N.Y. Legislature created Central Park
On July 21, 1853, the New York State Legislature approved a bill designating land in the middle of Manhattan for a great public park.
Designed in 1858 by Frederick Law Olmsted and Calvert Vaux, Central Park is New York City’s back yard. Olmsted and Vaux envisioned the park as a place where people of all social and ethnic backgrounds could mingle. Out of the treeless, rocky terrain and stagnant swampland, they created a wooded urban oasis that has been enjoyed by generations.
Today Central Park has more than 26,000 trees, 58 miles of scenic pathways and nearly 9,000 benches on 843 acres. Each year, 25 million people visit the park.