Central Park

Central Park is an urban park between the Upper West Side and Upper East Side neighborhoods of Manhattan in New York City, and the first landscaped park in the United States. It is the sixth-largest park in the city, containing Template:Convert, and the most visited urban park in the United States, with an estimated 42 million visitors annually Template:As of. It is also one of the most filmed locations in the world.

The creation of a large park in Manhattan was first proposed in the 1840s, and a Template:Convert park approved in 1853. In 1858, landscape architects Frederick Law Olmsted and Calvert Vaux won a design competition for the park with their "Greensward Plan". Construction began in 1857; existing structures, including a majority-Black settlement named Seneca Village, were seized through eminent domain and razed. The park's first areas were opened to the public in late 1858. Additional land at the northern end of Central Park was purchased in 1859, and the park was completed in 1876. After a period of decline in the early 20th century, New York City parks commissioner Robert Moses started a program to clean up Central Park in the 1930s. The Central Park Conservancy, created in 1980 to combat further deterioration in the late 20th century, refurbished many parts of the park starting in the 1980s.

The park's main attractions include the Ramble and Lake, Hallett Nature Sanctuary, the Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis Reservoir, and Sheep Meadow; amusement attractions such as Wollman Rink, Central Park Carousel, and the Central Park Zoo; formal spaces such as the Central Park Mall and Bethesda Terrace; and the Delacorte Theater. The biologically diverse ecosystem has several hundred species of flora and fauna. Recreational activities include carriage-horse and bicycle tours, bicycling, sports facilities, and concerts and events such as Shakespeare in the Park. Central Park is traversed by a system of roads and walkways and is served by public transportation.

Its size and cultural position make it a model for the world's urban parks. Its influence earned Central Park the designations of National Historic Landmark in 1963 and of New York City scenic landmark in 1974. Central Park is owned by the New York City Department of Parks and Recreation but has been managed by the Central Park Conservancy since 1998, under a contract with the municipal government in a public–private partnership. The Conservancy, a non-profit organization, raises Central Park's annual operating budget and is responsible for all basic care of the park.

Description

Central Park is bordered by Central Park North at 110th Street; Central Park South at 59th Street; 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 Template:Convert from north to south and Template:Convert from west to east.<ref name="Conservancy Running Map">Template:Cite web</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 Lake and Conservatory Water to the south; and "South End" below the Lake and Conservatory Water.<ref name="central-park-map">Template:Cite web</ref> The park has five visitor centers: Charles A. Dana Discovery Center, Belvedere Castle, Chess & Checkers House, the Dairy, and Columbus Circle.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

The park has been described as the first landscaped park in the United States.<ref name=CentralParkLargestUrbanAndFirstLandscapedPark>Template:Cite web</ref> It has natural-looking plantings and landforms, having been almost entirely landscaped when built in the 1850s and 1860s.Template:SfnTemplate:Sfn It has eight lakes and ponds that were created artificially by damming natural seeps and flows.Template:Sfn There are several wooded sections, lawns, meadows, and minor grassy areas. There are 21 children's playgrounds,<ref name="Playgrounds">Template:Cite web</ref> and Template:Convert of drives.<ref name="Conservancy Running Map"/><ref name="Conservancy Running">Template:Cite web</ref>

Central Park is the 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>Template:Cite news</ref> with an area of Template:Convert.<ref name="Conservancy">Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</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>Template:Cite web</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>Template:Cite news</ref>

Visitors

Central Park is the most visited urban park in the United States<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> and one of the most visited tourist attractions worldwide,<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> with 42 million visitors in 2016.<ref>Template:Cite magazine</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 million visits between them.Template:Sfn By comparison, there were 25 million visitors in 2009,<ref name="Crain's New York Business 2009"/> and 12.3 million in 1973.Template:Sfn

The number of tourists as a proportion of total visitors is much lower: in 2009, one-fifth of the 25 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% 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% 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.Template:Sfn

Governance

The park is managed and maintained by the Central Park Conservancy, a private, not-for-profit organization, under contract with the New York City Department of Parks and Recreation (NYC Parks).<ref name="Conservancy"/> The president of the Conservancy is the ex officio administrator of Central Park who effectively oversees the work of both the park's private and public employees under the authority of the publicly appointed Central Park Administrator, who reports to both the parks commissioner and the Conservancy's president.<ref name="Conservancy"/> The Central Park Conservancy was founded in 1980 as a nonprofit organization with a citizen board to assist with the city's initiatives to clean up and rehabilitate the park.<ref name="NYTimes-Conservancy-1980"/><ref name="NYDN-Conservancy-1980"/> The Conservancy took over the park's management duties from NYC Parks in 1998, though NYC Parks retained ownership of Central Park.<ref name="NYTimes-Conservancy-1998"/> The conservancy provides maintenance support and staff training programs for other public parks in New York City, and has assisted with the development of new parks such as the High Line and Brooklyn Bridge Park.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

Central Park is patrolled by its own New York City Police Department precinct, the 22nd (Central Park) Precinct,Template:Efn at the 86th Street transverse. The precinct employs both regular police and auxiliary officers.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> The 22nd Precinct has a lower crime rate than in the 1990s, with crimes across all categories having decreased by 81.2% between 1990 and 2023. The precinct saw no murders, three rapes, 23 robberies, nine felony assaults, five burglaries, 48 grand larcenies, and no grand larcenies auto in 2023.<ref name="NYPD 22nd Precinct CS">Template:Cite web</ref> The citywide New York City Parks Enforcement Patrol patrols Central Park, and the Central Park Conservancy sometimes hires seasonal Parks Enforcement Patrol officers to protect certain features such as the Conservatory Garden.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

A free volunteer medical emergency service, the Central Park Medical Unit, operates within Central Park. The unit operates a rapid-response patrol with bicycles, ambulances, and an all-terrain vehicle. Before the unit was established in 1975, municipal EMS often took over 30 minutes to respond to incidents in the park.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

History

Randel's surveying bolt driven into rock

John Randel Jr.'s surveying bolt

Planning

Between 1821 and 1855, New York City's population nearly quadrupled. As the city expanded northward up Manhattan, people were drawn to the few existing open spaces, mainly cemeteries, for passive recreation. These were seen as escapes from the noise and chaotic life in the city, which at the time was almost entirely centered on Lower Manhattan.Template:Sfn The Commissioners' Plan of 1811, the outline for Manhattan's modern street grid, included several smaller open spaces but not Central Park.Template:Sfn As such, John Randel Jr. had surveyed the grounds for the construction of intersections within the modern-day park site. The only remaining surveying bolt from his survey is embedded in a rock north of the present Dairy and the 66th Street transverse, marking the location where West 65th Street would have intersected Sixth Avenue.Template:Sfn<ref>Template:Cite magazine</ref>

Site

Egbert Viele's survey of Central Park

Map of the former Seneca Village from Egbert Ludovicus Viele's survey for Central Park

By the 1840s, members of the city's elite were publicly calling for the construction of a new large park in Manhattan.Template:Sfn<ref name="Reynolds pp. 320-321">Template:Harvnb</ref> At the time, Manhattan's seventeen squares comprised a combined Template:Convert of land, the largest of which was the Template:Convert Battery Park at Manhattan island's southern tip.Template:Sfn These plans were endorsed in 1844 by New York Evening Post editor William Cullen Bryant, and in 1851 by Andrew Jackson Downing, one of the first American landscape designers.<ref name="Reynolds pp. 320-321" />Template:SfnTemplate:Sfn

Mayor Ambrose Kingsland, in a message to the New York City Common Council on May 5, 1851, set forth the necessity and benefits of a large new park and proposed the council move to create such a park. Kingsland's proposal was referred to the council's Committee of Lands, which endorsed the proposal. The committee chose Jones's Wood, a Template:Convert tract of land between 66th and 75th streets on the Upper East Side, as the park's site, as Bryant had advocated for Jones Wood. The acquisition was controversial because of its location, small size relative to other potential uptown tracts, and cost.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref>Template:SfnTemplate:Sfn A bill to acquire Jones's Wood was invalidated as unconstitutional,Template:SfnTemplate:Sfn so attention turned to a second site: a Template:Convert area known as "Central Park", bounded by 59th and 106th streets between Fifth and Eighth avenues.Template:SfnTemplate:Sfn Croton Aqueduct Board president Nicholas Dean, who proposed the Central Park site, chose it because the Croton Aqueduct's Template:Convert, Template:Convert collecting reservoir would be in the geographical center.Template:SfnTemplate:Sfn In July 1853, the New York State Legislature passed the Central Park Act, authorizing the purchase of the present-day site of Central Park.Template:SfnTemplate:Sfn

The board of land commissioners conducted property assessments on more than 34,000 lots in the area,Template:Sfn completing them by July 1855.Template:Sfn While the assessments were ongoing, proposals to downsize the plans were vetoed by mayor Fernando Wood.Template:SfnTemplate:SfnTemplate:Sfn At the time, the site was occupied by free black people and Irish immigrants who had developed a property-owning community there since 1825.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Most of the Central Park site's residents lived in small villages, such as Pigtown;Template:Sfn<ref>Template:Cite magazine</ref> Seneca Village;<ref name="Martin 1997">Template:Cite news</ref> or in the school and convent at Mount St. Vincent's Academy.Template:Sfn Clearing began shortly after the land commission's report was released in October 1855,Template:Sfn<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> and approximately 1,600 residents were evicted under eminent domain.<ref name="Martin 1997"/><ref>Template:Cite web</ref>Template:Sfn Though supporters claimed that the park would cost just $1.7 million,Template:Sfn the total cost of the land ended up being $7.39 million (equivalent to $Template:Formatprice in Template:Inflation-year), more than the price that the United States would pay for Alaska a few years later.Template:Sfn<ref>Template:Cite book</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

Design contest

In June 1856, Fernando Wood appointed a "consulting board" of seven people, headed by author Washington Irving, to inspire public confidence in the proposed development.Template:SfnTemplate:Sfn Wood hired military engineer Egbert Ludovicus Viele as the park's chief engineer, tasking him with a topographical survey of the site.Template:SfnTemplate:Sfn<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> The following April, the state legislature passed a bill to authorize the appointment of four Democratic and seven Republican commissioners,Template:SfnTemplate:Sfn who had exclusive control over the planning and construction process.Template:Sfn<ref name="NYS-1911"/><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> Though Viele had already devised a plan for the park,Template:Sfn the commissioners disregarded it and retained him to complete only the topographical surveys.Template:SfnTemplate:Sfn The Central Park Commission began hosting a landscape design contest shortly after its creation.Template:SfnTemplate:SfnTemplate:Sfn The commission specified that each entry contain extremely detailed specifications, as mandated by the consulting board.Template:SfnTemplate:SfnTemplate:Sfn Thirty-three firms or organizations submitted plans.Template:SfnTemplate:Sfn

