5. Central Park: " The Garden" of New York 中央公园：纽约的“后花园”

Central Park is a public park at the center of Manhattan in New York City, New York, United States. The park initially opened in 1857, on 843 acres (3.41 km2) of city -owned land.

In 1858, Frederick Law Olmsted and Calvert Vaux won a design competition to improve and expand the park with a plan they entitled the Greensward Plan. Construction began the same year, continued during the American Civil War, and was completed in 1873.Designated a National Historic Landmark in 1962.

中央公园是位于纽约市曼哈顿中心的一座公共公园。公园最早于1857年开放，占地843英亩（3.41平方公里）。

1858年，弗雷德里克·劳·奥姆斯特德及卡尔弗特·沃克斯的设计方案得到了认可，提出了扩大园区的计划。公园于当年开始了扩大，并于1873年完工，中央公园在1962年被评选为全国历史遗迹。

●Past and Present of Central Park 中央公园的前世今生

Early time 早期

Central Park was not a part of the Commissioners' Plan of 1811; however, between 1821 and 1855, New York City nearly quadrupled in population. As the city expanded, people were drawn to the few existing open spaces, mainly cemeteries, to get away from the noise and chaotic life in the city.

New York City's need for a great public park was voiced by the poet and editor of the Evening Post (now the New York Post), William Cullen Bryant, and by the first American landscape architect, Andrew Jackson Downing, who began to publicize the city's need for a public park in 1844. A stylish place for open-air driving, similar to the Bois de Boulogne in Paris or London's Hyde Park, in 1853 the New York legislature settled upon a 700-acre (280 ha) area from 59th to 106th Streets for the creation of the park.

The state appointed a Central Park Commission to oversee the development of the park, and in 1857 the commission held a landscape design contest. Frederick Law Olmsted and Calvert Vaux developed what came to be known as the Greensward Plan, which was selected as the winning design.

Before the construction of the park could start, the area had to be cleared of its inhabitants, most of whom were quite poor and either free African Americans or residents of English or Irish origin. Most of them lived in small villages, such as Seneca Village. Around 1,600 residents occupying the area at the time were evicted under the rule of eminent domain during 1857. Seneca Village and parts of the other communities were razed to make room for the park.

In 1860, Olmsted was replaced by Andrew. Haas Will. Green, who becomes Chairman of the Committee and manage the Central Park. He still managed to accelerate the construction, as well as to finalize the negotiations for the purchase between 106th and 110th Streets.

Between 1860 and 1873, most of the major hurdles to construction were overcome, and the park was substantially completed. During this period, more than 14,000 m³ of topsoil had been transported in from New Jersey, because the original soil was not fertile or substantial enough to sustain the various trees, shrubs, when the park was officially completed in 1873.

中央公园本来不属于1811年纽约市规划的一部分，然而，1821～1855年，纽约市的人口增长至原来的4倍，随着城市的扩展，很多人被吸引到一些比较开放的空间居住（主要是墓地），以避开嘈杂及混乱的城市生活。

不久以后，当时的晚间邮报（即现在的纽约邮报）编辑和诗人威廉·卡伦·布莱恩特表示纽约需要一个大型的公园。1844年，美国的第一位景观建筑师唐宁亦努力宣传纽约市需要一个公园。很多有影响力的纽约人亦认为需要一个可以露天驾驶的地方，就像巴黎的布隆森林和伦敦的海德公园。1853年，纽约州议会把从59街到106街的700亩（2.8平方公里）地划为兴建公园的地点。它是曼哈顿岛上最大的公园。

纽约州成立了中央公园委员会监管公园的发展，并在1857年举办公园设计比赛，景观建筑师奥姆斯特德及卡尔弗特·沃克斯的“草坪规划”成为得奖设计。

在公园建造前，原本在该土地居住的居民需要离开，而他们多半是贫穷的非洲裔美国人、德国或爱尔兰移民。他们多居住于比较小的村庄（例如塞尼加村）。1857年，在公共用地征收法规下，该土地被收回，而塞尼加村及其他群落将近1600名居民则被拆除以让出空间兴建公园。

1860年，奥姆斯特德被安德鲁·哈斯威尔·格林取代成为中央公园的负责人，成为委员会的主席。但他仍然努力令公园的建造工程尽快完成，并且结束在公园北边的106街及110街额外购买65亩土地的协商。

1860～1873年，中央公园的工程取得极大的进展，而很多困难亦已经解决了。期间，在新泽西州有超过14000立方米的表土被运送过来作为支撑树木及各种植物。最后，中央公园终于在1873正式完工。

●20 Century 20 世纪

Following completion, the park quickly slipped into decline. One of the main reasons for this was the lack of interest of the Tammany Hall political machine, which was the largest political force in New York at the time.

