FLORISSANT

city, St. Louis county, east-central Missouri, U.S. A northern suburb of St. Louis, it lies near the Missouri River. Settled by the French in about 1785, it was called St. Ferdinand by the Spanish and was officially renamed Florissant (from the French fleurissant, flowering) in 1939. The Old St. Ferdinand's Shrine (a Roman Catholic church) was built in 1821, St. Stanislaus Seminary was founded by the Jesuits in 1831, and St. Louis Christian College was opened in 1956. Casa Alverez (c. 1790) survives as an example of Missouri French architecture. Inc. 1857. Pop. (1991 est.) 51,615.