Save the date and plan to join the celebration of the opening of St. Charles County’s newest park! The opening festivities for Oglesby Park are planned for 11 a.m.-2 p.m., Saturday, July 30, with a dedication ceremony at 11:30 a.m., and fun for the whole family! Oglesby Park is located at 2801 West Meyer Road near Foristell, and offers shelters, natural surface and paved trails, a lake, and a playground.
The 199-acre park is named after Benjamin Oglesby, one of the property’s early owners. Oglesby was born enslaved in 1825 in Bedford, Va., and was brought to Missouri in 1837 at the age of 12 by his owner, Marshall Bird. He worked on a farm near present-day I-70 and Highway W in the Foristell/Wentzville area. In 1864, Oglesby fled captivity and enlisted in the Union Army in St. Charles. He was assigned to the 56th United States Colored Infantry, fought in Arkansas, and was honorably discharged in 1865.
In 1871, Oglesby purchased 146 acres of land in Foristell, and farmed the land that is now Oglesby Park for 30 years. He is buried in Smith Chapel Cemetery, a mile from his farm. The Oglesby children owned the property that is now the park through the 1950s.
Additional plans for the park include moving a 1920s one-room schoolhouse to the property. Oglesby’s descendants attended school there until it was closed in the late 1950s. Douglass School, named after abolitionist Frederick Douglass, is located approximately one mile from Oglesby Park. Future plans include disassembling and reconstructing the schoolhouse to be open for public viewing at the park.
Follow the St. Charles County Parks Facebook Page for updates!