Central Park

136 Pages·1993·27.258 MB·English

by  Louise G Burnham

A VISIT TO ONE OF THE WORLD'S MOSTTREASURED LANDSCAPES
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A sprawling oasis set against the breathtaking skyline ofNew
York City, Central Park is a man-made masterpiece. Now,
CENTRAL PARK: A Visit to One ofthe World's Most
TreasuredLandscapespayshomagetotheparkthathasbeenthe
centerpieceofNewYorkCityformorethanonehundredyears.
In the 1840s, newspaper editor William Cullen Bryant ran a
series ofeditorials callingfortheestablishmentof"anextensive
pleasure ground for shade and recreation in these sultry
afternoons, whichwe might reachwithout goingoutoftown."
ChapteroneofCENTRALPARKtellsofthepeoplewhostrove
to make the park a reality and ofthetwo men, Frederick Law
Olmsted and CalvertVaux, who were the primary visionaries
anddesignersofthepark.
Chaptertwo, "FightingforthePark,"describestheyearswhen
the park became a political hotbed. While citizens' groups
ralliedtomovetheparkprojectforward,thecorruptpoliticians
inTammanyHallusedtheirinfluencetoslowtheprojectdown
and create a park that suited their own short-sighted visions.
Meanwhile,OlmstedandVauxbothresignedmorethanoncein
frustrationoverthecity'sconstantmeddling.
"TheParkSaved,"thesubjectofchapterthree,relatestheevents
leading up to the 1979 formation of the Central Park
Conservancy and beyond. By the mid-seventies, the park,
tended byonelonegardener,was inashambles: thelawnshad
been trampled to the extent that grass wouldn't grow in the
compacted soil; lampposts had been beheaded and benches had
losttheirslats;inmanyareas,soilerosionwasendangeringmuch
ofthepark'splantlife;andgraffiticoveredalmosteveryavailable
stone or wood surface. In short, the park had become an
eyesore. It wasn't until concerned New Yorkers became
involved that repairs and rejuvenation began with an influx of
city and private money; Sheep Meadow, Wollman Rink, the
Victorianloggia,thefountainsatCherryHillandBethesda,and
the pond at Fifty-ninth Street all underwent extensive
renovation. In CENTRAL PARK, you'll see firsthand howthe
parkhasbeenregainingitsformerbeautywitheachrenovation.
CENTRAL PARK then takes you on an armchair tourofthe
park in chapterfour,whereyou'lldiscoverthe historyofall the
sightsthatmaketheparksounique:theArsenal,thecarousel,the
zoo,theobelisk,StrawberryFields,andmuchmore.
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A
VISIT
TO ONE OF THE
WORLD'S MOST
TREASURED LANDSCAPES
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~ ? ~-~ « NEWYORK•AVENEL,NEWJERSEY
AFRIEDMANGROUPBOOK
This1993editionpublishedbyCrescentBooks,distributedby
OutletBookCompany,Inc.,aRandomHouseCompany,
40EngelhardAvenue,Avenel,NewJersey07001.
Copyright©1993byMichaelFriedmanPublishingGroup,Inc.
Allrightsreserved.Nopartofthispublicationmaybe
reproduced,storedinaretrievalsystem,ortransmitted,inany
formorbyanymeans,electronic,photocopying,recording,or
otherwise,withoutthepriorwrittenpermissionofthepublisher.
ISBN0-517-07343-9
CENTRALPARK
A VisittoOneoftheWorld'sMostTreasuredLandscapes
waspreparedandproducedby
MichaelFriedmanPublishingGroup,Inc.
15West26thStreet
NewYork,NewYork10010
Editor:KellyMatthews
AnDirector:JeffBatzli
Designer:JosephRutt
PhotographyEditor:AnnePrice
TypesetbyClassicType,Inc.
PrintedandboundinHongKongbyLeefung-AscoPrintersLtd.
8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
W EDICATION
ThisbookisdedicatedtothetrusteesandstaffoftheCentral
Park Conservancyandto allwho sharethe Conservancy's
commitmenttoasafe,clean,andbeautifulCentralPark.
Acknowledgments
The authors would like to acknowledge Marianne Cramer,
Sherry Dupres, Ruby Isaacs, Dong Kingman, Jr., Harold
Levine, Sara Cedar Miller, Betsy Rogers, Laura Starr, and
AnneStetsonfortheirinvaluableassistance.
CONTENTS
Introduction
Chapter 6^ne
A PARK FOR NEW YORK CITY
Chapter ^wo
FIGHTING FOR THE PARK
Chapter ^hree
THE PARK SAVED