The Jewel Box is a greenhouse located in Forest Park, St. Louis, Missouri. It now serves as a public horticultural facility and is listed on the National Register of Historic Places .It was designed by architect William C. E. Becker and built in 1936 by the Robert Paulus Construction Company. It consists of five stepped, composition-covered wood roofs with clerestories, rather than a regular glass roof, in order to prevent damage from frequent hailstorms.HistoryIn 1913, Nelson Cunliff became Commissioner of Parks and Recreation for St. Louis City. Due to high levels of smoke and soot within the city, he began a survey to determine which plants could survive the conditions. He later asked John Moritz, who was in charge of the city's greenhouses, to set up a display greenhouse to showcase various plants which could survive. It is said that someone called the displays "like a jewel box", hence the name. In 1933, Bernard Dickmann became Mayor of St. Louis and decided to build a new facility. The building cost $125,000 and William C. E. Becker, then Chief Engineer of Bridges and Buildings for the city, was assigned to design the building. Construction began on December 12, 1935 and the facility opened on November 14, 1936.