In April 1858, the park commissioners selected Frederick Law Olmsted and Calvert Vaux's "Greensward Plan" as the winning design.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>Template:SfnTemplate:Sfn Three other plans were designated as runners-up and featured in a city exhibit.Template:Sfn<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> Unlike many of the other designs, which effectively integrated Central Park with the surrounding city, Olmsted and Vaux's proposal introduced clear separations with sunken transverse roadways.<ref name="Reynolds p. 321">Template:Harvnb</ref>Template:Sfn The plan eschewed symmetry, instead opting for a more picturesque design.<ref name="Reynolds p. 321" />Template:Sfn It was influenced by the pastoral ideals of landscaped cemeteries such as Mount Auburn in Cambridge, Massachusetts, and Green-Wood in Brooklyn.Template:SfnTemplate:Sfn The design was also inspired by Olmsted's 1850 visit to Birkenhead Park in Birkenhead, England,Template:Sfn which is generally acknowledged as the first publicly funded civil park in the world.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>Template:Sfn<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> According to Olmsted, the park was "of great importance as the first real Park made in this country—a democratic development of the highest significance".Template:SfnTemplate:Sfn

Construction

Construction of Central Park's design was executed by a gamut of professionals. Frederick Law Olmsted and Calvert Vaux were the primary designers, assisted by board member Andrew Haswell Green, architect Jacob Wrey Mould, master gardener Ignaz Anton Pilat, and engineer George E. Waring Jr.Template:Sfn<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Olmsted was responsible for the overall plan, while Vaux designed some of the finer details. Mould, who worked frequently with Vaux, designed the Central Park Esplanade and the Tavern on the Green building.Template:Sfn Pilat was the park's chief landscape architect, whose primary responsibility was the importation and placement of plants within the park.Template:SfnTemplate:Sfn A "corps" of construction engineers and foremen, managed by superintending engineer William H. Grant, were tasked with the measuring and constructing architectural features such as paths, roads, and buildings.Template:Sfn<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> Waring was one of the engineers working under Grant's leadership and was in charge of land drainage.Template:SfnTemplate:Sfn

Central Park was difficult to construct because of the generally rocky and swampy landscape.Template:Sfn Around Template:Convert of soil and rocks had to be transported out of the park, and more gunpowder was used to clear the area than was used at the Battle of Gettysburg during the American Civil War.Template:Sfn More than Template:Convert of topsoil were transported from Long Island and New Jersey, because the original soil was neither fertile nor sufficiently substantial to sustain the flora specified in the Greensward Plan.Template:SfnTemplate:Sfn Modern steam-powered equipment and custom tree-moving machines augmented the work of unskilled laborers.Template:Sfn In total, over 20,000 individuals helped construct Central Park.Template:Sfn Because of extreme precautions taken to minimize collateral damage, five laborers died during the project, at a time when fatality rates were generally much higher.Template:Sfn

During the development of Central Park, Superintendent Olmsted hired several dozen mounted police officers, who were classified into two types of "keepers": park keepers and gate keepers.Template:SfnTemplate:SfnTemplate:Sfn The mounted police were viewed favorably by park patrons and were later incorporated into a permanent patrol.Template:Sfn The regulations were sometimes strict.Template:Sfn For instance, prohibited actions included games of chance, speech-making, large congregations such as picnics, or picking flowers or other parts of plants.Template:SfnTemplate:Sfn<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> These ordinances were effective: by 1866, there had been nearly eight million visits and only 110 arrests in the park's history.Template:Sfn

Late 1850s

The Lake in Central Part with a high-rise building in the background

The Lake, one of the first features of Central Park to be completed

In late August 1857, workers began building fences, clearing vegetation, draining the land, and leveling uneven terrain.Template:SfnTemplate:Sfn By the following month, chief engineer Viele reported that the project employed nearly 700 workers.Template:Sfn Olmsted employed workers using day labor, hiring men directly without any contracts and paying them by the day.Template:Sfn Many of the laborers were Irish immigrants or first-or-second generation Irish Americans, and some Germans and Italians;Template:Sfn there were no black or female laborers.Template:SfnTemplate:Sfn The workers were often underpaid,Template:Sfn<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> and workers would often take jobs at other construction projects to supplement their income.Template:Sfn A pattern of seasonal hiring was established, wherein more workers would be hired and paid at higher rates during the summers.Template:Sfn

For several months, the park commissioners faced funding issues,<ref name="NYS-1911">Template:Cite book</ref>Template:Sfn and a dedicated workforce and funding stream was not secured until June 1858.<ref name="NYS-1911"/> The landscaped Upper Reservoir was the only part of the park that the commissioners were not responsible for constructing; instead, the Reservoir would be built by the Croton Aqueduct board. Work on the Reservoir started in April 1858.Template:Sfn The first major work in Central Park involved grading the driveways and draining the land in the park's southern section.Template:Sfn<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> The Lake in Central Park's southwestern section was the first feature to open to the public, in December 1858,Template:Sfn followed by the Ramble in June 1859.Template:SfnTemplate:Sfn The same year, the New York State Legislature authorized the purchase of an additional Template:Convert at the northern end of Central Park, from 106th to 110th Streets.Template:SfnTemplate:Sfn The section of Central Park south of 79th Street was mostly completed by 1860.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>

The park commissioners reported in June 1860 that $4 million had been spent on the construction to date.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> As a result of the sharply rising construction costs, the commissioners eliminated or downsized several features in the Greensward Plan.Template:Sfn Based on claims of cost mismanagement, the New York State Senate commissioned the Swiss engineer Julius Kellersberger to write a report on the park.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> Kellersberger's report, submitted in 1861, stated that the commission's management of the park was a "triumphant success".Template:SfnTemplate:Sfn

1860s

Bethesda Terrace under construction

Bethesda Terrace and Fountain under construction in 1862

File:NSAPINY9 EXTR.jpg

Ice skating in Central Park, 1862 lithograph by Currier and Ives

Olmsted often clashed with the park commissioners, notably with Chief Commissioner Green.Template:SfnTemplate:Sfn Olmsted resigned in June 1862, and Green was appointed to Olmsted's position.<ref name="NYTimes-Green-CP-1897">Template:Cite news</ref>Template:Sfn Vaux resigned in 1863 because of what he saw as pressure from Green.Template:Sfn As superintendent of the park, Green accelerated construction, though having little experience in architecture.<ref name="NYTimes-Green-CP-1897"/> He implemented a style of micromanagement, keeping records of the smallest transactions in an effort to reduce costs.Template:SfnTemplate:Sfn Green finalized the negotiations to purchase the northernmost Template:Convert of the park which was later converted into a "rugged" woodland and the Harlem Meer waterway.<ref name="NYTimes-Green-CP-1897"/>Template:Sfn

When the American Civil War began in 1861, the park commissioners decided to continue building Central Park, since significant parts of the park had already been completed.Template:Sfn Only three major structures were completed during the Civil War: the Music Stand and the Casino restaurant, both later demolished, and the Bethesda Terrace and Fountain.Template:Sfn By late 1861, the park south of 72nd Street had been completed, except for various fences.Template:Sfn Work had begun on the northern section of the park but was complicated by a need to preserve the historic McGowan's Pass.Template:Sfn The Upper Reservoir was completed the following year.Template:Sfn

During this period Central Park began to gain popularity.Template:Sfn One of the main attractions was the "Carriage Parade", a daily display of horse-drawn carriages that traversed the park.Template:SfnTemplate:SfnTemplate:Sfn Park patronage grew steadily: by 1867, Central Park accommodated nearly three million pedestrians, 85,000 horses, and 1.38 million vehicles annually.Template:Sfn The park had activities for New Yorkers of all social classes. While the wealthy could ride horses on bridle paths or travel in horse-drawn carriages, almost everyone was able to participate in sports such as ice-skating or rowing, or listen to concerts at the Mall's bandstand.Template:Sfn

Olmsted and Vaux were re-hired in mid-1865.Template:Sfn Several structures were erected, including the Children's District, the Ballplayers House, and the Dairy in the southern part of Central Park. Construction commenced on Belvedere Castle, Harlem Meer, and structures on Conservatory Water and the Lake.Template:SfnTemplate:Sfn

1870–1876: completion

People on horseback and riding in carriages in the park

Gentry in the new park, Template:Circa 1870

The Tammany Hall political machine, which was the largest political force in New York at the time, was in control of Central Park for a brief period beginning in April 1870.Template:Sfn A new charter created by Tammany boss William M. Tweed abolished the old 11-member commission and replaced it with one with five men composed of Green and four other Tammany-connected figures.Template:SfnTemplate:Sfn Subsequently, Olmsted and Vaux resigned again from the project in November 1870.Template:Sfn After Tweed's embezzlement was publicly revealed in 1871, leading to his imprisonment, Olmsted and Vaux were re-hired, and the Central Park Commission appointed new members who were mostly in favor of Olmsted.Template:Sfn

One of the areas that remained relatively untouched was the underdeveloped western side of Central Park, though some large structures would be erected in the park's remaining empty plots.<ref name="NYTimes-Improvement-1872">Template:Cite news</ref> By 1872, Manhattan Square had been reserved for the American Museum of Natural History, founded three years before at the Arsenal. A corresponding area on the East Side, originally intended as a playground, would later become the Metropolitan Museum of Art.<ref name="NYTimes-Improvement-1872"/>Template:Sfn In the final years of Central Park's construction, Vaux and Mould designed several structures for Central Park. The park's sheepfold (now Tavern on the Green) and Ladies' Meadow were designed by Mould in 1870–1871, followed by the administrative offices on the 86th Street transverse in 1872.Template:Sfn Even though Olmsted and Vaux's partnership was dissolved by the end of 1872,Template:Sfn the park was not officially completed until 1876.Template:Sfn

Late 19th and early 20th centuries: first decline

Belvedere Castle

Belvedere Castle, completed 1869

The tree-lined mall with people walking and others seated on benches on either side

