| Central Park is a large public, urban | | | | District or the Convent of the Sisters |
| park (843 acres or 3.41 km²; a | | | | of Charity. The roughly 1,600 |
| rectangle 2.5 statute miles by 0.5 | | | | working-class residents occupying the |
| statute mile, or 4 km × 800 m) in the | | | | area at the time were evicted under the |
| borough of Manhattan in New York City. | | | | rule of eminent domain during 1857, and |
| With about twenty-five million visitors | | | | Seneca Village and parts of the other |
| annually, Central Park is the most | | | | communities were torn down and removed |
| visited city park in the United | | | | in order to make room for the park. The |
| States,[1] and its appearance in many | | | | person responsible for carrying out the |
| movies and television shows has made it | | | | evictions was the great-great |
| among the most famous city parks in the | | | | grandfather of future New York Yankee |
| world. It is run by the Central Park | | | | Joe Pepitone. |
| Conservancy, a private, not-for-profit | | | | During the construction of the park, |
| organization that manages the park under | | | | Olmsted fought constant battles with the |
| a contract with the New York City | | | | Park Commissioners, many of whom were |
| Department of Parks and Recreation. | | | | appointees of the city's Democratic |
| Central Park is bordered on the north by | | | | machine. In 1860, he was forced out for |
| West 110th Street, on the west by | | | | the first of many times as Central |
| Central Park West, on the south by West | | | | Park's Superintendent, and was replaced |
| 59th Street, and on the east by Fifth | | | | by Andrew Haswell Green, the former |
| Avenue. Along the park's borders, these | | | | president of New York City's Board of |
| streets are usually referred to as | | | | Education took over as the chairman of |
| Central Park North, Central Park West, | | | | the commission. Despite the fact that he |
| and Central Park South, respectively. | | | | had relatively little experience, he |
| (Fifth Avenue retains its name along the | | | | still managed to accelerate the |
| eastern border.) | | | | construction, as well as to finalize the |
| The park was designed by Frederick Law | | | | negotiations for the purchase of an |
| Olmsted and Calvert Vaux, both of whom | | | | additional 65 acres (26 ha) at the north |
| later created Brooklyn's Prospect Park. | | | | end of the park between 106th and 110th |
| While much of the park looks natural, it | | | | Streets, which would be used as the |
| is in fact almost entirely landscaped | | | | 'rugged' part of the park, its swampy |
| and contains several artificial lakes, | | | | northeast corner dredged and |
| extensive walking tracks, two | | | | reconstructed as the natural-seeming |
| ice-skating rinks, a wildlife sanctuary, | | | | Harlem Meer. |
| and grassy areas used for various | | | | Between 1860 and 1873, the construction |
| sporting pursuits, as well as | | | | of the park had come a long way, and |
| playgrounds for children. The park is a | | | | most of the major hurdles had been |
| popular oasis for migrating birds, and | | | | overcome. During this period, more than |
| thus is popular with bird watchers. The | | | | 500,000 cubic feet (14,000 m³) of |
| 6-mile (10 km) road circling the park is | | | | topsoil had been transported in from New |
| popular with joggers, bicyclists and | | | | Jersey, as the original soil wasn't good |
| inline skaters, especially on weekends | | | | enough to sustain the various trees, |
| and in the evenings after 7:00 p.m., | | | | shrubs and the plants the Greensward |
| when automobile traffic is banned. | | | | Plan called for. When the park was |
| History | | | | officially completed in 1873, more than |
| The park was not part of the | | | | ten million cartloads of material, |
| Commissioners' Plan of 1811; however, | | | | including soil and rocks which were to |
| between 1821 and 1855, New York City | | | | be removed from the area had been |
| nearly quadrupled in population. As the | | | | manually dug up, and transported out of |
| city expanded, people were drawn to the | | | | the park. Also included were the more |
| few open spaces, mainly cemeteries, to | | | | than four million trees, shrubs and |
| get away from the noise and chaotic life | | | | plants representing the approximately |
| in the city. Before long, however, New | | | | 1,500 species which were to lay the |
| York City's need for a great public park | | | | foundation for today's park. |
| was voiced by the poet and editor of the | | | | 20th Century |
| then-Evening Post (now the New York | | | | Following the completion of the park, it |
| Post), William Cullen Bryant, and by the | | | | quickly slipped into decline. One of the |
| first American landscape architect, | | | | major reasons for this was the |
| Andrew Jackson Downing, who began to | | | | disinterest of Tammany Hall, the |
| publicize the city's need for a public | | | | political machine which was the largest |
| park in 1844. A stylish place for | | | | political force in New York at the time. |
| open-air driving, like the Bois de | | | | Around the turn of the century, the park |
