Old Fort Park is the oldest

park A park is an area of natural, semi-natural or planted space set aside for human enjoyment and recreation or for the protection of wildlife or natural habitats. Urban parks are urban green space, green spaces set aside for recreation inside t ...

Fort Wayne, Indiana Fort Wayne is a city in Allen County, Indiana, United States, and its county seat. Located in northeastern Indiana, the city is west of the Ohio border and south of the Michigan border. The city's population was 263,886 at the 2020 census ...

. It was established in 1863.

History

In 1863, Harry Seymour sold the land used for the park to the city for $800, making it the first official park in Fort Wayne.

Civil war A civil war is a war between organized groups within the same Sovereign state, state (or country). The aim of one side may be to take control of the country or a region, to achieve independence for a region, or to change government policies.J ...

veteran Henry M. Williams additionally donated an iron fence and flagpole to the site.

Features

Hence the name, the .20 acre park is home to the original

well A well is an excavation or structure created on the earth by digging, driving, or drilling to access liquid resources, usually water. The oldest and most common kind of well is a water well, to access groundwater in underground aquifers. The ...

used by inhabitants of the first

Fort Wayne Fort Wayne is a city in Allen County, Indiana, United States, and its county seat. Located in northeastern Indiana, the city is west of the Ohio border and south of the Michigan border. The city's population was 263,886 at the 2020 United S ...

established on October 22, 1794, dedicated to General Anthony Wayne. The fort was allegedly moved and rebuilt on this location in 1798, with completion in 1804. In 1815/1816, after the

Siege of Fort Wayne The siege of Fort Wayne took place from September 5 – September 12, 1812, during the War of 1812. The stand-off occurred in the modern city of Fort Wayne, Indiana, between the U.S. military garrison at Fort Wayne (fort), Fort Wayne and a combi ...

, a third fort was built here on this site by Major John Whistler.

References

{{Reflist Geography of Fort Wayne, Indiana Protected areas of Allen County, Indiana Parks in Indiana 1863 establishments in Indiana