Lower end of the mall, seen in 1901

By the 1870s, the park's patrons increasingly came to include the middle and working class, and strict regulations were gradually eased, such as those against public gatherings.Template:Sfn Because of the heightened visitor count, neglect by the Tammany administration, and budget cuts demanded by taxpayers, the maintenance expenses for Central Park had reached a nadir by 1879.Template:SfnTemplate:Sfn Olmsted blamed politicians, real estate owners, and park workers for Central Park's decline, though high maintenance costs were also a factor.Template:Sfn By the 1890s, the park faced several challenges: cars were becoming commonplace, and with the proliferation of amusements and refreshment stands, people were beginning to see the park as a recreational attraction.Template:SfnTemplate:Sfn The 1904 opening of the New York City Subway displaced Central Park as the city's predominant leisure destination, as New Yorkers could travel to farther destinations such as Coney Island beaches or Broadway theaters for a five-cent fare.Template:Sfn

In the late 19th century the landscape architect Samuel Parsons took the position of New York City parks superintendent. A onetime apprentice of Calvert Vaux,Template:Sfn Parsons helped restore the nurseries of Central Park in 1886.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> Parsons closely followed Olmsted's original vision for the park, restoring Central Park's trees while blocking the placement of several large statues in the park.Template:Sfn Under Parsons' leadership, two circles (now Duke Ellington and Frederick Douglass Circles) were constructed at the northern corners of the park.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>Template:Sfn He was removed in May 1911 following a lengthy dispute over whether an expense to replace the soil in the park was unnecessary.Template:Sfn<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> A succession of Tammany-affiliated Democratic mayors were indifferent toward Central Park.Template:Sfn

Several park advocacy groups were formed in the early 20th century. To preserve the park's character, the citywide Parks and Playground Association, and a consortium of multiple Central Park civic groups operating under the Parks Conservation Association, were formed in the 1900s and 1910s.Template:Sfn These associations advocated against such changes to the park as the construction of a library,<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> sports stadium,<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> a cultural center,<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> and an underground parking lot.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> A third group, the Central Park Association, was created in 1926.Template:Sfn The Central Park Association and the Parks and Playgrounds Association were merged into the Park Association of New York City two years later.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>

The Heckscher Playground—named after philanthropist August Heckscher, who donated the play equipment—opened near its southern end in 1926,<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>Template:Sfn and quickly became popular with poor immigrant families.Template:Sfn The following year, Mayor Jimmy Walker commissioned landscape designer Hermann W. Merkel to create a plan to improve Central Park.Template:Sfn Merkel's plans would combat vandalism and plant destruction, rehabilitate paths, and add eight new playgrounds, at a cost of $1 million.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>Template:Sfn One of the suggested modifications, underground irrigation pipes, were installed soon after Merkel's report was submitted.Template:Sfn<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> The other improvements outlined in the report, such as fences to mitigate plant destruction, were postponed due to the Great Depression.Template:Sfn

1930s to 1950s: Moses rehabilitation

File:Fountain on the mall in Central Park on Sunday 8d22217v.jpg

Central Park in September 1942

In 1934, Republican Fiorello La Guardia was elected mayor of New York City. He unified the five park-related departments then in existence. Newly appointed city parks commissioner Robert Moses was given the task of cleaning up the park, and he summarily fired many of the Tammany-era staff.Template:Sfn At the time, the lawns were filled with weeds and dust patches, while many trees were dying or already dead. Monuments had been vandalized, equipment and walkways were broken, and ironwork was rusted.Template:SfnTemplate:Sfn Moses's biographer Robert Caro later said, "The once beautiful Mall looked like a scene of a wild party the morning after. Benches lay on their backs, their legs jabbing at the sky..."Template:Sfn

During the following year, the city's parks department replanted lawns and flowers, replaced dead trees and bushes, sandblasted walls, repaired roads and bridges, and restored statues.Template:SfnTemplate:SfnTemplate:Sfn The park menagerie was transformed into the modern Central Park Zoo, and a rat extermination program was instituted within the zoo.Template:Sfn Another dramatic change was Moses' removal of the "Hoover valley" shantytown at the north end of Turtle Pond, which became the Template:Convert Great Lawn.Template:SfnTemplate:Sfn The western part of the Pond at the park's southeast corner became an ice skating rink called Wollman Rink,Template:Sfn roads were improved or widened,Template:Sfn and twenty-one playgrounds were added.Template:Sfn These projects used funds from the New Deal program, and donations from the public.Template:Sfn Moses removed Sheep Meadow's sheep to make way for the Tavern on the Green restaurant.Template:Sfn<ref name="NYTimes-Sheep-1934">Template:Cite news</ref>

Renovations in the 1940s and 1950s include a restoration of the Harlem Meer completed in 1943,<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> and a new boathouse completed in 1954.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref name="Loeb Boat House 1939">Template:Cite web</ref><ref name="Conservancy Loeb Boathouse">Template:Cite web</ref> Moses began construction on several other recreational features in Central Park, such as playgrounds and ball fields.Template:Sfn One of the more controversial projects proposed during this time was a 1956 dispute over a parking lot for Tavern in the Green. The controversy placed Moses, an urban planner known for displacing families for other large projects around the city, against a group of mothers who frequented a wooded hollow at the site of a parking lot.Template:Sfn<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> Though opposed by the parents, Moses approved the destruction of part of the hollow. Demolition work commenced after Central Park was closed for the night and was only halted after the threat of a lawsuit.Template:Sfn<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>

1960s and 1970s: "Events Era" and second decline

Moses left his position in May 1960. No park commissioner since then has been able to exercise the same degree of power, nor did NYC Parks remain in as stable a position in the aftermath of his departure. Eight commissioners held the office in the twenty years following his departure.Template:Sfn The city experienced economic and social changes, with some residents moving to the suburbs.Template:Sfn<ref name="centralparknyc history2">Template:Cite web</ref> Interest in Central Park's landscape had long since declined, and it was now mostly being used for recreation.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> Several unrealized additions were proposed for Central Park in that decade, such as a public housing development,<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> a golf course,<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> and a "revolving world's fair".<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>

The 1960s marked the beginning of an "Events Era" in Central Park that reflected the widespread cultural and political trends of the period.Template:Sfn The Public Theater's annual Shakespeare in the Park festival was settled in the Delacorte Theater,<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> and summer performances were instituted on the Sheep Meadow and the Great Lawn by the New York Philharmonic Orchestra and the Metropolitan Opera.Template:Refn During the late 1960s, the park became the venue for rallies and cultural events such as the "love-ins" and "be-ins" of the period.Template:Sfn The same year, Lasker Rink opened in the northern part of the park; the facility served as an ice rink in winter and Central Park's only swimming pool in summer.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>

By the mid-1970s, managerial neglect resulted in a decline in park conditions. A 1973 report noted that the park suffered from severe erosion and tree decay, and that individual structures were being vandalized or neglected.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> The Central Park Community Fund was subsequently created based on the recommendation of a report from a Columbia University professor.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> The Fund then commissioned a study of the park's management and suggested the appointment of both a NYC Parks administrator and a board of citizens.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> In 1979, Parks Commissioner Gordon Davis established the Office of Central Park Administrator and appointed Elizabeth Barlow, the executive director of the Central Park Task Force, to the position.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref name="Slagle 1983">Template:Cite news</ref> The Central Park Conservancy, a nonprofit organization with a citizen board, was founded the following year.<ref name="NYTimes-Conservancy-1980">Template:Cite news</ref><ref name="NYDN-Conservancy-1980">Template:Cite news</ref>

1970s to 2000s: restoration

Under the leadership of the Central Park Conservancy, the park's reclamation began by addressing needs that could not be met within NYC Parks' existing resources. The Conservancy hired interns and a small restoration staff to reconstruct and repair unique rustic features, undertaking horticultural projects, and removing graffiti under the broken windows theory which advocated removing visible signs of decay.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> The first structure to be renovated was the Dairy, which reopened as the park's first visitor center in 1979.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> The Sheep Meadow, which reopened the following year, was the first landscape to be restored.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> Bethesda Terrace and Fountain, the USS Maine National Monument, and the Bow Bridge were also rehabilitated.<ref>Template:Cite journal</ref><ref>Template:Cite journal</ref><ref name="Carmody 1981">Template:Cite news</ref> By then, the Conservancy was engaged in design efforts and long-term restoration planning,<ref name="Carmody 1984">Template:Cite news</ref> and in 1981, Davis and Barlow announced a 10-year, $100 million "Central Park Management and Restoration Plan".<ref name="Carmody 1981"/> The long-closed Belvedere Castle was renovated and reopened in 1983,<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> while the Central Park Zoo closed for a full reconstruction that year.<ref name="Slagle 1983"/><ref name="Carmody 1984"/> To reduce the maintenance effort, large gatherings such as free concerts were canceled.Template:Sfn

On completion of the planning stage in 1985, the Conservancy launched its first campaign<ref name="centralparknyc history2"/> and mapped out a 15-year restoration plan.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> Over the next several years, the campaign restored landmarks in the southern part of the park, such as Grand Army Plaza<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> and the police station at the 86th Street transverse;<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> while Conservatory Garden in the northeastern corner of the park was restored to a design by Lynden B. Miller.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref>Template:Sfn Real estate developer Donald Trump renovated the Wollman Rink in 1987 after plans to renovate it were delayed repeatedly.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> The following year, the Zoo reopened after a $35 million, four-year renovation.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>

Work on the northern end of the park began in 1989.<ref name="Howe 1993">Template:Cite news</ref> A$51 million campaign, announced in 1993,<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> resulted in the restoration of bridle trails,<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> the Mall,Template:Sfn the Harlem Meer,<ref name="Kennedy 1993">Template:Cite news</ref> and the North Woods,<ref name="Howe 1993"/> and the construction of the Dana Discovery Center on the Harlem Meer.<ref name="Kennedy 1993"/> This was followed by the Conservancy's overhaul of the Template:Convert near the Great Lawn and Turtle Pond, which was completed in 1997.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> The Upper Reservoir was decommissioned as a part of the city's water supply system in 1993,Template:Sfn<ref name="nyt19930506">Template:Cite news</ref> and was renamed after former U.S. first lady Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis the next year.Template:Sfn<ref name="nyt19940723">Template:Cite news</ref> During the mid-1990s, the Conservancy hired additional volunteers and implemented a zone-based system of management throughout the park.<ref name="centralparknyc history2"/> The Conservancy assumed much of the park's operations in early 1998.<ref name="NYTimes-Conservancy-1998">Template:Cite news</ref>

