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Wednesday, August 21, 2013

NYC Parks: Seward Park

By Jeff Myers


Seward Park offers three acres of green space to the Lower East Side of Manhattan. Found north of East Broadway and east of Essex Street, the park offers visitors a shady relief to the bustle of the big city. The park, named after Manhattan Senator William Henry Seward (1801-1872), was one of the first publically ran playground in the U.S. and a model for many others. With an opulent past and plenty of room to play, Seward Park New York is probably one of the Lower East Side's treasures.

In the latter 1890s the Outdoor Recreation League (ORL) worked to bring organised games to public playing areas. The ORL played an important role in establishing play areas in municipal parks and is necessary to history of Seward Park.

In 1897, the land that would one day become Seward Park was obtained by New York City. The ORL transformed the area into a playground, including a children's garden and a running track. Opening on October 17, 1903, the park's other discoveries such as a gymnastic equipment and recreation pavilion, marbe baths, and meeting rooms made it a model for future playing areas across the land.

The history of Seward Park continues in the 1930s and 1940s, when the park went through a sequence of transformations. A little of the park's east side was taken over by the the city's government and used for street purposes. In 1936, the park bought the Schiff fountain from Rutgers Park. The transformation was finally completed by the addition of horseshoe courts, more playgrounds, a basketball court and an area for roller and an ice skating area.

The 1950s saw more transformations in Seward Park history. As the surrounding Lower East Side neighborhood grew, another section of the park was redeveloped by NYC. Many streets were closed and family homes were built to replace apartment buildings.

The current history of Seward Park is suggested by a 1999 reconstruction that payed homage to the initial ORL plan. The park now has a central oval with a spray shower and map of the Lower East Side, period lighting and furniture, and quotations from local residents spanning the neighborhood's rich history. These changes brought the park closer to it's original 1903 appearance. With it's stunning curving trails, plenty of benches, playgrounds, sports facilities, Seward Park is still a favourite place for New Yorkers and travelers alike to play.




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