Place des Messageries-de-l'Est

The Place des Messageries de l'Est is marked by the heavy, arched stone entrances that once allowed horse-drawn carriages to pass directly into the rail yards of the Gare de l'Est. These passages were built to handle the intense flow of freight and postal deliveries that defined the station in the late nineteenth century. In eighteen ninety-eight, a massive explosion in a nearby basement tore through the area, leaving workers to clear debris while trains continued to pull into the platforms just yards away.