Valley Park, Missouri was founded late in the 19th Century originally as a summer resort but then began to boom with the building of the glass factory and other industries. Soon grocery stores, restaurants and churches opened up all around. They had the ever-popular realty term... location, location. Valley Park had railroads which played a big role in this town and they also had the Meramec River. St. Louis families would board the trains for summer vacations or weekends at their second home along the Meramec.  Some of these clubhouses were still standing until recently when they need to be removed to accommodate the building of the Meramec Valley River Basin Levee.  One of the most charming old buildings is still standing.  That is the Frisco Hotel located at 28 Front Street.  It is now the Whittle Shortline Railroad Shop which has handmade wooden trains.  Since Valley Park started out as a park for the St. Louis City residents and have parks as part of their name, you can well imagine that parks are very important to them.  They have several lovely parks within their city limits.  Vance Trails Park, Leonard Park, Brignole Park and Meramec Landing for anglers and boaters are all conveniently located in Valley Park.  Simpson St. Louis County Park and Lake are also within the city limit and with the completion of the levee they will be adding trails along the Meramec River for hiking and biking as part of the Ozark Greenway Trails.

In the late 20th Century, the city doubled in population as commuters discovered the excellent schools and easy access to major highways. Valley Park has the Rockwood School District,  the winner of the 2007 "Distinction in Performance Award" given by the state of Missouri.  Rockwood is the only district in the St. Louis area with all of its school buildings on one campus

Valley Park with all its charm, is a quaint community to live and work.

Mike Leeker	Andrea Lukefahr	Mark Scheller