Renovations continued through the first decade of the 21st century, and a project to restore the pond was commenced in 2000.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> Four years later, the Conservancy replaced a chain-link fence with a replica of the original cast-iron fence that surrounded the Upper Reservoir.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> It started refurbishing the ceiling tiles of the Bethesda Arcade,<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> which was completed in 2007.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Soon after, the Central Park Conservancy began restoring the Ramble and Lake,<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> in a project that was completed in 2012.Template:Sfn Bank Rock Bridge was restored,<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref> and the Gill, which empties into the lake, was reconstructed to approximate its dramatic original form.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> The final feature to be restored was the East Meadow, which was rehabilitated in 2011.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

2010s to present

In 2014, the New York City Council proposed a study on the viability of banning vehicular traffic from the park's drives.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> The next year, mayor Bill de Blasio announced that West and East drives north of 72nd Street would be closed to vehicular traffic, because the city's data showed that closing the roads did not adversely impact traffic flows.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Subsequently, in June 2018, the remaining drives south of 72nd Street were closed to vehicular traffic.<ref name="Walker 2018">Template:Cite web</ref><ref name="ABC-Car-free-2018">Template:Cite web</ref> Several structures were also renovated in the 2010s. Belvedere Castle was closed in 2018 for an extensive renovation, reopening in June 2019.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Later in 2018, it was announced that the Delacorte Theater would be closed from 2020 to 2022 for a $110 million rebuild.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> The Central Park Conservancy further announced that Lasker Rink would be closed for a $150 million renovation;<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> demolition of the existing rink began in 2021.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Davis Center, which replaced the old Lasker Rink, was completed in April 2025.<ref name="Clark q158">Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref>

In March 2020, in response to the coronavirus pandemic, temporary field hospitals were set up within the park to treat overflow patients from area hospitals.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref> By mid-2023, the New York City government was considering erecting tents in Central Park to temporarily house asylum seekers. This move came after the federal government repealed an order authorizing Title 42 expulsions of migrants, which had been implemented during the COVID-19 pandemic.<ref name=nyt-2023-05-08>Template:Cite news</ref><ref name="Gloria Pazmino 2023">Template:Cite web</ref> A renovation of the Chess and Checkers House was completed in June 2023,<ref name="Wassef 2023 d709">Template:Cite web</ref> and a renovation of the Delacorte Theater began later that year.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> In addition, pickleball courts were added to Wollman Rink in 2023 and became permanent the next year.<ref name="Rahmanan 2024 a309">Template:Cite web</ref><ref name="Barron 2024 n969">Template:Cite web</ref> The Central Park Conservancy allocated $64 million in early 2024 to fix sidewalks on 108 blocks immediately surrounding the park.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> Later that year, the conservancy announced plans to redesign the park's drives to provide bike lanes and pedestrian paths of consistent width.<ref name="Spivack q670">Template:Cite web</ref><ref name="Barron t309">Template:Cite web</ref> A report by the conservancy also recommended constructing bike lanes on the 86th Street transverse, as well as removing traffic lights from the park, which served little purpose due to the lack of vehicular traffic.<ref name="Barron t309" />

Landscape features

Geology

East side of Rat Rock with high rise buildings in the background

East side of Rat Rock

There are four different types of bedrock in Manhattan. In Central Park, Manhattan schist and Hartland schist, which are both metamorphosed sedimentary rock, are exposed in various outcroppings. The other two types, Fordham gneiss (an older deeper layer) and Inwood marble (metamorphosed limestone which overlays the gneiss), do not surface in the park.Template:SfnTemplate:SfnTemplate:Sfn Fordham gneiss, which consists of metamorphosed igneous rocks, was formed a billion years ago, during the Grenville orogeny that occurred during the creation of an ancient super-continent. Manhattan schist and Hartland schist were formed in the Iapetus Ocean during the Taconic orogeny in the Paleozoic era, about 450 million years ago, when the tectonic plates began to merge to form the supercontinent Pangaea.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Cameron's Line, a fault zone that traverses Central Park on an east–west axis, divides the outcroppings of Hartland schist to the south and Manhattan schist to the north.Template:Sfn

Various glaciers have covered the area of Central Park in the past, with the most recent being the Wisconsin glacier which receded about 12,000 years ago. Evidence of past glaciers can be seen throughout the park in the form of glacial erratics (large boulders dropped by the receding glacier) and north–south glacial striations visible on stone outcroppings.Template:Sfn<ref name="Broad 2018">Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Alignments of glacial erratics, called "boulder trains", are present throughout Central Park.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> The most notable of these outcroppings is Rat Rock (also known as Umpire Rock), a circular outcropping at the southwestern corner of the park.<ref name="Broad 2018"/>Template:Sfn It measures Template:Convert wide and Template:Convert tall with different east, west, and north faces.Template:Sfn<ref name="Bleyer 2007">Template:Cite web</ref> Boulderers sometimes congregate there.<ref name="Bleyer 2007"/> A single glacial pothole with yellow clay is near the southwest corner of the park.Template:SfnTemplate:Sfn

The underground geology of Central Park was altered by the construction of several subway lines underneath it, and by the New York City Water Tunnel No. 3 approximately Template:Convert underground. Excavations for the project have uncovered pegmatite, feldspar, quartz, biotite, and several metals.Template:Sfn

Wooded areas and lawns

Trees and a pathway in the Ramble

Wooded area of The Ramble and Lake

There are three wooded areas in Central Park: North Woods, the Ramble, and Hallett Nature Sanctuary.Template:Sfn North Woods, the largest of the woodlands, is at the northwestern corner of Central Park.Template:Sfn<ref name="Plitt 2017">Template:Cite web</ref><ref name="Conservancy North Woods">Template:Cite web</ref> It covers about Template:Convert adjacent to North Meadow.Template:Sfn The name sometimes applies to other attractions in the park's northern end; these adjacent features plus the area of North Woods can be Template:Convert.<ref name="Howe 1993"/> North Woods contains the Template:Convert Ravine, a forest with deciduous trees on its northwestern slope, and the Loch, a small stream that winds diagonally through North Woods.<ref name="Conservancy North Woods"/>Template:Sfn<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

The Ramble is in the southern third of the park next to the Lake.<ref name="central-park-map"/>Template:Sfn<ref name="Conservancy Ramble">Template:Cite web</ref> Covering Template:Convert, it contains a series of winding paths.<ref name="Conservancy Ramble"/> The area contains a diverse selection of vegetation and other flora, which attracts a plethora of birds.Template:Sfn<ref name="Conservancy Ramble"/> At least 250 species of birds have been spotted in the Ramble over the years.<ref name="Conservancy Ramble"/><ref name="Kilgannon 2011">Template:Cite web</ref> Historically, the Ramble was known as a place for private homosexual encounters due to its seclusion.<ref name="Foderaro 2012">Template:Cite web</ref>

The Hallett Nature Sanctuary is at the southeastern corner of Central Park.<ref name="central-park-map"/>Template:SfnTemplate:Sfn It is the smallest wooded area at Template:Convert.<ref name="Conservancy Hallett">Template:Cite web</ref> Originally known as the Promontory, it was renamed after civic activist and birder George Hervey Hallett Jr. in 1986.Template:Sfn<ref name="Conservancy Hallett"/><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> The Hallett Sanctuary was closed to the public in the 1930s, and it was renovated and restored starting in 2001.<ref name="Smith 2016 d959">Template:Cite web</ref> The sanctuary opened for periodic guided tours in 2013 and for public open hours in 2016.<ref name="Smith 2016 d959"/><ref>Template:Cite news</ref>

The Central Park Conservancy classifies its remaining green space into four types of lawns, labeled alphabetically based on usage and the amount of maintenance needed. There are seven high-priority "A Lawns", collectively covering Template:Convert, that are heavily used: Sheep Meadow, Great Lawn, North Meadow, East Meadow, Conservatory Garden, Heckscher Ballfields, and the Lawn Bowling and Croquet Greens near Sheep Meadow. These are permanently surrounded by fences, are constantly maintained, and are closed during the off-season. Another 16 lawns, covering Template:Convert, are classed as "B Lawns" and are fenced off only during off-seasons, while an additional Template:Convert are "C Lawns" and are only occasionally fenced off. The lowest-prioritized type of turf, "D Lawns", cover Template:Convert and are open year-round with few barriers or access restrictions.Template:Sfn

Watercourses

Central Park is home to numerous bodies of water.Template:Sfn<ref name="Reynolds p. 321" /> The northernmost lake, Harlem Meer, is near the northeastern corner of the park and covers nearly Template:Convert.<ref name="Harlem Meer">Template:Cite web</ref>Template:Sfn Located in a wooded area of oak, cypress, and beech trees, it was named after Harlem, one of Manhattan's first suburban communities, and was built after the completion of the southern portion of the park. Harlem Meer allows catch and release fishing.<ref name="Harlem Meer"/> It is fed by two interconnected water features: the Pool, a pond within the North Woods fed by drinking water,<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> and the Loch, a small stream with three cascades that winds through the North Woods.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>Template:Sfn These are all adapted from a single watercourse called Montayne's Rivulet, originally fed from a natural spring but later replenished by the city's water system.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>Template:Sfn Lasker Rink is above the mouth of the Loch where it drains into the Harlem Meer.Template:Sfn<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>

South of Harlem Meer and the Pool is Central Park's largest lake, the Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis Reservoir, known as the Central Park Reservoir before 1994.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> It was constructed between 1858 and 1862. Covering an area of Template:Convert between 86th and 96th streets, the reservoir reaches a depth of more than Template:Convert in places and contains about Template:Convert of water.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>Template:Sfn The Onassis Reservoir was created as a new, landscaped storage reservoir to the north of the Croton Aqueduct's rectangular receiving reservoir.Template:Sfn Because of the Onassis Reservoir's shape, East Drive was built as a straight path, with little clearance between the reservoir to the west and Fifth Avenue to the east.Template:Sfn It was decommissioned in 1993Template:Sfn<ref name="nyt19930506"/> and renamed after Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis the following year, after her death.Template:Sfn<ref name="nyt19940723"/>

