Editing Central Park (section)

==<span class="anchor" id="Geography"></span><span class="anchor" id="Design and layout"></span>Description==
{{Central Park map||zoom=13|width=300|height=300}}

Central Park is bordered by [[110th Street (Manhattan)|Central Park North]] at 110th Street; [[59th Street (Manhattan)|Central Park South]] at [[59th Street (Manhattan)|59th Street]]; [[Eighth Avenue (Manhattan)|Central Park West]] at Eighth Avenue; and [[Fifth Avenue]] on the east. The park is adjacent to the neighborhoods of [[Harlem]] to the north, [[Midtown Manhattan]] to the south, the [[Upper West Side]] to the west, and the [[Upper East Side]] to the east. It measures {{convert|2.5|mi|km}}&nbsp;from north to south and {{convert|0.5|mi|km}}&nbsp;from west to east.<ref name="Conservancy Running Map">{{Cite web|url=http://www.centralparknyc.org/assets/pdfs/maps/CPC_RunningMap_2014.pdf|title=Central Park Running Map|date=2014|publisher=[[Central Park Conservancy]]|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181123062243/http://www.centralparknyc.org/assets/pdfs/maps/CPC_RunningMap_2014.pdf|archive-date=November 23, 2018|access-date=April 1, 2019}}</ref>

===Design and layout===
Central Park is split into three sections: the "North End" extending above the [[Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis Reservoir]]; "Mid-Park", between the reservoir to the north and the [[The Ramble and Lake|Lake]] and [[Conservatory Water]] to the south; and "South End" below the Lake and Conservatory Water.<ref name="central-park-map">{{Cite web |title=Central Park Map |date=2014|publisher=Central Park Conservancy |url=http://www.centralparknyc.org/assets/pdfs/maps/CPC_Map_2014_V2.pdf |access-date=April 1, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191005170140/http://www.centralparknyc.org/assets/pdfs/maps/CPC_Map_2014_V2.pdf|archive-date=October 5, 2019}}</ref> The park has five visitor centers: [[Harlem Meer|Charles A. Dana Discovery Center]], [[Belvedere Castle]], Chess & Checkers House, [[the Dairy]], and [[Columbus Circle]].<ref>{{cite web |title=Central Park Conservancy—Official Central Park Tours|website=NYC The Official Guide |url=https://www.nycgo.com/venues/central-park-conservancy-official-central-park-tours |access-date=April 23, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190423202121/https://www.nycgo.com/venues/central-park-conservancy-official-central-park-tours |archive-date=April 23, 2019|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |publisher=Central Park Conservancy |title=Visitor Centers |url=http://www.centralparknyc.org/visit/visitor-centers.html |access-date=April 23, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190403214655/http://www.centralparknyc.org/visit/visitor-centers.html |archive-date=April 3, 2019}}</ref>

The park has been described as the first landscaped park in the United States.<ref name=CentralParkLargestUrbanAndFirstLandscapedPark>{{cite web|url=https://www.ny.com/articles/centralpark.html|title=History of Central Park, New York|first=Sarah |last=Waxman|publisher=ny.com|access-date=October 28, 2023}}</ref> It has natural-looking plantings and [[landform]]s, having been almost entirely landscaped when built in the 1850s and 1860s.{{sfn|Kinkead|1990|pp=57–58}}{{sfn|Rosenzweig|Blackmar|1992|p=150}} It has eight lakes and ponds that were created artificially by damming natural [[Seep (hydrology)|seeps]] and flows.{{sfn|Kinkead|1990|p=35}} There are several wooded sections, lawns, meadows, and minor grassy areas. There are 21&nbsp;children's [[playground]]s,<ref name="Playgrounds">{{cite web|title=Central Park Playgrounds |publisher=New York City Department of Parks and Recreation |url=https://www.nycgovparks.org/parks/central-park/facilities/playgrounds |access-date=April 13, 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190321200017/https://www.nycgovparks.org/parks/central-park/facilities/playgrounds |archive-date=March 21, 2019|url-status=live}}</ref> and {{convert|6.1|mi|km}} of drives.<ref name="Conservancy Running Map"/><ref name="Conservancy Running">{{cite web|url=http://www.centralparknyc.org/things-to-see-and-do/attractions/running.html |title=Running|publisher=Central Park Conservancy |access-date=April 13, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190413211428/http://www.centralparknyc.org/things-to-see-and-do/attractions/running.html|archive-date=April 13, 2019|url-status=live}}</ref>

