Site 4: St. Louis Children's Hospital
on the
St. Louis Sundial Trail
St.
Children's Hospital is located within the Washington University
Medical Center, at Kingshighway Blvd.
and Children's Lane, at the eastern edge of Forest Park. A garden has been created on the
8000 square-foot roof of Children's Hospital
to
provide a peaceful place where families of children being
treated in the hospital can go for quiet thought and solace from
the strains of having a child in the hospital.
The garden is divided into five areas for activities spanning
quiet contemplation to scenic lookout points. Included is the analemmatic
sundial pictured below. It is set into a soft, somewhat spongy surface
made from recycled automobile tires, a surface that minimizes
the chance for injury if a child should fall.
The sundial was designed and constructed by the
contractor who built and landscaped the roof garden.
The construction took place approximately in the time
frame of June to October, a time during which daylight savings
time was in effect. The
hour markers on the sundial indicate CDT hours, so they are
offset by one hour from standard time (CST), making the
sundial's time markings unusual. Phases of the moon
decorate the dial. The plaque pictured below is near the
sundial. It identifies the donors who generously provided
the funds for constructing the sundial
and, also, how to use it to tell time. The instruction
is to "stand on the square corresponding to the month" when the dial is
being used. Following this incorrect instruction
produces a shadow that is offset from that which would result by
correctly standing on the N-S meridian line at the
date; time produced by following this instruction will then be
incorrect.
Parents with hospitalized children have ready access to
the rooftop garden. Prior arrangements must
be made by others wishing to visit
the garden and see this sundial. These can be
made by contacting the Director of the Children's Foundation, Mr.
Philip Becker, by telephone at 314-286-0979 or by sending e-mail
to
.
To go to the next site on the St. Louis Sundial Trail, which is about 1.5 miles from the St. Louis Children's Hospital, click on Site 5, Forest Park, or to go to other sites on the trail, return to the trail map.