The United States has also used the arch as a monument of our expansion to the west from 1803 to 1890. The Gateway Arch in St. Louis, Missouri was constructed from 1961 to 1965 by the well known architect Eero Saarinen. The arch is one of several monuments in The Jefferson National Expansion Memorial Park (www.slfp.com).
One influence that Roman styles had on architecture was the ornate columns. Besides acting as great supports, the different columns enhanced the building with its elegant design. The Romans had many different styles of columns such as Doric, Ionic and Corinthian. These Doric columns began as wooden columns and slowly through time developed into columns of stone. The design of the Doric consists of a circular column and a square block on the top and bottom. The Doric columns were very simple and not as intricate as the other columns, but were still used in many Greek and Roman buildings. Today Doric columns are used for its excellent support and simple design in a building (Lawrence 28). The Ionic structural forms seem to have followed wooden prototypes still more closely than the Doric. The Ionic columns are generally very slender and their capitals are simple blocks rounded at the lower corners, with scrolls painted on the faces. Today, Ionic columns are used to create a more elegant appearance (Lawrence 28). The Corinthian columns are the most intricate in design compared to the other two columns. The earliest and most characteristic Corinthian capitals consist of an inverted bell, surrounded by a row of acanthus leaves, with pairs of scrolls supporting the corners of the abacus. The Corinthian columns were often used in conjunction with Doric and Ionic columns in earlier Roman architecture. Later, they came to be used independently on different monuments. Being the most extravagant, the Corinthian columns are often used throughout architecture to provide a Roman feel to the building (Lawrence 30).