Scenic Mural Being Painted at Historic County Courthouse

Statesmen, pioneers and automobiles will soon adorn the walls in St. Charles County's Historic Courthouse in a vibrant mural depicting the county's history.

Eight scenes depicting life in St. Charles County from pioneer days until the 1950s are taking shape this summer on third floor hallway walls of the courthouse at 100 North Third Street. The building now houses the Executive office and other County Government departments.

The project is the vision of County Executive Steve Ehlmann, a historian who wrote the book "Crossroads: A History of St. Charles County, Missouri."

"I'm not seeking another term in office, so I wanted to leave behind something that reminds people of just how special a place we live in. There's a lot of history here," Ehlmann says.

Ehlmann, whose ancestors in St. Charles County go back to the 1800s, says the murals show everything from the arrival of early settlers in covered wagons to the arrival of 1950s suburban settlers in station wagons. Figures from the past and vital landmarks are featured in each. These scenes are being painted on the walls immediately below the central rotunda, best visible from the third floor of the building.

County native Zack Smithey, a nationally renowned artist, has been commissioned to do the mural.

The Artist
Smithey is well known in the art world, with his work hanging in galleries and collections around the globe, but he's also no stranger to St. Charles County. He's a fourth-generation county resident.

Smithey, 41, grew up with his parents and sister on Park Avenue by Blanchette Park. He attended Coverdell Elementary and St. Charles High School. Then Lindenwood University, where he graduated with a BFA, a Bachelor's degree of Fine Art in Studio Art.

He taught art for seven years at Francis Howell North High School from 2006-2013.

"My art career was taking off in a way that teaching was getting in the way, and I knew it was time to quit teaching and make art full time," he recalls.

Smithey has a sister who is also an artist and is painting big murals in public buildings across southern Missouri, he says.

He credits his artistic genes to his mother's mother-Mary Milner, who was a professional painter.

His father was an iron worker. He built a lot of bridges and structural steel for buildings.

"My entire life, my parents have always been very supportive of anything I wanted to be," Smithey says.

With rippling biceps, Smithey could pass for an ironworker himself. But he says that's from his weightlifting.

"I work out about two hours a day, most days," he says. "This helps body and mind. Fitness isn't just about exercising your muscles, but it also has positive effect on cognition, memory, motivation and productivity."

He's excited to be doing something that will be seen by future generations in a public space.

"I've finally reached a point where I'm creating a mural that's going to be in a public space, around for generations after me. I think that's pretty cool," he says.

Smithey and his wife Brie have been married 14 years and live in St. Charles. They have three dogs and live in a container house that he designed components of himself.

Smithey says Ehlmann asked him to watch "The Agony and the Ecstasy," a 1965 film about Michelangelo painting the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel. Says he hasn't seen it yet, but he plans to.

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