Around the turn of the 20th century, the park faced several new challenges. Cars were becoming commonplace, bringing with them their burden of pollution, and people's attitudes were beginning to change. No longer were parks to be used only for walks and picnics in an idyllic environment, but now also for sports, and similar recreation.

Following the dissolution of the Central Park Commission in 1870 and Andrew Green's departure from the project, and the death of Vaux in 1895, the maintenance effort gradually declined, and there were few, if any, attempts to replace dead trees, bushes and plants, or worn-out lawn. For several decades, authorities did little or nothing to prevent vandalism and the littering of the park.

All of this changed in 1934, when Republican Fiorello La Guardia was elected mayor of New York City and unified the five park-related departments then in existence.

In a single year, Moses managed to clean up Central Park and other parks in New York City. Lawns and flowers were replanted, dead trees and bushes were replaced, walls were sandblasted, and bridges repaired. The Greensward Plan's purpose of creating an idyllic landscape was combined with Moses' vision of a park to be used for recreational purposes—19 playgrounds, 12 ball fields, and handball courts were constructed. Moses also managed to secure funds from the New Deal program, as well as donations from the public.

The 1960s marked the beginning of an "Events Era" in Central Park that reflected the widespread cultural and political trends of the period.Increasingly through the 1970s, the park became a venue for events of unprecedented scale, including political rallies and demonstrations, festivals, and massive concerts. New York City was experiencing economic and social upheaval. Residents were fleeing the city and moving to the suburbs. Morale was low, and crime was high. The Parks Department, suffering from budget cuts and a lack of skilled management that rendered its workforce virtually ineffective.

随着中央公园竣工而来的是其马上陷入了破败的境地。其中一个主要原因是塔马尼派的漠不关心，塔马尼派是纽约当时最具影响力的政治机构。

约在20世纪初，中央公园就面对着各种新问题。当时汽车已发明了，并变得愈来愈普及，汽车带来了污染等问题。公众的心态亦有改变，公园不再只是用作散步及野餐，亦要作为运动或其他娱乐活动的场地。

在中央公园委员会于1870年解散后，安德鲁·格林就不再参与中央公园的计划，而沃克斯亦于1895年去世，公园开始无人负责维修及保养，甚至没有人移走公园内已枯死的树木等。数十年来，当局对于公园内的破坏行为及弃置垃圾等问题都不加理会。

1934年，当共和党的费雷罗·瓜迪亚被选为纽约市市长后，这一切终于有改变了。他联合了当时五个和公园有关的部门，并派摩西斯负责整顿公园。

在一年间，摩西斯除了整顿中央公园外，亦顺道清理纽约市的其他公园：他重新种植了草坪及花卉，移去枯萎了的树木，把墙壁重新喷砂及维修桥梁等。公园亦被重新设计及建造，草坪规划的目的是打造一个田园景色。摩西斯认为公园应该用于消遣用途，于是把两个计划结合在一起——公园将拥有19个游乐场、12个球场及手球场。在罗斯福新政中，摩西斯得到一笔资金，并获得公众的捐款，使中央公园再次热闹起来。

20世纪60年代标志着中央公园的“大时代”，它反映着当时广泛的文化及政治潮流。从1970年起，中央公园就成为各大小规模活动的举办地点，包括政治集会、示威活动、庆祝活动及大型音乐会等。与此同时，纽约市正经历著经济及社会危机，居民纷纷离开纽约市，移居到郊区。道德滑坡，犯罪率升高。而公园也面临经费被削减及极具缺乏经验的管理等问题。

●Good Place of Central Park 中央公园的好去处

Delacorte Theater 戴拉寇特剧院

The Delacorte Theater, established in 1962, is an open-air theater located in Manhattan's Central Park and has a seating capacity of 1,800. The Delacorte is owned by the City of New York and operated by The Public Theater. It is an open-air amphitheater, with the Turtle Pond and Belvedere Castle as its backdrop. It primarily serves as the venue for The Public Theater's annual Shakespeare in the Park summer series.

戴拉寇特剧院创建于1962年，是一个位于曼哈顿中央公园内的露天剧场，有1800个座位，同时，它也是属纽约市所有和经营的公共剧院，以龟池和丽城城堡为依托，作为公共剧院，在每年夏季都会进行莎士比亚系列戏剧的演出。

Central Park Zoo 中央公园动物园

The Central Park Zoo is a small 6.5-acre (2.6 ha) zoo located on Central Park in New York City. The zoo began in the 1860s as a menagerie, making it the first official zoo to open in New York.

