Daley Park
Encanto Dr. & College Ave.
17 acres
Park Layout
Daley
Park is one of Tempe’s oldest parks. Located at the
intersection of College and Encanto in central Tempe,
Daley Park is a 17 acre gem that has served the
residents of Tempe since the 1950’s. The land for the
park was purchased from Mr. & Mrs. E. W. Hudson for the
grand sum on $10,600 in December of 1950.
At the time of purchase, the City Manager happened to be
a gentleman named Ed Daley. Daley became City Manager
shortly after the Depression and served until his death
on Nov. 17, 1953. Upon his death, the City Council
bestowed the honor of naming the recently acquired park
in his name to honor his years of service to his
community.
Ed
Daley was born in Mesa where he attended school. After
graduation, he moved to California where he worked for a
construction company owned by the Toohey Brothers that
was in the business of building highways. The company
eventually moved their offices to "Old Mexico" but Ed
did not want to relocate his family there.
Ed also
worked for the Christmas Copper Company in the town of
Christmas, Arizona, near the town of Payson. He was
responsible for the mining and food supplies needed for
this underground mine. Although the mine was advertised
as a copper mine, they were actually more interested in
gold that was located there. Like most mining towns,
all of the property and businesses in the town were
owned by the mining company. The mine was closed during
the Great Depression.
Ed
eventually moved his family to Tempe where he served as
City Manager. Ed served for nearly 20 years, one of the
longest tenures for a City Manager in Tempe’s history.
His son, Bud, was also a City employee serving in Fleet
Maintenance until his retirement.
We have a lot to be
thankful for from the Daley’s and their service to Tempe. Let one
of Tempe’s finest parks continue to recognize their contributions
for many generations to come.