The Turtle Pond is at the southern edge of the Great Lawn. The pond was originally part of the Croton receiving reservoir.<ref name="Turtle Pond">Template:Cite web</ref>Template:Sfn The receiving reservoir was drained starting in 1930,Template:Sfn<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> and the dry reservoir bed was temporarily used as a homeless encampment when filling stopped during the Great Depression.Template:SfnTemplate:Sfn<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> The Great Lawn was completed in 1937 on the site of the reservoir.Template:Sfn Until 1987, it was known as Belvedere Lake, after the castle at its southwestern corner.<ref name="Turtle Pond"/>Template:Sfn

The Lake, south of the 79th Street transverse, covers nearly Template:Convert.<ref name="The Lake">Template:Cite web</ref> Originally, it was part of the Sawkill Creek, which flowed near the American Museum of Natural History.Template:SfnTemplate:Sfn The Lake was among the first features to be completed, opening to skaters in December 1858.Template:Sfn It was intended to accommodate boats in the summer and ice skaters in winter.Template:Sfn<ref name="The Lake"/> The Loeb Boathouse, on the eastern shore of the Lake, rents out rowboats, kayaks, and gondolas, and houses a restaurant.<ref name="Loeb Boat House 1939"/><ref name="Conservancy Loeb Boathouse"/>Template:Sfn The Lake is spanned by Bow Bridge at its center,Template:Sfn and its northern inlet, Bank Rock Bay, is spanned by the Bank Rock or Oak Bridge.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>Template:Sfn Ladies' Pond, spanned by two bridges on the western end of the Lake, was infilled in the 1930s.Template:Sfn

Directly east of the Lake is Conservatory Water,<ref name="central-park-map"/> on the site of an unbuilt formal garden.Template:Sfn The shore of Conservatory Water contains the Kerbs Memorial Boathouse,<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> where patrons can rent and navigate model boats.Template:Sfn<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref>

In the park's southeast corner is the Pond, with an area of Template:Convert.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>Template:Sfn The Pond was adapted from part of the former DeVoor's Mill Stream, which used to flow into the East River at the modern-day neighborhood of Turtle Bay.Template:Sfn<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> The western section of the Pond was converted into Wollman Rink in 1950.Template:SfnTemplate:Sfn<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>

Wildlife

Central Park is biologically diverse. A 2013 survey of park species by William E. Macaulay Honors College found 571 total species,<ref name="Foderaro 2013">Template:Cite news</ref><ref name="Macaulay BioBlitz">Template:Cite web</ref> including 173 species that were not previously known to live there.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

Flora

According to a 2011 survey, Central Park had more than 20,000 trees,<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref name="Conservancy Trees2">Template:Cite web</ref> representing a decrease from the 26,000 trees that were recorded in the park in 1993.<ref name="Pollak 2013">Template:Cite news</ref> The majority of them are native to New York City, but there are several clusters of non-native species.Template:Sfn With few exceptions, the trees in Central Park were mostly planted or placed manually. Over four million trees, shrubs, and plants representing approximately 1,500 species were planted or imported to the park.Template:Sfn In Central Park's earliest years, two plant nurseries were maintained within the park boundaries: a demolished nursery near the Arsenal, and the still-extant Conservatory Garden.Template:Sfn Central Park Conservancy later took over regular maintenance of the park's flora, allocating gardeners to one of 49 "zones" for maintenance purposes.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

Central Park contains ten "great tree" clusters that are specially recognized by NYC Parks. These include four individual American elms and one American elm grove; the 600 pine trees in the Arthur Ross Pinetum; a black tupelo in the Ramble; 35 Yoshino cherries on the east side of the Onassis Reservoir; one of the park's oldest London planes at 96th Street; and a Tetradium (formerly Euodia) at Heckscher Playground.Template:Sfn<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> The American elms in Central Park are the largest remaining stands in the Northeastern United States, protected by their isolation from the Dutch elm disease that devastated the tree throughout its native range.<ref name="Pollak 2013"/> There are several "tree walks" that run through Central Park.<ref name="Conservancy Trees2"/>

Fauna

Female northern cardinal perched on a branch looking to its left

Female northern cardinal, one of the bird species found in Central Park

Central Park contains various migratory birds during their spring and fall migration on the Atlantic Flyway.Template:Sfn The first official list of birds observed in Central Park, which numbered 235 species, was published in Forest and Stream in 1886 by Augustus G. Paine Jr. and Lewis B. Woodruff.<ref>Template:Cite magazine</ref><ref>Template:Cite magazine</ref> Overall, 303 bird species have been seen in the park since the first official list of records was published,Template:Sfn and an estimated 200 species are spotted every season.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> No single group is responsible for tracking Central Park's bird species.Template:Sfn Some of the more famous birds include a male red-tailed hawk called Pale Male, who made his perch on an apartment building overlooking Central Park in 1991.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref> A mandarin duck nicknamed Mandarin Patinkin received international media attention in late 2018 and early 2019<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> due to its colorful appearance and the species' presence outside its native range in East Asia.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Another bird, an Eurasian eagle-owl named Flaco, gained attention in 2023 when he escaped from the Central Park Zoo after his enclosure was vandalized.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> More infamously, Eugene Schieffelin released 100 imported European starlings in Central Park in 1890–1891, which led to them becoming an invasive species across North America.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

Central Park has approximately ten species of mammals Template:As of.<ref name="Macaulay BioBlitz"/> Bats, a nocturnal order, have been found in dark crevices.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Because of the prevalence of raccoons, the Parks Department posts rabies advisories.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> Eastern gray squirrels, eastern chipmunks, and Virginia opossums inhabit the park.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> A 2019 squirrel census found there were 2,373 Eastern gray squirrels in Central Park.<ref>Template:Unbulleted list citebundle</ref> Central Park has also been home to coyotes.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

There are 223 invertebrate species in Central Park.<ref name="Macaulay BioBlitz" /> Nannarrup hoffmani, a centipede species discovered in Central Park in 2002, is one of the smallest centipedes in the world at about Template:Convert long.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> The more prevalent Asian long-horned beetle is an invasive species that has infected trees in Long Island and Manhattan, including in Central Park.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

Turtles, fish, and frogs live in Central Park.<ref name="Macaulay BioBlitz"/> There are five turtle species: red-eared sliders, snapping turtles, painted turtles, musk turtles, and box turtles.<ref name="Turtle Pond"/> Most of the turtles live in Turtle Pond, and many of these are former pets that were released into the park.<ref name="Foderaro 2013"/> The fish are scattered more widely, but they include several freshwater species,<ref name="NYS Dept. of Environmental Conservation 2014">Template:Cite web</ref> such as the snakehead, an invasive species.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Catch and release fishing is allowed in the Lake, Pond, and Harlem Meer.<ref name="NYS Dept. of Environmental Conservation 2014"/><ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Central Park is a habitat for two amphibian species: the American bullfrog and the green frog.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref> The park contained snakes in the late 19th century,<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> though Marie Winn, who wrote about wildlife in Central Park, said in a 2008 interview that the snakes had died off.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

Landmarks and structures

Plazas and entrances

The USS Maine National Monument

The USS Maine National Monument at Merchants' Gate in the park

Central Park is surrounded by a Template:Convert, Template:Convert stone wall. It initially contained 18 unnamed gates.Template:Sfn In April 1862, the Central Park commissioners adopted a proposal to name each gate with "the vocations to which this city owes its metropolitan character", such as miners, scholars, artists, or hunters.Template:Sfn<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> The park grew to contain 20 named gates by the late 20th century,<ref name="Conservancy Gates"/>Template:Sfn four of which are accessed from plazas at each corner of the park.<ref name="central-park-map"/><ref name="Conservancy Gates">Template:Cite web</ref> No named gates were added between 1862 and 2022,<ref name="Small 2022 x115">Template:Cite web</ref> when the Gate of the Exonerated at Lenox Avenue and Central Park North was dedicated in honor of the Central Park Five.<ref name="Kristina Sgueglia 2022 i926">Template:Cite web</ref>

Columbus Circle is a circular plaza at the southwestern corner, at the junction of Central Park West/Eighth Avenue, Broadway, and 59th Street (Central Park South).<ref name="central-park-map"/><ref name=":14a">Template:Cite web</ref> Built in the 1860s,<ref name=":14a"/> it contains the Merchant's Gate entrance to the park,<ref name="Conservancy Gates"/> and its largest feature is the 1892 Columbus Monument<ref name=":14a"/><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> and was the subject of controversies in the 2010s.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> The 1913 USS Maine National Monument is just outside the park entrance.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>

The square Grand Army Plaza is on the southeastern corner, at the junction with Fifth Avenue and 59th Street.<ref name="central-park-map"/> Its largest feature is the Pulitzer Fountain, which was completed in 1916 along with the plaza itself.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> The plaza contains the William Tecumseh Sherman statue, dedicated in 1903.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

Duke Ellington Circle, at the northeastern corner, forms the junction between Fifth Avenue and Central Park North/110th Street.<ref name="central-park-map"/> It contains the Duke Ellington Memorial, dedicated in 1997.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Duke Ellington Circle is adjacent to the Pioneers' Gate.<ref name="Conservancy Gates"/>

Frederick Douglass Circle is on the northwestern corner, at the junction with Central Park West/Eighth Avenue and Central Park North/110th Street.<ref name="central-park-map"/> It was named for Douglass in 1950.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> The center of the circle contains a memorial to Frederick Douglass, dedicated in 2011.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

