#68 Aley Park – 1803 S Seneca
Background: The park was acquired by the Board of Park Commissioners in 1941. J. H. Aley was a Civil War veteran, merchant and civic leader. Mr. Aley was originally from New York and moved to Wichita in 1870. In the spring of 1870, Aley opened Wichita’s first boot and shoe store at 90 N. Main Street.
He sold his prospering business in 1885 to concentrate on his growing insurance company. Along with his businesses Aley was also the Chairman of the Board of the Sedgwick County Commissioners in 1888. In 1889, he hired William Henry Sternberg to design and build a Queen Anne style mansion for $25,000. You can check it out at 505 N. Fairview.. Jacob H. Aley died on March 24, 1895 of anemia at the age of 54 and is buried in Wichita’s Maple Grove Cemetery.
What We Did: We walked around the park and talked about Jeremy’s childhood memories at the pool. With 80’s pop music playing in the background, Jeremy spent several summers splashing at Aley.
After our walk down memory lane, we took a walk around the park and checked out the jungle gym, skater park, tennis courts, and baseball diamonds.
UPDATE; The Aley pool is being turned into a giant splash pad.
Another park named after a tree and a famous street in Georgia.
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