Category Archives: Manhattan

Manhattan

Central Park – Bethesda Terrace and Fountain

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Bethesda Terrace and Fountain are lavishly detailed works of art, from the herringbone brickwork pavement to the English Minton encaustic ceiling tiles in the arcade under the terrace, to the sculpted fountain inspired by the Biblical account of the miraculous pool of Bethesda.

This is a perfect place to start your Central Park photo collection – The Lake to the north, Conservatory Water to the northeast, and The Mall to the south are all highly photogenic.

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Central Park Grand Tour

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Central Park is a magnificent piece of architecture – parkitecture, if you will – for make no mistake, the 843-acre landmark is man-made, constructed in 1858-1873. It was designed by Frederick Law Olmsted and Calvert Vaux, the same team that later designed Brooklyn’s Prospect Park. You could easily take a week or two to explore all of Central Park’s nooks and crannies – there are close to 200 named attractions within the park.

While it may seem strange that a park should be engineered, there is method to the madness. For example, entrance paths were laid out with sharp turns so that a screen of trees was quickly placed between the visitor and the city. Cross-park traverses at 66th, 79th, 85th and 97th Streets were sunk below grade level to make them disappear into the landscape.

This “Grand Tour” of 100+ slides covers the high points – but we’ll need several installments to really show the entire park. You may be interested in the companion gallery, focusing on Bethesda Fountain.

You may also be interested in learning more about Central Park from Central Park Conservancy, the private non-profit group that maintains the park in cooperation with New York City. Visit their site at www.centralparknyc.org.

Enjoy!

Getting There: Central Park is surrounded by 15 subway stations: N, R, and Q at Fifth Avenue/59th Street; A, B, C, D, and 1 at Columbus Circle; B and C along Central Park West at 72nd, 81st, 96th, 103rd and 110th Streets; 2 and 3 at Lenox Avenue/ 110th Street; 4, 5, and 6 along Lexington Avenue at 59th, 68th, 77th, 86th, 96th, 103rd and 110th Streets (walk 3 blocks west). Paths are NOT well marked. If you want to explore, you really need a detailed map! Make The Dairy/Visitor Center your first stop. It’s just south of the 65th Street Transverse, about midway through the park.

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Septuagesimo Uno

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It may not qualify as New York City’s smallest park, but I’ll bet it’s the only park with a Latin name (which means 71).

Septuagesimo Uno is among the “vest pocket parks” created during the Mayor John V. “Fun City” Lindsay administration. (The mayor is, unfortunately, better known for poor handling of a snowstorm cleanup.) A sign on the park’s front (and only) gate tells all.

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General Grant National Memorial (Grant’s Tomb)

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Why not President Grant National Memorial? A National Park Service ranger explains that Ulysses’ record as General was more impressive than his record as President. General Grant National Memorial it is.

Either way, the memorial is probably better known as Grant’s Tomb. It is the largest mausoleum in the Western Hemisphere, and is said to be copied from the original Mausoleus’ tomb.

The memorial was financed by donations, not by the government, though the National Park Service now maintains the monument. There’s a small National Park Service visitor center well-hidden across the southbound lanes of Riverside Drive and down a flight of stairs.

“The Rolling Bench,” a series of 17 mosaic-covered concrete benches, was installed around the monument in 1974. Personally, I think the benches are an atrocious, grotesque defacement of the monument; bureaucratic vandalism. But that’s just my opinion, and what do I know?

P.S. – “Who’s buried in Grant’s Tomb?” Well, technically, no one. The General and his wife Julia are entombed (above ground), not buried (below ground).

General Grant National Memorial Vital Statistics
  • Location: Riverside Drive at W 122nd Street
  • Year completed: 1897
  • Architect: John H. Duncan
  • Style: Roman Revival
  • New York City Landmark: 1975
  • National Register of Historic Places: 1966
General Grant National Memorial Suggested Reading

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Riverside Park

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Riverside Park is another creation of Frederick Law Olmsted and Calvert Vaux – the powerhouse team who also designed Central Park and Prospect Park.

Riverside Park extends from 72nd Street to 158th Street along the Hudson River. It was built in 1875-1910; Robert Moses expanded and enhanced the park during the 1930s – adding the Henry Hudson parkway and covering up the former New York Central tracks, which had cut off access to much of the park. In the 1990s, Riverside Park South was created over the former Penn Central rail yards, in a Donald Trump-led development. (This photo gallery covers Riverside park’s main section, 72nd-125th Street.)

More information is available at the Parks Department and Riverside Park Fund sites: www.nycgovparks.org and www.riversideparkfund.org/.

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Riverside Drive

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Riverside Drive was designed by Frederick Law Olmsted – part of the package with Riverside Park. As part of the park’s scheme, the route is scenic – full of curves, dips and rises – not straight as the city’s grid pattern would dictate. The buildings along Riverside Drive try to live up to the scenic expectation; most were built in the era when lavish decoration and detailing were fashionable.

Riverside Drive extends from West 72nd Street to 153rd Street; this photo gallery covers the area up to 123rd Street.

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Union Square

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Union Square is ever-changing, though many surrounding buildings have stayed the same.

At one time known for political rallies and the annual May Day rally, the park was overrun by druggies in the ’70s. Union Square has since been cleaned up – figuratively and literally – with new fences, new landscaping and new pavement from East 14th Street to East 17th Street. The peddlers are still out in force, though their products are now veggies, art and souvenirs instead of drugs.

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Gramercy Park and Vicinity

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Gramercy Park is a private park between E20th and E21st Streets, ending Irving Place and beginning Lexington Avenue. The park is restricted to tenants of the surrounding buildings; a high fence and locked gates keep it that way.

Much of the surrounding area is part of the Gramercy Park Historic District. The park itself is closed to the public, so this gallery is devoted to the beautiful architecture.

Enjoy! And visit!

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