it their first stop, there's plenty more beckoning, including the restored Union Station with its specialty shops, expansive Forest Park with first-rate museums, and numerous attractions geared toward children, many of them free, making St. Louis a prime family destination.