Fort Zumwalt Park facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Fort Zumwalt Park |
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Reconstructed Fort Zumwalt, 2017
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| Location | O'Fallon, Missouri |
| Area | 48 acres (19 ha) |
| Built | 1798 (Zumwalt), 1884 (Heald) |
| Rebuilt | 2015 (Zumwalt) |
| Restored | 2001 (Heald) |
| Restored by | O'Fallon Community Foundation |
| Governing body | City of O'Fallon |
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Fort Zumwalt Park is a fun park located in O'Fallon, Missouri. It's special because it has a rebuilt old fort that belonged to a man named Jacob Zumwalt.
The park is quite big, covering 48 acres (19 ha) of land. It includes a 4-acre (1.6 ha) lake called Lake Whetsel, where you can go fishing from February to October. There are also picnic areas, a shelter, and a playground for kids. Every Christmas season, the park lights up with a beautiful drive-through display called the Celebration of Lights. It's also home to the St. Charles Model Railroad Club. The park used to be a state park, but in 1978, the State of Missouri sold it to the City of O'Fallon for just one dollar! The old Heald Home in the park was fixed up in 2001, and Zumwalt's fort was rebuilt and finished in 2015.
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Zumwalt's Original Fort
Jacob Zumwalt built his home on a hill that was part of a large 384-acre (155 ha) land grant. He received this land from the Spanish government in 1796. Jacob Zumwalt was a veteran of the American Revolutionary War. He was one of the few war veterans who settled in St. Charles County, Missouri. His family came from Pennsylvania and lived in Kentucky before moving to Missouri.
Jacob's family helped him build the first part of his home in 1798. More sections were added later. People believe it was the first house made of cut logs north of the Missouri River. It was special with its four rooms, stone foundation, and a double fireplace. The family was Methodist, and the first Methodist service in Missouri happened in their home in 1807.
The home became known as "Zumwalt's Fort." This is because families in the area would gather there for safety. They needed protection from attacks during the War of 1812. There were seven such homestead forts built in St. Charles County. Fighting with Native Americans in the area ended by 1815, after peace treaties were signed nearby.
Jacob Zumwalt had 10 children with two wives. In 1817, he moved to Callaway County, Missouri, where he passed away in 1820.
What Happened After Zumwalt Left?
When Jacob Zumwalt moved, he sold his homestead fort to Nathan and Rebekah Heald in 1817 for $1000. Nathan was a US Army officer who had been discharged due to a disability. Their son, Darius, was born there in 1822. Darius lived in the homestead for most of his life.
The Heald family owned the land for almost 100 years. Then, in 1914, it was sold outside the family. The land was then split among three different owners. The part with the fort was sold to Fred Gentemann, who turned it into a barn.
In 1929, a special marker was placed along nearby U.S. Highway 40 to share the fort's history. This was mainly thanks to two members of the Heald family. In 1936, a historical group asked the state government to buy the land. They wanted to create a state park. The state approved funds in 1937. In 1938, the state bought 40.63 acres (16.44 ha) for the park from three owners for $9,000. This officially made it a state park in 1939.
At first, the state park was mostly used by people from O'Fallon. But over time, it became a popular spot for campers and travelers on U.S. 40 (and later Interstate 70). The main chimney of the fort was rebuilt in 1960. In 1975, archaeologists studied the area around the fort. They found signs that there might have been a smokehouse and a blacksmith shop nearby. In 1978, the state sold the park to the City of O'Fallon for just $1. The city promised to keep it as a public park. In 2005, the O'Fallon Community Foundation started new excavations around the fort.
Rebuilding the Fort and Its Lasting Impact
By 2008, all that was left of Jacob Zumwalt's original home was its stone chimney with two fireplaces. In 2008, the O'Fallon Community Foundation began working to rebuild Zumwalt's home. On September 30, 2009, they celebrated the first part of the reconstruction being finished. The goal was to have all three parts of Zumwalt's log structures rebuilt by 2012. This would have been around the 200th anniversary of the War of 1812. However, there were delays, and the reconstructed fort finally opened in 2015.
The local Fort Zumwalt School District R-II was named after this fort in 1966. The district's first high school was named for the fort back in 1960. Now, four high schools in the district carry the Fort Zumwalt name. In the 1970s, a spring on the property was dammed to create Lake Whetsel. The lake was named after Ed Whetsel, who was a member of the O'Fallon Parks Board.
The Heald Home
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Darius Heald built a new, large brick home near the fort in 1884. He called it "Stony Point." The house has a mix of German and Italian architectural styles. It mainly uses German construction, but has Italian influences in its porch columns and balcony railing.
Darius Heald passed away in 1904. In 1915, a tornado destroyed the upper floor of the house. Before selling the home in 1916, the family rebuilt the upper story using the original bricks. However, the new upper floor was about a foot shorter. A state park superintendent lived in the home in 1959. In 1961, the state removed what was once the Healds' brick smokehouse. Its bricks were taken to Arrow Rock, Missouri, to be used in restoring another historic house. After many years of being used and then not used, the Heald house needed a lot of repairs. It was fully restored in 2001 by the City of O'Fallon and the O'Fallon Community Foundation.