Structures

Main facade of the Metropolitan Museum of Art

Metropolitan Museum of Art's Fifth Avenue building

Bethesda Terrace and Fountain with people walking on the Central Park Mall

Bethesda Terrace and Fountain

A stone bridge above a lake, with autumn foliage on either side

Gapstow Bridge in fall

The Dana Discovery Center was built in 1993 at the northeast section of the park, on the north shore of the Harlem Meer.<ref name="central-park-map"/><ref name="Plitt 2017"/>Template:Sfn Blockhouse No. 1, the oldest extant structure within Central Park, and built before the park's creation, sits in the northwest section of the park. It was erected as part of Fort Clinton during the War of 1812.<ref name="Plitt 2017"/><ref>Template:Cite web</ref>Template:Sfn The Blockhouse is near McGowan's Pass, rocky outcroppings that also once contained Fort Fish and Nutter's Battery.Template:Sfn The Lasker Rink, a skating rink and swimming pool facility, formerly occupied the southwest corner of the Harlem Meer.Template:Sfn The Conservatory Garden, the park's only formal garden, is entered through the Vanderbilt Gate at Fifth Avenue and 105th Street.<ref name="central-park-map"/><ref>Template:Cite web</ref> The Tarr Family Playground, North Meadow Recreation Center, tennis courts, and East Meadow sit between the Loch to the north and the reservoir to the south.<ref name="central-park-map"/><ref>Template:Cite web</ref> The North Woods takes up the rest of the northern third of the park. The areas in the northern section of the park were developed later than the southern section and are not as heavily used, so there are several unnamed features.Template:Sfn The park's northern portion was intended as the "natural section" in contrast to the landscaped "pastoral section" to the south.<ref name="Reynolds p. 321" />

The area between the 86th and 96th Street transverses is mostly occupied by the Onassis Reservoir. Directly south of the Reservoir is the Great Lawn and Turtle Pond. The Lawn is bordered by the Metropolitan Museum of Art's Fifth Avenue building to the east, Turtle Pond to the south, and Summit Rock to the west.<ref name="central-park-map"/> Summit Rock, the highest point in Central Park at Template:Convert,Template:Sfn<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> abuts Diana Ross Playground to the south and the Seneca Village site, occupied by the Toll Family playground, to the north.<ref name="central-park-map"/> Turtle Pond's western shore contains Belvedere Castle, Delacorte Theater, the Shakespeare Garden, and Marionette Theatre.<ref name="central-park-map"/> The section between the 79th Street transverse and Terrace Drive at 72nd Street contains three main natural features: the forested Ramble, the L-shaped Lake, and Conservatory Water. Cherry Hill is to the south of the Lake, while Cedar Hill is to the east.<ref name="central-park-map"/><ref name="Plitt 2017"/>

The southernmost part of Central Park, below Terrace Drive, contains several children's attractions and other flagship features.<ref name="central-park-map"/> It contains many of the structures built in Central Park's initial stage of construction, designed in the Victorian Gothic style.Template:Sfn Directly facing the southeastern shore of the Lake is a bi-level hall called Bethesda Terrace, which contains an elaborate fountain on its lower level.Template:Sfn<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref name="Reynolds p. 322">Template:Harvnb</ref> Bethesda Terrace connects to Central Park Mall, a landscaped walkway and the only formal feature in the Greensward Plan.<ref name="central-park-map"/>Template:Sfn Near the southwestern shore of the Lake is Strawberry Fields, a memorial to John Lennon who was murdered nearby;<ref name="central-park-map"/><ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Sheep Meadow, a lawn originally intended for use as a parade ground;<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> and Tavern on the Green, a restaurant.<ref name="central-park-map"/> The southern border of Central Park contains the "Children's District",<ref name="NYC Parks Carousel">Template:Cite web</ref> an area that includes Heckscher Playground, the Central Park Carousel, the Ballplayers House, and the Chess and Checkers House.<ref name="central-park-map"/><ref name="NYC Parks Carousel"/> Wollman Rink/Victorian Gardens, the Central Park Zoo and Children's Zoo, the Arsenal, and the Pond and Hallett Nature Sanctuary are nearby.<ref name="central-park-map"/><ref name="Plitt 2017"/> The Arsenal, a red-brick building designed by Martin E. Thompson in 1851, has been NYC Parks' headquarters since 1934.<ref name="Reynolds p. 325">Template:Harvnb</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

There are 21 children's playgrounds in Central Park. The largest, at Template:Convert, is Heckscher Playground.<ref name="Playgrounds"/> Central Park includes 36 ornamental bridges, each of a different design.<ref name="Reed 1990">Henry Hope Reed, Robert M. McGee and Esther Mipaas. The Bridges of Central Park. (Greensward Foundation) 1990.</ref>Template:Sfn<ref name="Reynolds p. 325" /> The bridges are generally designed in the Gothic Revival or Romanesque Revival styles and are made of wood, stone, or cast iron.<ref name="Reynolds p. 325" /> "Rustic" shelters and other structures were originally spread out through the park. Most have been demolished over the years, and several have been restored.<ref name="Reynolds p. 325" /><ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref> The park contains around 9,500 benches in three styles, of which nearly half have small engraved tablets of some kind, installed as part of Central Park's "Adopt-a-Bench" program. These engravings typically contain short personalized messages and can be installed for at least $10,000 apiece. "Handmade rustic benches" can cost more than half a million dollars and are only granted when the honoree underwrites a major park project.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

Art and monuments

Sculptures

Bethesda Fountain angel at the center of a brick plaza

Angel of the Waters (1873) in Bethesda Fountain

Twenty-nine sculptures have been erected within Central Park's boundaries.Template:Sfn<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Most of the sculptures were not part of the Greensward Plan, but were nevertheless included to placate wealthy donors when appreciation of art increased in the late 19th century.Template:SfnTemplate:SfnTemplate:Sfn Though Vaux and Mould proposed 26 statues in the Terrace in 1862, these were eliminated because they were too expensive.Template:Sfn More sculptures were added through the late 19th century, and by 1890s, there were 24 in the park.Template:Sfn

Several busts of authors and poets are on Literary Walk adjacent to the Central Park Mall.Template:SfnTemplate:Sfn<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Another cluster of sculptures, around the Zoo and Conservancy Water, are statues of characters from children's stories. A third sculpture grouping primarily depicts "subjects in nature" such as animals and hunters.Template:Sfn

Several sculptures stand out because of their geography and topography.Template:Sfn Alice in Wonderland Margaret Delacorte Memorial (1959), a sculpture of Alice, is at Conservatory Water.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> Angel of the Waters (1873), by Emma Stebbins, is the centerpiece of Bethesda Fountain;<ref name="Reynolds p. 322" />Template:Sfn it was the first large public sculpture commission for an American woman<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> and the only statue included in the original park design.Template:Sfn Balto (1925), a statue of Balto, the sled dog who became famous during the 1925 serum run to Nome, is near East Drive and East 66th Street.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> King Jagiello Monument (1939), a bronze monument installed in 1945, is at the east end of Turtle Pond.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Women's Rights Pioneers Monument (2020), a monument of Sojourner Truth, Susan B. Anthony, and Elizabeth Cady Stanton,<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> was the city's first statue to depict a female historical figure.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

Structures and exhibitions

An obelisk named Cleopatra's Needle

Cleopatra's Needle, the park's oldest human-made structure

Cleopatra's Needle, a red granite obelisk west of the Metropolitan Museum of Art,<ref name="central-park-map"/> is the oldest human-made structure in Central Park.<ref name="Conservancy Obelisk">Template:Cite web</ref> The needle in Central Park is one of three Cleopatra's Needles that were originally erected at the Temple of Ra in Heliopolis in Ancient Egypt around 1450 BC by the Pharaoh Thutmose III.<ref name="Conservancy Obelisk"/><ref>Template:Cite enc-nyc2</ref><ref name="Gray 2014">Template:Cite news</ref> The hieroglyphs were inscribed about 200 years later by Pharaoh Rameses II to glorify his military victories. The needles are so named because they were later moved to in front of the Caesarium in Alexandria, a temple originally built by Cleopatra VII of Egypt in honor of Mark Antony.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref> The needle in Central Park arrived in late 1880 and was dedicated early the following year.<ref name="Conservancy Obelisk"/><ref name="Gray 2014"/>

The Strawberry Fields memorial, near Central Park West and 72nd Street,<ref name="central-park-map"/> is a memorial commemorating John Lennon, who was murdered outside the nearby Dakota apartment building. The city dedicated Strawberry Fields in Lennon's honor in April 1981,<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> and the memorial was completely rebuilt and rededicated on what would have been Lennon's 45th birthday, October 9, 1985.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Countries from all around the world contributed trees, and Italy donated the "Imagine" mosaic in the center of the memorial. It has since become the site of impromptu memorial gatherings for other notables.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

For 16 days in 2005, Central Park was the setting for Christo and Jeanne-Claude's installation The Gates, an exhibition that had been planned since 1979.<ref name="Guggenheim 2003">Template:Cite web</ref> Although the project was the subject of mixed reactions, it was a major attraction for the park while it was open, drawing over a million people.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

Restaurants

Central Park contains two indoor restaurants. Tavern on the Green, at Central Park West and West 67th Street, was built in 1870 as a sheepfold and was converted into a restaurant in 1934.Template:SfnTemplate:Sfn<ref name="NYTimes-Sheep-1934"/> The Tavern on the Green was expanded between 1974 and 1976;<ref name="CNN.com 2010 w811">Template:Cite web</ref> it was closed in 2009 and reopened five years later after a renovation.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> The Loeb Boathouse restaurant is at the Loeb Boathouse, on the Lake, near Fifth Avenue between 74th and 75th streets.<ref name="Loeb Boat House 1939"/><ref name="Conservancy Loeb Boathouse"/> Though the boathouse was constructed in 1954,<ref name="Conservancy Loeb Boathouse"/> its restaurant opened in 1983.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

Activities

Tours

A horse-drawn carriage by the park

Horse-drawn carriage by the park

In the late 19th century, West and East Drives was a popular place for carriage rides, though only five percent of the city was able to afford a carriage. One of the main attractions in the park's early years was the introduction of the "Carriage Parade", a daily display of horse-drawn carriages that traversed the park.Template:SfnTemplate:SfnTemplate:Sfn The introduction of the automobile caused the carriage industry to die out by World War I,Template:Sfn though the carriage-horse tradition was revived in 1935.<ref name="Newsweek41307">Template:Cite web</ref> The carriages have become a symbolic institution of the city; for instance, in a much-publicized event after the September 11 attacks, Mayor Rudy Giuliani went to the stables to ask the drivers to go back to work to help return a sense of normality.<ref name="Newsweek41307"/>

Some activists, celebrities, and politicians have questioned the ethics of the carriage-horse industry and called for its end.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> The history of accidents involving spooked horses came under scrutiny in the 2000s and 2010s after reports of horses collapsing and even dying.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Supporters of the trade say it needs to be reformed rather than shut down.<ref>See, for example: Template:Cite web</ref> Some replacements have been proposed, including electric vintage cars.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Bill de Blasio, in his successful 2013 mayoral campaign, pledged to eliminate horse carriage tours if he was elected;<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Template:As of, had only succeeded in relocating the carriage pick-up areas.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