| Boulogne in Paris or London's Hyde Park, | | | | faced several new challenges. Cars had |
| was felt to be needed by many | | | | been invented and were becoming |
| influential New Yorkers, and in 1853 the | | | | commonplace, bringing with them their |
| New York legislature designated a 700 | | | | burden of pollution. Also, the general |
| acre (2.8 km²) area from 59th to 106th | | | | mental view of the people was beginning |
| Streets for the creation of the park, to | | | | to change. No longer were parks to be |
| a cost of more than US$5 million for the | | | | used only for walks and picnics in an |
| land alone. | | | | idyllic environment, but now also for |
| Initial development | | | | sports, and similar recreation. |
| The State appointed a Central Park | | | | Following the dissolution of the Central |
| Commission to oversee the development of | | | | Park Commission in 1870 and Andrew |
| the park, and in 1857 the commission | | | | Green's departure from the project and |
| held a landscape design contest. Writer | | | | the death of Vaux in 1895, the |
| Frederick Law Olmsted and English | | | | maintenance effort gradually declined, |
| architect Calvert Vaux developed the | | | | and there were few or no attempts to |
| so-called "Greensward Plan", which was | | | | replace dead trees, bushes and plants or |
| selected as the winning design. | | | | worn-out lawn. For several decades, |
| According to Olmsted, the park was "of | | | | authorities did little or nothing to |
| great importance as the first real Park | | | | prevent vandalism and the littering of |
| made in this century—a democratic | | | | the park. |
| development of the highest | | | | All of this changed in 1934, when |
| significance…", a view probably | | | | Fiorello LaGuardia was elected mayor of |
| inspired by his stay, and various trips | | | | New York City and unified the five |
| in Europe in 1850.[2] During that trip | | | | park-related departments then in |
| he visited several parks, and was in | | | | existence, and gave Robert Moses the job |
| particular impressed by Birkenhead Park | | | | of cleaning up. Moses, then about to |
| near Liverpool, England, which opened in | | | | become one of the mightiest men in New |
| 1847 as the first publicly funded park | | | | York City, took over what was |
| in the world. | | | | essentially a relic, a leftover from a |
| Several influences came together in the | | | | bygone era. |
| design. Landscaped cemeteries, such as | | | | According to historian Robert Caro in |
| Mount Auburn (Cambridge, Massachusetts) | | | | his 1974 book The Power Broker, |
| and Green-Wood (Brooklyn, New York) had | | | | Lawns, unseeded, were expanses of bare |
| set an example of idyllic, naturalistic | | | | earth, decorated with scraggly patches |
| landscapes. The most influential | | | | of grass and weeds, that became dust |
| innovations in the Central Park design, | | | | holes in dry weather and mud holes in |
| were the "separate circulation systems" | | | | wet…. The once beautiful Mall looked |
| for pedestrians, horseback riders, and | | | | like a scene of a wild party the morning |
| pleasure vehicles. The "crosstown" | | | | after. Benches lay on their backs, their |
| commercial traffic was entirely | | | | legs jabbing at the sky…. |
| concealed in sunken roadways screened | | | | In a single year, Moses managed to clean |
| with densely planted shrub belts, so as | | | | up not only Central Park, but also other |
| not to disturb the impression of a | | | | parks in New York City; lawns and |
| rustic scene. The Greensward plan called | | | | flowers were replanted, dead trees and |
| for some 36 bridges, all designed by | | | | bushes replaced, walls were sandblasted |
| Vaux, ranging from rugged spans of | | | | and bridges repaired. Major redesigning |
| Manhattan schist or granite, to lacy | | | | and construction was also carried out; |
| neo-gothic cast iron, no two alike. The | | | | for instance, the existing Croton Lower |
| ensemble of the formal line of the | | | | Reservoir was filled-in so the Great |
| Mall's doubled allées of elms | | | | Lawn could be created. The Greensward |
| culminating at Bethesda Terrace, with a | | | | Plan's intention of creating an idyllic |
| composed view beyond of lake and | | | | landscape was combined with Moses' |
| woodland was at the heart of the larger | | | | vision of a park to be used for |
| design. | | | | recreational purposes—nineteen |
| Before the construction of the park | | | | playgrounds, twelve ballfields, and |
| could start, the area had to be cleared | | | | handball courts were constructed. Moses |
| of its inhabitants, most of whom were | | | | also managed to secure funds from the |
| quite poor and either free | | | | New Deal program, as well as donations |
| African-Americans or immigrants of | | | | from the public, thus ensuring that the |
| either German or Irish origin. Most of | | | | park got a new lease of life, prospering |
| them lived in smaller villages, such as | | | | under the wings of a powerful and new |
| Seneca Village, Harsenville, the Piggery | | | | defender. |