September 22, 2026

The next time you explore the newly renovated Old Courthouse, catch a tram ride to the top of the Arch, or take a membership tour of the Visitor Center, you might notice the grey 1950’s inspired donation boxes found throughout Gateway Arch National Park.

If you happen to look inside, you can see coins and bills that visitors donated to support educational initiatives throughout the Arch grounds. Amongst the Abraham Lincolns, the Alexander Hamiltons, and even a Benjamin Franklin or two you will also see bills and coins from around the world. They may seem like small objects, but inside Gateway Arch National Park, they tell a much larger story. 

Walking around the Arch grounds, it isn’t uncommon to hear conversations in Hindi, Filipino, Spanish, and many other languages. The currencies in these donation boxes reflect this diversity. Since the donation boxes were installed in June of 2025, coins and bills from around the world have ended up in these donation boxes. Nestled between the pale green tens and fives were several bright and colorful peso-denominated bills, a sleek peso from the Philippines, some Canadian cents, a hefty Australian two-dollar coin, and even a 25-cent coin from the Eastern Caribbean States.

Each of these coins represents a visitor who traveled to St. Louis and had such a memorable experience within Gateway Arch National Park they chose to leave a little piece of their home here. These little mementos offer a tangible reminder of the Park’s extraordinary reach. The Gateway Arch may be the front door of St. Louis, but its history, architecture, and symbolism resonate far beyond St. Louis spreading across the United States, through borders, touching every continent and corner of the world. 

While these donations may come from the Philippines, Mexico, Australia, Canada, and stretch across the globe, their impact is 100% local. All funds collected through the donation boxes support educational initiatives within Gateway Arch National Park, helping visitors of all ages engage more deeply with the Park and the stories preserved here. 

Whether a contribution comes in the form of a familiar dollar bill or a coin that has traveled thousands of miles, every donation reflects a shared investment in the future of this Park. Collectively, they help ensure Gateway Arch National Park remains a welcoming, educational, and inspiring destination for generations to come. 

The next time you visit the Gateway Arch or Old Courthouse, we encourage you to look for one of these donation boxes. Your contribution, whatever its size or country of origin, helps connect people from around the world with the history preserved here in St. Louis.