Peony Park
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Peony Park was an amusement park located at North 78th and Cass Streets in Omaha, Nebraska. Founded in 1919, over the next seventy-five years the 35-acre (140,000 m2) park included a 4.5-acre (18,000 m2) pool, beach and waterslide, a ballroom that billed itself as "1 acre under one roof," an open air dance area for 3000 dancers, amusement rides, and
various sundries. History
Peony Park was begun by local entrepreneur Joe Malec, Sr. in 1919 as a gas station and restaurant on the Lincoln Highway. Carl Rosenfield's neighboring Peony Gardens were established 35 years earlier, in 1884, with 25 acres (100,000 m2) of peonies in several hundred varieties. When the Gardens became a highway stop along the burgeoning Lincoln Highway, Malec added amusements to this already busy roadside attraction. The park became the official headquarters for the Lawrence Welk Band in the 1930s, which made it immensely popular. Other events included the Coca-Cola Date Night and Polka Days. Originally built outside city limits, the park was annexed by the city of Omaha in 1958. In the 1980s, Omaha's Italian community began holding their annual celebration called La Festa Italiana at the park, and continued until its closure. La Festa is now held at Roncalli High School. Segregation policies
The park was strictly segregated until 1963. Earlier, in 1955, the State of Nebraska took Peony Park to district court over its segregated swimming policy. In State of Nebraska v. Peony Park, the court found that under Nebraska Civil Rights Law Peony Park discriminated against African American swimmers at the Amateur Athletic Union Swimming Meet held at the park on August 27, 1955. During that event, two African American participants were barred from the meet because Peony Park barred them from pool. On September 7, 1955, the court fined Peony Park $50 and costs of the trial. Additional civil suits were settled out of court.