The zoo was modified in 1934, with the addition of many new buildings ranged in a quadrangle around the sea lion pool. Finally, the zoo was renovated in the mid-1980s and reopened in 1988, replacing the old-fashioned cages with naturalistic environments.

中央公园动物园是位于纽约中央公园内，占地约6.5英亩（2.6公顷）的一个动物园。在19世纪60年代初，动物园正式对外开放。

该动物园于1934年进行了整修，在海狮池的周围修建了许多新的建筑。最后，动物园经过20世纪80年代中期的整修，以模拟自然环境的设施取代了老式的笼子，并于1988年重新开放。

Bethesda Fountain 毕士达喷泉

Bethesda Fountain is centered by a fountain sculpture designed by Emma Stebbins in 1868 and unveiled in 1873. Stebbins was the first woman to receive a public commission for a major work of art in New York City. The bronze, eight-foot statue depicts a female winged angel touching down upon the top of the fountain, where water spouts and cascades into an upper basin and into the surrounding pool. It was the only statue in the park called for in the original design. Beneath her are four four-foot cherubs representing Temperance, Purity, Health, and Peace. Also called the Angel of the Waters, the statue refers to the Gospel of John, Chapter 5 where there is a description of an angel blessing the Pool of Bethesda, giving it healing powers.

毕士达喷泉是由艾玛·斯特宾斯设计的喷泉。喷泉在1868年落成，并于1873年正式开放。斯特宾斯是美国第一位负责城市艺术设计工作的女性。这个铜制的八足雕像展现了一个位于喷泉上方的女性翼天使，水流从上流到水池中。这是仅有的被要求尊崇原始设计的雕像。而围在喷泉旁的四座雕像分别代表“节制”、“纯净”、“健康”与“和平”。雕像被称为毕士达之名则是取自圣经的故事，内容是叙述在耶路撒冷的一个水池因天使赋予的力量，而具有治病的功效。

Interesting Activities of Central Park 中央公园的趣味活动

Birding: A wooded section of the park called "The Ramble" is popular among birders. Many species of woodland birds, especially warblers, may be seen in The Ramble in Spring and Fall.

Boating: Rowboats and kayaks are rented on an hourly basis at the Loeb Boathouse, which also houses a restaurant overlooking the Lake. As early as 1922, model power boating was popular on park waters.

Carriage horses: the carriage horse industry, revived in New York City in 1935, has been featured in various films; the first female carriage driver, Maggie Cogan, appeared in a newsreel in 1967. The ethics of this tradition and the effects on horse health and well being have been questioned by various animal rights activists.

Pedicabs: Pedicabs operate mostly in the southern part of the park, the same part as horse carriages.

Ice Skating: Central Park has two ice skating rinks, Wollman Rink and Lasker Rink, which converts to an outdoor swimming pool in summer.

Theatre: Each summer, the Public Theater presents free open-air theatre productions, often starring well-known stage and screen actors. The Delacorte Theater is the summer performing venue of the New York Shakespeare Festival. Most, although not all, of the plays presented are by William Shakespeare, and the performances are generally regarded as being of high quality since its founding by Joseph Papp in 1962.

观鸟：观鸟爱好者都知道在公园中有一处树木茂密的地方，其称为“鸟语花香”。许多物种的森林鸟类，尤其是莺，每到春季和秋季都会在公园里出现。

划船：划艇和皮艇可在勒布船屋按小时进行租用，勒布船屋还设有可以俯瞰湖面的餐厅。早在1922年时，在公园的水域进行模型电力划船就是很流行的活动。

四轮马车游览：1935年，纽约市的四轮马车行业重新恢复，并且已在各种电影中出现。第一位女车夫麦琪科根在1967年的纪录片中出现。这种传统的伦理和对于马的健康和福祉所产生的影响受到了各种动物权利活动家的质疑。

三轮车：三轮车游览服务区主要在公园南部，和马车游览的服务区大体相同。

滑冰：中央公园有两个溜冰场，沃尔曼溜冰场和拉斯克溜冰场，在夏季的时候会转换成室外游泳池。

音乐会：每年夏天，公共剧院都会举办免费的露天剧场演出，通常是一些知名的舞台和银幕演员出演。戴拉寇特剧院是纽约莎士比亚戏剧节夏季演出的场地。虽然不是全部，但大多数情况下，表演的戏剧是莎士比亚戏剧，而且被视为自1962年以来，品质较高的演出。