New Parks Act facts for kids

The New Parks Act was a special law passed in New York State in 1884. It helped create many new parks in a part of New York City called the Bronx. At that time, the Bronx was mostly open land. This law led to the creation of three parkways (special roads with parks alongside them) and six large parks.

What Parks Were Created?

The main park in this system was Bronx Park. Today, you can find the New York Botanical Garden and the Bronx Zoo inside it.

Connecting the Parks

Bronx Park was connected to other parks by special roads called parkways:

• It connected to Van Cortlandt Park in the northwest using Mosholu Parkway.
• It connected to Pelham Bay Park in the east using Pelham Parkway.
• It connected to Crotona Park in the south using Crotona Parkway.

Two other parks, Claremont Park and St. Mary's Park, were also part of the system. However, they did not have direct parkway connections.

How the Parks Came to Be

In 1876, a famous landscape designer named Frederick Law Olmsted was asked to study the Bronx. He was supposed to map out streets based on the natural shape of the land.

Olmsted's Idea

Olmsted noticed the beautiful natural areas, especially around the Van Cortlandt family's land. He thought it was as lovely as Central Park, which he had helped design. He suggested that New York City should buy this land. He imagined a "greenbelt" across the Bronx. This would be a system of parks and parkways that fit the natural landscape. This was different from the grid-like street plan of Manhattan, which had led to Central Park being built with many man-made features. However, in 1877, the city did not agree with his plan.

John Mullaly's Efforts

Around the same time, John Mullaly, an editor for the New York Herald newspaper, strongly supported creating more parks in New York City. He especially liked the lands owned by the Van Cortlandt and Pell families in the Bronx.

In November 1881, Mullaly started a group called the New York Park Association. He pointed out that New York City had less parkland per person than many big cities in Europe. He also reminded people that when Central Park was built in 1853, the value of properties around it went up quickly.

His group sent out information to important New Yorkers, asking for new parks. But there were arguments about the park plans for the Bronx. So, the city did not create a special group to plan the new parks.

Taking the Idea to the State

Since the city refused, the New York Park Association asked the New York State Legislature for help instead. On April 19, 1883, the state passed a law. This law allowed a group of seven people, led by Luther Marsh (a member of Mullaly's association), to find places for future parks. Mullaly became the secretary of this group.

In June 1883, the group visited the park sites. By January 1884, Marsh had written a bill for the New York State Legislature. This bill suggested a park system in the Bronx with six parks connected by three parkways.

Overcoming Challenges

Some people did not like the idea. They thought the parks would be too far from Manhattan. They also worried that the parks would stop new buildings from being built in those areas. Important people like Mayor Franklin Edson thought the park system was too big and too expensive. Assemblyman Theodore Roosevelt also disagreed with the bill being rushed through.

However, newspapers and powerful supporters of the park system worked hard. They convinced the bill to be voted on in the New York State Senate and then the New York State Assembly. In June 1884, Governor Grover Cleveland signed the New Parks Act into law. This officially allowed the creation of the park system.

Final Arguments and Success

Legal arguments continued for several years. Some opponents argued that building parks would take money away from more important things like schools and docks. They also felt it was unfair that everyone in the city had to pay taxes for the parks, not just those who owned land near them.

However, supporters argued that the parks would benefit everyone in the city. They also said that the value of properties near the parks would increase a lot over time. They believed the special group had chosen only land that could easily become a park. In the end, the parks were created despite the objections of important figures like Mayors William Russell Grace and Abram Hewitt.