Central Park is the [[List of New York City parks|sixth-largest park in New York City]], behind [[Pelham Bay Park]], the [[Staten Island Greenbelt]], [[Freshkills Park]], [[Van Cortlandt Park]], and [[Flushing Meadows–Corona Park]],<ref>{{Cite news |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2013/06/01/nyregion/surveying-effort-alters-sizes-of-some-new-york-parks.html |title=Surveying Effort Alters Sizes of Some New York Parks|last=Foderaro|first=Lisa W|date=May 31, 2013|work=The New York Times|access-date=June 7, 2018|issn=0362-4331|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180612235356/https://www.nytimes.com/2013/06/01/nyregion/surveying-effort-alters-sizes-of-some-new-york-parks.html|archive-date=June 12, 2018 |url-status=live}}</ref> with an area of {{convert|843|acre|ha mi2 km2}}.<ref name="Conservancy">{{cite web|title=About Us|work=Central Park Conservancy |url=http://www.centralparknyc.org/about/about-cpc/|access-date=March 25, 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140326000647/http://www.centralparknyc.org/about/about-cpc/ |archive-date=March 26, 2014}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|title=Frequently Asked Questions |publisher=New York City Department of Parks and Recreation |url=http://www.nycgovparks.org/about/faq |access-date=February 1, 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170220013947/https://www.nycgovparks.org/about/faq |archive-date=February 20, 2017 |url-status=live}}</ref> Central Park constitutes its own United States [[census tract]], numbered 143. According to [[American Community Survey]] five-year estimates, the park was home to four females with a [[median age]] of 19.8.<ref>{{cite web|title=Census Tract 143, New York, NY|publisher=[[U.S. Census Bureau]] |url=https://censusreporter.org/profiles/14000US36061014300-census-tract-143-new-york-ny/ |access-date=July 11, 2006 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180119120140/https://censusreporter.org/profiles/14000US36061014300-census-tract-143-new-york-ny/|archive-date=January 19, 2018|url-status=live}}</ref> Though the [[2010 United States Census]] recorded 25 residents within the census tract, park officials have rejected the claim of anyone permanently living there.<ref>{{cite news|last=Feuer|first=Alan|date=March 25, 2011|work=The New York Times |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2011/03/26/nyregion/26census.html?_r=1&|title=Census Apparently Did Check Behind Every Tree|access-date=April 11, 2019|issn=0362-4331|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181123151319/https://www.nytimes.com/2011/03/26/nyregion/26census.html?_r=1&|archive-date=November 23, 2018|url-status=live}}</ref>

===Visitors===
Central Park is the most visited [[urban park]] in the United States<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.tpl.org/content_documents/ccpe_MostVisitedParks.pdf|title=America's Most Visited City Parks|date=June 2006|publisher=[[The Trust for Public Land]]|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060725034722/http://www.tpl.org/content_documents/ccpe_MostVisitedParks.pdf|archive-date=July 25, 2006|access-date=July 11, 2006}}</ref> and one of the most visited tourist attractions worldwide,<ref>{{cite web|title=The World's Most-visited Tourist Attractions|date=November 10, 2017|work=[[Travel + Leisure]]|url=https://www.travelandleisure.com/slideshows/worlds-most-visited-tourist-attractions |access-date=May 18, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190516193838/https://www.travelandleisure.com/slideshows/worlds-most-visited-tourist-attractions|archive-date=May 16, 2019|url-status=live}}</ref> with 42&nbsp;million visitors in 2016.<ref>{{cite magazine |last=Van Buren|first=Alex|title=12 Secrets of New York's Central Park|magazine=[[Smithsonian (magazine)|Smithsonian]]|date=January 27, 2016|url=https://www.smithsonianmag.com/travel/12-secrets-new-yorks-central-park-180957937/|access-date=May 18, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190520080513/https://www.smithsonianmag.com/travel/12-secrets-new-yorks-central-park-180957937/|archive-date=May 20, 2019|url-status=live}}</ref> The number of unique visitors is much lower; a Central Park Conservancy report conducted in 2011 found that between eight and nine million people visited Central Park, with 37 to 38&nbsp;million visits between them.{{sfn|Central Park Conservancy|2011|p=9}} By comparison, there were 25&nbsp;million visitors in 2009,<ref name="Crain's New York Business 2009"/> and 12.3&nbsp;million in 1973.{{sfn|Central Park Conservancy|2011|p=12}}

The number of tourists as a proportion of total visitors is much lower: in 2009, one-fifth of the 25&nbsp;million park visitors recorded that year were estimated to be tourists.<ref name="Crain's New York Business 2009"/> The 2011 Conservancy report gave a similar ratio of park usage: only 14%&nbsp;of visits are by people visiting Central Park for the first time. According to the report, nearly two-thirds of visitors are regular park users who enter the park at least once weekly, and about 70%&nbsp;of visitors live in New York City. Moreover, peak visitation occurred during summer weekends, and most visitors used the park for passive recreational activities such as walking or sightseeing, rather than for active sport.{{sfn|Central Park Conservancy|2011|p=9}}

{{wide image|26 - New York - Octobre 2008.jpg|900px|Panoramic view of Central Park from [[Rockefeller Center]] in 2008|align-cap=center}}
{{wide image|Centralpark fg01.jpg|900px|Central Park in 2004|align-cap=center}}