The Michael O'Connor family were among the pioneer settlers of Porter County. Michael O'Connor came from Ireland in 1845, acquired the ground now known as Forest Park in 1850, and operated it as a farm. In 1852 he married Martha Curtis. After the parents died, their children farmed the land. In 1921 some of the land was sold and divided into building lots, and in 1948 Charles J. and Bertha O'Connor sold the last of the original land to the Valparaiso Park District to be maintained as a public park. Many descendants of the O'Connor family live in Valparaiso today.