Pedicabs operate mostly in the southern part of the park, as horse carriages do. The pedicabs have been criticized: there have been reports of pedicab drivers charging exorbitant fares of several hundred dollars.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

Recreation

The park's drives, which are Template:Convert long, are used heavily by runners, joggers, pedestrians, bicyclists, and inline skaters.<ref name="Conservancy Running Map"/><ref name="Conservancy Running"/> The park drives contain protected bike lanes<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> and are used as the home course for the racing series of the Century Road Club Association, a USA Cycling-sanctioned amateur cycling club.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> In 2021, e-scooters were legalized in New York, including in Central Park.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> The park is used for professional running, and the New York Road Runners designated a Template:Convert running loop within Central Park.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> The New York City Marathon course uses several miles of drives within Central Park and finishes outside Tavern on the Green;<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> from 1970 through 1975, the race was held entirely in Central Park.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>

There are 26 baseball fields in Central Park: eight on the Great Lawn, six at Heckscher Ballfields near Columbus Circle, and twelve in the North Meadow.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref name="NYC Parks Fields and Courts">Template:Cite web</ref> 12 tennis courts, six non-regulation soccer fields (which overlap with the North Meadow ball fields), four basketball courts, and a recreation center are in the North Meadow.<ref name="NYC Parks Fields and Courts"/><ref>Template:Cite web</ref> An additional soccer field and four basketball courts are at Great Lawn.<ref name="NYC Parks Fields and Courts"/> Four volleyball courts are in the southern part of the park.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

Central Park has two ice skating rinks: Wollman Rink in its southern portion and Lasker Rink in its northern portion.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> During summer, the former is the site of Victorian Gardens seasonal amusement park,<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> and the latter converts to an outdoor swimming pool.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

Central Park's glaciated rock outcroppings attract climbers, especially boulderers, but the quality of the stone is poor, and the climbs present so little challenge that it has been called "one of America's most pathetic boulders".Template:Sfn The two most renowned spots for boulderers are Rat Rock and Cat Rock. Other rocks frequented by climbers, mostly at the south end of the park, include Dog Rock, Duck Rock, Rock N' Roll Rock, and Beaver Rock.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

Concerts and performances

The covered stage known as Summerstage with a band entertaining a crowd of people

Summerstage in Central Park features free musical concerts throughout the summer.

Central Park has been the site of concerts almost since its inception. Originally, they were hosted in the Ramble, but these were moved to the Concert Ground next to the Mall in the 1870s.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> The weekend concerts hosted in the Mall drew tens of thousands of visitors from all social classes.Template:Sfn Since 1923, concerts have been held in Naumburg Bandshell, a bandshell of Indiana limestone on the Mall.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> Named for banker Elkan Naumburg, who funded its construction, the bandshell has deteriorated over the years but has never been fully restored.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> The oldest free classical music concert series in the United States—the Naumburg Orchestral Concerts, founded in 1905—is hosted in the bandshell.<ref name="Concerts-Conservancy"/> Other large concerts include The Concert in Central Park, a benefit performance by Simon & Garfunkel in 1981,Template:Sfn and Garth: Live from Central Park, a free concert by Garth Brooks in 1997.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

Several arts groups are dedicated to performing in Central Park.<ref name="Concerts-Conservancy">Template:Cite web</ref> These include Central Park Brass, which performs concert series,<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> and the New York Classical Theatre, which produces an annual series of plays.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>

There are several regular summer events. The Public Theater presents free open-air theater productions, such as Shakespeare in the Park, in the Delacorte Theater.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref> The City Parks Foundation offers Central Park Summerstage, a series of free performances including music, dance, spoken word, and film presentations, often featuring famous performers.<ref name="Concerts-Conservancy"/><ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Additionally, the New York Philharmonic gives an open-air concert on the Great Lawn yearly during the summer,<ref name="Concerts-Conservancy"/> and from 1967 until 2007, the Metropolitan Opera presented two operas in concert each year.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Every August since 2003, the Central Park Conservancy has hosted the Central Park Film Festival, a series of free film screenings.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

Transportation

Central Park incorporates a system of pedestrian walkways, scenic drives, bridle paths, and transverse roads to aid traffic circulation,Template:Sfn and it is easily accessible via several subway stations and bus routes.<ref name="manbus"/>

Public transport

Subway entrance just outside Central Park

Entrance to the Fifth Avenue–59th Street subway station just outside Central Park

The New York City Subway's IND Eighth Avenue Line (Template:NYCS trains) runs along the western edge of the park. Most of the Eighth Avenue Line stations on Central Park West serve only the local Template:NYCS trains, while the 59th Street–Columbus Circle station is additionally served by the express Template:NYCS trains and the IRT Broadway–Seventh Avenue Line (Template:NYCS trains). The IRT Lenox Avenue Line (Template:NYCS trains) has a station at Central Park North. From there the line curves southwest under the park and heads west under 104th Street. On the southeastern corner of the park, the BMT Broadway Line (Template:NYCS trains) has a station at Fifth Avenue and 59th Street.<ref name="submap"/> The 63rd Street lines (Template:NYCS trains) pass underneath without stopping,<ref name="submap">Template:NYCS const</ref> and the line contains a single ventilation shaft within the park, west of Fifth Avenue and 63rd Street.Template:Sfn

Various bus routes pass through Central Park or stop along its boundaries. The M10 bus stops along Central Park West, while the M5 and part of the M7 runs along Central Park South, and the Template:NYC bus link run along Central Park North. The M1, M2, M3, and M4 run southbound along Fifth Avenue with corresponding northbound bus service on Madison Avenue. The Template:NYC bus link (Select Bus Service), Template:NYC bus link buses use the transverse roads across Central Park. The Template:NYC bus link only serve Columbus Circle on the south end of the park, and the Template:NYC bus link run on 57th Street two blocks from the park's south end but do not stop on the boundaries of the park.<ref name="manbus">Template:Cite NYC bus map</ref>

Some of the buses running on the edge of Central Park replaced former streetcar routes that formerly traveled across Manhattan. These streetcar routes included the Sixth Avenue line, which became the M5 bus, and the Eighth Avenue line, which became the M10.Template:Sfn Only one streetcar line traversed Central Park: the 86th Street Crosstown Line, the predecessor to the M86 bus.Template:Sfn

Transverse roads

A stone transverse arch

66th Street transverse

Central Park contains four transverse roadways that carry crosstown traffic across the park.<ref name="central-park-map"/>Template:SfnTemplate:Sfn From south to north, they are at 66th Street, 79th Street, 86th Street, and 97th Street; the transverse roads were originally numbered sequentially in that order. The 66th Street transverse connects the discontinuous sections of 65th and 66th streets on either side of the park. The 79th Street transverse links West 81st and East 79th streets, while the 86th Street transverse links West 86th Street with East 84th and 85th streets. The 97th Street transverse likewise joins the disconnected segments of 96th and 97th streets.<ref name="central-park-map"/> Each roadway carries two lanes, one in each direction, and is sunken below the level of the rest of the park to minimize the transverses' visual impact on it.Template:SfnTemplate:Sfn The transverse roadways are open even when the park is closed.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

The 66th Street transverse was the first to be finished, having opened in December 1859.Template:Sfn The 79th Street transverse—which passed under Vista Rock, Central Park's second-highest point—was completed by a railroad contractor because of their experience in drilling through hard rock;Template:Sfn it opened in December 1860. The 86th and 97th Street transverses opened in late 1862.Template:Sfn By the 1890s, maintenance had decreased to the point where the 86th Street transverse handled most crosstown traffic because the other transverse roads had been so poorly maintained.Template:Sfn Both ends of the 79th Street transverse were widened in 1964 to accommodate increased traffic.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> Generally, the transverses were not maintained as frequently as the rest of the park, though being used more frequently than the park proper.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>

Scenic drives

A Center Drive intersection with four cars stopped at a cross road

Center Drive in Central Park

The park has three scenic drives that travel through it vertically.<ref name="central-park-map"/> They have multiple traffic lights at the intersections with pedestrian paths, although there are some arches and bridges where pedestrian and drive traffic can cross without intersection.Template:Sfn<ref name="Reed 1990"/>Template:Sfn To discourage park patrons from speeding, the designers incorporated extensive curves in the park drives.Template:Sfn<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> The drives range from Template:Convert wide, and there are more than 50 traffic signals along these drives.<ref name="Barron t309" />

Template:Anchor Template:Vanchor is the westernmost of the park's three vertical "drives". The road, which carries southbound bicycle and horse-carriage traffic, winds through the western part of Central Park, connecting Lenox Avenue/Central Park North with Seventh Avenue/Central Park South and Central Drive.<ref name="central-park-map"/>

Template:Vanchor (also known as the "Central Park Lower Loop"<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>) connects northbound bicycle and carriage traffic from Midtown at Central Park South/Sixth Avenue to East Drive near the 66th Street transverse. The street generally goes east and then north, forming the bottom part of the Central Park loop. The attractions along Center Drive include Victorian Gardens, the Central Park Carousel, and the Central Park Mall.<ref name="central-park-map"/>

Template:Vanchor, the easternmost of the three drives, connects northbound bicycle and carriage traffic from Midtown to the Upper West Side at Lenox Avenue. The street is renowned for its country scenery and free concerts. It generally straddles the east side of the park along Fifth Avenue. The drive passes by the Central Park Zoo around 63rd Street and the Metropolitan Museum of Art from 80th to 84th Streets. Unlike the rest of the drive system, which is generally serpentine, East Drive is straight between the 86th and 96th Street transverses, because it is between Fifth Avenue and the Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis Reservoir.<ref name="central-park-map"/> East Drive is known as the "Elite Carriage Parade", because it was where the carriage procession occurred at the time of the park's opening, and because only five percent of the city was able to afford the carriage. In the late 19th century, West and East Drives were popular places for carriage rides.Template:Sfn

Two other scenic drives cross the park horizontally. Terrace Drive is at 72nd Street and connects West and East Drives, passing over Bethesda Terrace and Fountain. The 102nd Street Crossing, further north near the street of the same name, is a former carriage drive connecting West and East Drives.<ref name="central-park-map"/>

