Urban Dad Hikes: A Tale of Two Tilles Parks

This is the tale of two Tilles Parks, one located in Ladue, Mo., and one in St. Louis city, and their shared origin.

Tillis City Park field view on the left and Tilles County Park by the frozen pond on the right.

History of the Two Tilles Parks

The story goes that Andrew “Cap” Tilles, a businessman who once owned Churchill Downs and the Fairgrounds Race Track in St. Louis set up a foundation.

Tilles donated land in St Louis County to the City of St. Louis in honor of his mother, Rosalie Peck Tilles, in 1932.

The City of St. Louis developed the county park in 1937 using Work Progress Administration (WPA) funds for infrastructure improvement during the Great Depression. Maintained by the city for 18 years.

Then a study in the 1950s showed that more than 80 percent of the people who used the park lived in the county and another showed that city needed more park space for its citizens.

The city Tillis Park was created by the selling of the original Tillis Park in St. Louis County by the City of St. Louis. A 1955 bond issue provided funds to extensively develop the park.

The Two Parks

Tilles Park in the city is a well-landscaped 29-acre park with broad hills located near the intersection of Hampton and Fyler Avenues in South City.

Located near the intersection of Litzinger Street and McKnight Street is Tilles County Park with 75 acres on rolling hills with a pond.

Sign for the park with the Full name — Sign for the county park with the full name

My Time at Tilles County Park

I walked about two miles here using a combination of roads and pathways in the park. The main road past Windegger Shelter is closed in winter, which allowed me to easily explore the whole park

Starting the Hike

I parked near the main entrance of the park and went to check out the WPA stone gates. One even had a roof and a small circular window over a doorway.

Chomping through the snow, I passed by a metal statue consisting of four girls dancing around a pole.

Stone shelter near the playground and spray park

Next, I saw a stone shelter with rounded entrances and went through it, and found myself face to face with a cat sculpture.

It had a blue face and a pink body and goes with the spray park, which was off in winter.

By here was a large children’s playground with elevated walkways, lookouts, and slides.

Back of the Park

In this area, I found a large stone fireplace, then every few feet a stone restroom, built by the WPA closed this time of year. I relaxed in nature as I stomped through the fields and woods in the snowy landscape.

Through the trees, red brick homes border the park providing nice views for families living nearby.

By the Baseball Fields

Snow-covered baseball fields were now in view before going by a park maintenance building.

Not seeing the path forward due to the snow, I found a road that went by the stone Skow shelter. Next to it was a playground with climbing structures with a sign saying it was for older kids. My son would love to try it out.

Walking briefly up to see the Gloria Rogers Shelter, a large stone shelter with two fireplaces.

Lakefront decks around Windegger Pavilion with footprints of people going out on the frozen pond.

Checking out the Pond

Near the Windegger Pavilion, a deck with walkways goes towards the lake allowing for fishing and lake views.

Noticing that people had walked around the lake, I followed their footprints. I stayed on the shore not testing the ice.

On the lake, Canadian geese and wood ducks gathered close together in a small area of open water.

Winter is a good time to see waterfowl since they have fewer places to go.

A small stone neighborhood entrance is near McKnight Road leading into the park east of the pond.

Tennis courts open on a winter's day. — Tennis courts open on a winter’s day.

The door to the tennis courts was open although a little hard to play covered by snow. From here I walked to my car.

An information board can be found near the flagpole in the park. — Near the flagpole, in the park, I found an information board on events that go on in the park.

Final Thoughts

I would do this walk again with hilly terrain, WPA stone buildings, and a pond allowing for an interesting stroll. Though I do wonder how the walk is in summer when the roads are open for traffic with only half the park has a walkway. My son would enjoy the spray park, playground, and climbing structure in the park.

Winter Wonderland Lights

During the winter months, the park hosts a popular drive-through Christmas light display. Go to winterwonderlandstl.com for more information.

DETAILS:

Drive: Take Interstate 64 to exit 30 and go south on McKnight Road and look for the park entrance on the right.

Hours: 8:30 am – 30 minutes past sunset

Address: 9551 Litzsinger Rd, St. Louis, MO 63124

My Time at Tillis City Park

I walked about a mile of the park going from the hilly area down to a valley section area.

Covered picnic area on a lookout. — Covered picnic area on a lookout

At the beginning of my walk, I saw a picnic area on a lookout with views of fields and distant homes.

Snow covered rock garden in the park — Snow-covered rock garden in the park

To the east of the picnic area is a sunken rock garden, although covered with snow this time of year.

Next, I went by some softball fields before passing by a huge playground with lots of slides and climbing structures.

This area also included racquetball courts, basketball courts, tennis courts, and even a skate hockey rink.

Across the street were brick bungalows each with a fireplace.

Path through the evergreens — A path through the evergreens

The trail then followed Hampton Avenue and up through some evergreens before I arrived back at my car.

Final Thoughts

It is an open area walk, with lots of fields. My son would enjoy the large playground so I might come back here in the future. The park is good for a mile paved hike in South City. A nearby restaurant to go for barbecue is Adam’s Smokehouse, which we’ve done in the past, currently open on weekends.