St. Vincent Park near Velda City in St. Louis County, Missouri — The American Midwest (Upper Plains)
Lloyd Lionel Gaines
1912-unknown
This stone honoring Lloyd Lionel Gaines is set by the Elijah Lovejoy Society to honor the courage, faith and determination of a young man who gave his life in pursuit of freedom.
Erected 1999 by Elijah Lovejoy Society.
Topics. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: African Americans • Civil Rights • Education. A significant historical year for this entry is 1935.
Location. 38° 41.61′ N, 90° 17.97′ W. Marker is near Velda City, Missouri, in St. Louis County. It is in St. Vincent Park. Marker can be reached from the intersection of Lucas and Hunt Road (State Highway U) and St. Louis Avenue. Marker/cenotaph is located at St. Peters Cemetery. Main entrance is at the intersection of Lucas and Hunt Road and St. Louis Avenue. Touch for map. Marker is at or near this postal address: 2101 Lucas and Hunt Rd, Saint Louis MO 63121, United States of America. Touch for directions.
Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within 2 miles of this marker, measured as the crow flies. Legendary "Cool Papa" Bell (approx. half a mile away); Harriet Robinson Scott (approx. 0.7 miles away); St. Vincent Greenway - University of Missouri - St. Louis (approx. 1.1 miles away); UMSL Commons (approx. 1.2 miles away); Combat Wounded Veterans (approx. 1.3 miles away); Marguerite Ross Barnette (approx. 1.4 miles away); St. Vincent Greenway Trail - 3.5 Miles (approx. 1˝ miles away); Veterans Memorial (approx. 2 miles away).
More about this marker. Marker was dedicated on November 6, 1999.
Also see . . . Lloyd L. Gaines on Wikipedia. Born in Mississippi, Gaines' family moved to St. Louis in 1926. He excelled in high school, graduating after his third year attending Vashon High School. Gaines would graduate with honors from Lincoln University, a historically black college in Jefferson City, Missouri. He did not want to study law outside Missouri, so he tried to get into Missouri Law School. As the marker says, he was denied because of his race. The NAACP as well as future Supreme Court Justice Thurgood Marshall helped him in his court cases. He was in Chicago, visiting his fraternity brothers, at the time he went missing. To this day, it is not known what happened to Gaines. Some historians believe he was attacked and abducted, and some believe he fled somewhere and started a new life. Gaines was honored by the University of Missouri School of Law in later years, and a portrait of him hangs in the building. (Submitted on February 10, 2022, by Jason Voigt of Glen Carbon, Illinois.)
Credits. This page was last revised on March 31, 2023. It was originally submitted on February 10, 2022, by Jason Voigt of Glen Carbon, Illinois. This page has been viewed 127 times since then and 17 times this year. Photos: 1, 2, 3. submitted on February 10, 2022, by Jason Voigt of Glen Carbon, Illinois.