St. Louis (English /seɪnt ˈluːɪs/,/sænt luwi/ French: Saint-Louis or St-Louis /sɛ̃ lwi/) is an independent city in the U.S. state of Missouri. With an estimated population of 354,361 in 2008 it is the principal municipality of Greater St.

Louis, population 2,866,517, the largest urban area in Missouri and sixteenth largest in the United States. In 1763 the city was founded by colonial French traders Pierre Laclède and René Auguste Chouteau just south of the confluence of the Missouri and Mississippi Rivers who named the city for King Louis IX of France. The city was part of the Spanish Empire after the French were defeated in the Seven Years' War.

In 1800 the land was secretly transfered back to France who's leader, Napoleon Bonaparte promptly sold it to the United States in 1803. On August 22, 1876 the City of St. Louis voted to secede from St.

Louis County and become an independent city, limiting its geographic growth. Once the fourth largest single city in the United States, St. Louis' city proper population has since slipped to 52nd.

The 1904 World's Fair and 1904 Olympic Games, the first ever held in the United States, took place at the peak of the city's influence. A large number of immigrants primarily from Germany, Bohemia, Ireland, and Italy flooded St. Louis in the 19th century coloring the cuisine and architecture of the city.

St Louis has been known as the "Gateway to the West" because of the important role it played in the westward expansion of the United States. In 1965 the Gateway Arch was constructed as part of the Jefferson National Expansion Memorial; the arch has since become the iconic image of St. Louis.

The city is also well known for its contribution to Blues, Ragtime, Jazz and Theatre. The St. Louis Cardinals, one of the most successful Major League Baseball teams, make their home at Busch Stadium, other teams include the St.

Louis Rams (football) and St. Louis Blues (hockey). A diversity of successful sports franchises has led to St.

Louis being called "North America's Best Sports City." The city has also made important contributions to Beer in the United States due to the large number of breweries in St. Louis during the 19th century, most notably Anheuser-Busch. St.

Louis lies at the heart of Greater St. Louis, a metropolitan area of nearly three million people in both Missouri and Illinois. The Illinois portion is commonly known as the Metro-East.

The region is home to some of the country's largest privately-held corporations, including Enterprise Rent-A-Car, Graybar, Scottrade, Edward Jones, and is also home to some of the largest public corporations, including Emerson, Energizer, Anheuser-Busch InBev, Boeing Integrated Defense Systems, Purina, Express Scripts, Charter Communications, Monsanto Company, and Wachovia Securities. Because of the major upturn in urban revitalization, St. Louis received the World Leadership Award for urban renewal in 2006.

In 2007, the U. S. Census Bureau reported St. Louis had a net population gain of 7,474 from the 2000 Census, to 355,663, the first gain the city has had since 1950.

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