Modifications and closures

In Central Park's earliest years, the speed limits were set at Template:Convert for carriages and Template:Convert for horses, which were later raised to Template:Convert respectively. Commercial vehicles and buses were banned from the park.Template:Sfn Automobiles became more common in Central Park during the 1900s and 1910s, and they often broke the speed limits, resulting in crashes. To increase safety, the gravel roads were paved in 1912, and the carriage speed limit was raised to Template:Convert two years later. With the proliferation of cars among the middle class in the 1920s, traffic increased on the drives, to as many as eight thousand cars per hour in 1929.Template:Sfn The roads were still dangerous; in the first ten months of 1929, eight people were killed and 249 were injured in 338 separate collisions.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

In November 1929, the scenic drives were converted from two-way traffic to unidirectional traffic.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Further improvements were made in 1932 when forty-two traffic lights were installed along the scenic drives, and the speed limit was lowered to Template:Convert. The signals were coordinated so that drivers could go through all of the green lights if they maintained a steady speed of Template:Convert.Template:Sfn<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> The drives were experimentally closed to automotive traffic on weekends beginning in 1967, for exclusive use by pedestrians and bicyclists.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> In subsequent years, the scenic drives were closed to automotive traffic for most of the day during the summer. By 1979, the drives were only open during rush hours and late evenings during the summer.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

Legislation was proposed in October 2014 to conduct a study to make the park car-free in summer 2015.<ref name="ABC-Car-free-2018"/> In 2015, Mayor Bill de Blasio announced the permanent closure of West and East Drives north of 72nd Street to vehicular traffic as it was proven that closing the roads did not adversely impact traffic.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> After most of the Central Park loop drives were closed to vehicular traffic, the city performed a follow-up study. The city found that West Drive was open for two hours during the morning rush period and was used by an average of 1,050 vehicles a day, while East Drive was open 12 hours a day and was used by an average of 3,400 vehicles daily.<ref name="Mays 2018">Template:Cite news</ref> Subsequently, all cars were banned from East Drive in January 2018.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> In April 2018, de Blasio announced that the entirety of the three loop drives would be closed permanently to traffic.<ref name="Mays 2018"/><ref>Template:Cite web</ref> The closure became effective in June 2018.<ref name="Walker 2018"/><ref name="ABC-Car-free-2018"/>

During the early 21st century, there were numerous collisions in Central Park involving cyclists. The 2014 death of Jill Tarlov, after she was hit by a cyclist on West 63rd Street, called attention to the issue.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> In 2011, residents of nearby communities unsuccessfully petitioned the NYPD to increase enforcement of cycling rules within the park.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> The scenic drives' pedestrian and bike paths were repaved in 2025 following repeated collisions between pedestrians and cyclists.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

Issues

The North Woods with a pathway to the right and a bridge over a stream in the center

North Woods, one of several places where crimes were reported during the 1989 Central Park jogger case

Crime and neglect

In the mid-20th century, Central Park had a reputation for being very dangerous, especially after dark.Template:Sfn Such a viewpoint was reinforced following a 1941 incident when 12-year-old Jerome Dore fatally stabbed 15-year-old James O'Connell in the northern section of the park.Template:Sfn<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> Local tabloids cited this incident and several other crimes as evidence of a highly exaggerated "crime wave". Though recorded crime had indeed increased since Central Park opened in the late 1850s, this was in line with crime trends seen in the rest of the city.Template:Sfn Central Park's reputation for crime was reinforced by its worldwide name recognition, and the fact that crimes in the park were covered disproportionately compared to crimes in the rest of the city. For instance, in 1973 The New York Times wrote stories about 20% of murders that occurred citywide but wrote about three of the four murders that took place in Central Park that year. By the 1970s and 1980s, the number of murders in the police precincts north of Central Park was 18 times higher than the number of murders within the park itself, and even in the precincts south of the park, the number of murders was three times as high.Template:Sfn

The park was the site of numerous high-profile crimes during the late 20th century. Of these, two particularly notable cases shaped public perception against the park.Template:Sfn In 1986, Robert Chambers murdered Jennifer Levin in what was later called the "preppy murder."<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Three years later, an investment banker was raped and brutally beaten in what came to be known as the Central Park jogger case.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news (This essay has also been published in Didion's 1992 essay collection After Henry).</ref> Conversely, other crimes such as the 1984 gang-rape of two homeless women were barely reported.Template:Sfn After World War II, it was feared that gay men perpetrated sex crimes and attracted violence.Template:Sfn Other problems in the 1970s and 1980s included a drug epidemic, a large homeless presence, vandalism, and neglect.Template:Sfn<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref name="Sheftell 2010"/>

As crime has declined in New York City, many of these negative perceptions have waned.Template:Sfn Safety measures keep the number of crimes in the park to fewer than 100 per year Template:As of, down from approximately 1,000 in the early 1980s.<ref name="NYPD 22nd Precinct CS"/> Some well-publicized crimes have occurred since then: for instance, on June 11, 2000, following the Puerto Rican Day Parade, gangs of drunken men sexually assaulted women in the park.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

Other issues

Permission to hold issue-centered rallies in Central Park, similar to the be-ins of the 1960s, has been met with increasingly stiff resistance from the city. During some 2004 protests, the organization United for Peace and Justice wanted to hold a rally on the Great Lawn during the Republican National Convention. The city denied an application for a permit, stating that such a mass gathering would be harmful to the grass and the damage would make it harder to collect private donations to maintain the park.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> A judge of the New York Supreme Court's New York County branch upheld the refusal.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

During the 2000s and 2010s, new supertall skyscrapers were constructed along the southern end of Central Park, in a corridor commonly known as Billionaires' Row. According to a Municipal Art Society report, such buildings cast long shadows over the southern end of the park.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref> A 2016 analysis by The New York Times found that some of the tallest and skinniest skyscrapers, such as One57, Central Park Tower, and 220 Central Park South, would cast shadows that can be as much as Template:Convert long during the winter, covering up to a third of the park's length.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> In 2018, the New York City Council proposed a task force to study the effects of skyscrapers near city parks.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

Impact

Cultural significance

People seated or reclining on the large grass area known as Sheep Meadow

Sheep Meadow, a common place for gatherings

Template:For Central Park's size and cultural position has served as a model for many urban parks.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Olmsted believed landscape design was a way to improve the feeling of community and had intended the park as the antithesis of the stresses of the city's daily life.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> The Greensward Plan, radical at the time of its construction, led to widespread changes in park designs and urban planning; in particular, parks were designed to incorporate landscapes whose elements were related to each other.<ref>Template:Cite journal</ref><ref>Template:Cite magazine</ref>

As a New York City icon, Central Park is one of the most filmed locations in the world.<ref name="Pereira 2017"/><ref>Template:Cite web</ref> A December 2017 report found that 231 movies had used it for on-location shoots, more than the 160 movies that had filmed in Greenwich Village or the 99 movies that had filmed in Times Square.<ref name="Pereira 2017">Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Some of the movies filmed at Central Park, such as the 1993 film The Age of Innocence, reflect ideals of the past. Other films, including The Fisher King (1991), Marathon Man (1976), The Out of Towners (1970), and Home Alone 2: Lost in New York (1992), use the park for dramatic conflict scenes. Central Park has been used in romance films such as Maid in Manhattan (2002), 13 Going on 30 (2004) or Hitch (2005), and fantasy live-action/animated films such as Enchanted (2007).<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> In 2009, an estimated 4,000 days of film shoots were hosted, or an average of more than ten film shoots per day, accounting for $135.5 million in city revenue.<ref name="Crain's New York Business 2009"/>

Because of its cultural and historical significance, Central Park has been a National Historic Landmark since 1962,<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref> and a New York City scenic landmark since 1974.Template:Sfn It was placed on UNESCO's list of tentative World Heritage Sites in 2017.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

Real estate and economy

A view of skyscrapers from the Pond, at the southern border of Central Park

Skyscrapers at the southern border of Central Park

The value of the surrounding land started rising significantly in the mid-1860s during the park's construction.Template:SfnTemplate:Sfn The completion of Central Park immediately increased the surrounding area's real estate prices, in some cases by up to 700 percent between 1858 and 1870.<ref>Template:Cite journal</ref>Template:Sfn It also resulted in the creation of the zoning plan in Upper Manhattan.Template:Sfn Upscale districts grew on both sides of Central Park following its completion.Template:Sfn On the Upper East Side, a portion of Fifth Avenue abutting lower Central Park became known as "Millionaires' Row" by the 1890s, due to the concentration of wealthy families in the area.Template:SfnTemplate:Sfn The Upper West Side took longer to develop, but row houses and luxury apartment buildings came to predominate in the neighborhood; some of these buildings are included in the Central Park West Historic District.Template:Sfn<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Though most of the city's rich formerly lived in mansions, they moved into apartments close to Central Park during the late 19th and early 20th centuries.Template:Sfn

During the late 20th century, until Central Park's restoration in the 1990s, proximity to the park did not have a significant positive effect on real estate values. Following Central Park's restoration, some of the city's most expensive properties have been sold or rented near the park.<ref name="Sheftell 2010">Template:Cite web</ref> The value of the land in Central Park was estimated to be about $528.8 billion in December 2005, though this was based on the park's impact on the average value of nearby land.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

In the modern day, it is estimated that Central Park has resulted in billions of dollars in economic impact. A 2009 study found that the city received annual tax revenue of more than $656 million, visitors spent more than $395 million due to the park, in-park businesses such as concessions generated Template:Nowrap, and the 4,000 hours of annual film shoots and other photography generated Template:Nowrap of economic output.<ref name="Crain's New York Business 2009">Template:Cite web</ref> In 2013, about 550,000 people lived within a ten-minute walk (about Template:Convert) of the park's boundaries, and 1.15 million more people could get to the park within a half-hour subway ride.<ref name="Sheftell 2010"/>

See also

• List of National Historic Landmarks in New York City
• List of New York City scenic landmarks
• List of New York City Designated Landmarks in Manhattan from 59th to 110th Streets
• List of parks in New York City
• National Register of Historic Places listings in Manhattan from 59th to 110th Streets

References

Sources

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• A more extensive list of sources can be found in Template:Cite web

External links

• Template:Official website (New York City Department of Parks and Recreation)
• Template:Official website (Central Park Conservancy)
• Template:Cite book
• Description of a plan for the improvement of the Central Park (1858), Frederick Law Olmsted and Calvert Vaux. New York: The Aldine Press