Champ, MO

Champ is easily one of the quirkiest places in St. Louis County, with a population of about ten people and just four homes. Back in 1959, a local landowner named Bill Bangert incorporated the village with big ambitions, proposing a 115,000-seat domed stadium and a bid to host the Pan American Games. The mega-stadium was never built, and the area eventually evolved into an industrial pocket dominated by quarries, warehouses, and freight routes. Today, Champ is Missouri's most famous micro-village, sitting quietly along the highway near Maryland Heights.