Central Park Trivia

Central Park, 150 Years Old and Looking Younger Than Ever: What can you expect to find within this 843 acres haven? Designed in the mid-eighteen hundreds by Frederick Law Olmstead and Calvert Vaux, the park was intended to provide a place of peaceful relaxation for a city which was growing much faster in number than in physical size. In the mere twenty years from 1830 to 1850 New York City's population grew from 60,000 to 500,000 (nearly ten-fold). With few exceptions however, its physical size had not expanded beyond 38th street. In light of this, the park's immense proportions and ultimately central location are nothing less than a visionary wonder. "It is imperative," said William Cullen Bryant, editor of The Evening Post, "that this population have open space and trees." Today Central Park provides a recreational haven for locals and introduces travelers to an aspect of New York City that they, perhaps, were not expecting to find. There's always something happening at the Park and the activities available cover the entire spectrum of interests. If you are an athlete of any kind, Central Park will soon be your favorite spot in New York City.

With too much to cover in detail, we've compiled highlights, trivia and statistics to give you an insider's view. Let's start on the outside and work our way in. The park is encircled by a 7-mile loop used not only by motorists as a means of navigating the central to northern part of Manhattan Island, but by countless pedestrians, cyclists and roller bladers who enjoy the park's closed-to-traffic status on weekends. This 7-mile loop covers the entire perimeter of the park from 59th to 110th streets and from Fifth Avenue to Central Park West. Enter inside and find: formal gardens, walking tours, fishing, sports including baseball, softball, soccer, touch football, tennis, ice skating, swimming, model boat racing, roller blading, horseback riding, cycling and basketball, row boats, horse drawn carriages, carousel, a live theatre, a zoo, museum, playgrounds, a reservoir, statues, a marionette theater, restaurants, lakes, a castle, a bridle path (horses are available from Claremont Riding Academy - 86th St and Columbus Ave. 212-724-5100), joggers' track, bridges, a former sheepfold, a band shell, fountains and an olympic- size swimming pool. Have I left anything out? Absolutely! You'll just have to see this it to believe it. Entirely man-made, nature has never been more perfectly constructed. To get a true feel for the park's layout stop by the Dairy or the Arsenal to pick up a map.

"How Many" Things Do You Know About Central Park?

1. How many bodies of water are there? 2. How many benches? 3. How many bridges? 4. How many sports fields? 5. How many movies have featured Central Park? 6. How many tennis courts? 7. How many playgrounds? 8. How many trees? 9. How many horses in the Freidman Carousel? 10. How many restaurants? 11. What is the oldest structure in Central Park? 12. For easy access to Central Park where's the best place to stay?

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