Madison Square Park Relived

Talking to urban archivist Miriam Berman feels like reliving the rich and colorful history of Madison Square Park and taking a trip through one of New York City’s most memorable public outdoor spaces.
Madison Square Park Relived
ENGLISH ELM: One of the two oldest trees in Madison Square Park, this one was cut back about three years ago but kept as a reminder of its historic value. (Phoebe Zheng/The Epoch Times)
3/2/2011
Updated:
3/2/2011
<a href="https://www.theepochtimes.com/assets/uploads/2015/07/stump_medium.jpg"><img src="https://www.theepochtimes.com/assets/uploads/2015/07/stump_medium.jpg" alt="ENGLISH ELM: One of the two oldest trees in Madison Square Park, this one was cut back about three years ago but kept as a reminder of its historic value.  (Phoebe Zheng/The Epoch Times)" title="ENGLISH ELM: One of the two oldest trees in Madison Square Park, this one was cut back about three years ago but kept as a reminder of its historic value.  (Phoebe Zheng/The Epoch Times)" width="320" class="size-medium wp-image-121594"/></a>
ENGLISH ELM: One of the two oldest trees in Madison Square Park, this one was cut back about three years ago but kept as a reminder of its historic value.  (Phoebe Zheng/The Epoch Times)
NEW YORK—Talking to urban archivist Miriam Berman feels like reliving the rich and colorful history of Madison Square Park and taking a trip through one of New York City’s most memorable public outdoor spaces. Bernam, a long time local resident, is the author of “Madison Square: The Park and its Celebrated Landmarks.”

A graphic designer by profession, the Flatiron building was home to Berman’s office for nearly 10 years. She continued to maintain her graphic design business near the park for over 30 years.

Berman reminisced on how she first developed a curiosity and attraction for Madison Square Park. “It all started with my postcard collection in the late 1980s. Each postcard introduced me to a different building and the things that were around it,” said Berman.

Designated a public space in 1686 the park was named after James Madison, the fourth president of the United States. It was not until 1847 that the park formally opened. In 1870, the park was redesigned and became the center of one of the city’s most elite and fashionable neighborhoods.

The park became a place for public gatherings. “This is the place where people came to see election night results,” says Berman.

Despite its prominence, by the 1990s, the park was in a dilapidated and neglected state. Inadequate lighting and unclear signs rendered the park unsafe at night although it was still frequented by office workers on weekdays. With cracked asphalt, and eroded lawns that had become dry and dusty patches, the park became a haven for drug addicts and the homeless.

Eventually sufficient funds were raised for the renovation, which endeavored to refurbish the park to its original 19th century design. The restored park boasts lush green lawns, flowering plants, benches, new paving on pathways, a fountain, a reflecting pool, and decorative lighting.

The beautified park triggered new residential projects in the surrounding areas leading to a new generation of young park users. Nestled in the heart of a thriving business area, today Madison Square Park continues to draw residents and visitors from all walks of life to linger and savor the beauty of urban park life.

SOURCE OF INSPIRATION


Madison Square Park was a fountain of inspiration and a magnet for writers, artists, architects, and photographers. Author William Sydney Porter, writing under the pseudonym Oliver Henry, wrote several short stories about life in the park, including “A Madison Square Arabian Night,” “The Sparrows in Madison Square,” and other short stories.

Architect Stanford White designed two buildings near the park, the second Madison Square Gardens building and the Madison Square Presbyterian Church, as well as the exedra base for the Admiral David Glasgow Farragut Monument.

The park was also one of artist John Sloan’s favorite sites. Aptly described as ‘historian of Madison Square,’ by one of his students, one of Sloan’s oil on canvas paintings known as “Dust Storm, Fifth Avenue,” was completed in 1906. Likewise, photographers Edward Stieglitz, Alfred Steichen, Paul Strand, and others have immortalized the park and the Flatiron building.

The rich history of the park and its surrounding buildings are kept alive every Sunday. The Flatiron 23rd Street partnership sponsors free walking tours, with three experienced tour guides who take turns each Sunday to tell the story of Madison Square Park.

Though it might seem logical to look for Madison Square Gardens in Madison Square Park, the famed performance hall and sports arena has moved on. It is “the one that walked away with the name,” said Berman.

There have been four Madison Square Gardens, according to Berman. The original opened in 1879 and was located at Madison Avenue and 26th Street. The second was built at the same location in 1890 and closed in 1925. The third was located at Eighth Avenue and 50th Street. The fourth and current Madison Square Gardens is at 33rd Street, between Seventh and Eighth avenues, and sits on the top of Penn Station.

TREES IN THE PARK

The most prominent tree is the pin oak from President Madison’s Virginia estate. The sapling was presented to the park in 1936 to celebrate the centennial opening of Madison Avenue, as stated in Berman’s book. Apart from the presence of this tree, there is no monument in the park to commemorate the man the park is named after.

Besides the pin oak, there are two English elm trees that have graced the park for nearly 200 years. The first tree is on the north side, to the right of the Admiral David Glasgow Farragut Monument. What is left of the second tree, only its stump, is south of the fountain, and near the Shake Shack, a roadside burger stand with a constant line of hungry and loyal patrons. The tree stump is kept in the park to mark its significance.

The park was the home of the first public Christmas tree, installed in 1912. “This is the site of the very first public tree in the United States,” reflected Berman. “It’s very poignant. That means it outdates the tree at Rockefeller Center and wherever else you’ve seen a public Christmas tree.”

Next: MONUMENTS IN THE PARK



MONUMENTS IN THE PARK


<a href="https://www.theepochtimes.com/assets/uploads/2015/07/ChesterAuthur_medium.jpg"><img src="https://www.theepochtimes.com/assets/uploads/2015/07/ChesterAuthur_medium.jpg" alt="MR. PRESIDENT: A bronze figure of Chester Alan Arthur (1830-1886) is located at the northeast corner of Madison Square Park. Arthur was the 21st United States president. (Phoebe Zheng/The Epoch Times)" title="MR. PRESIDENT: A bronze figure of Chester Alan Arthur (1830-1886) is located at the northeast corner of Madison Square Park. Arthur was the 21st United States president. (Phoebe Zheng/The Epoch Times)" width="320" class="size-medium wp-image-121595"/></a>
MR. PRESIDENT: A bronze figure of Chester Alan Arthur (1830-1886) is located at the northeast corner of Madison Square Park. Arthur was the 21st United States president. (Phoebe Zheng/The Epoch Times)
Today there are four historical statues in the park. The first is that of Secretary of State William Seward, located at the southwest corner of the park at Broadway and 23rd Street. Designed by artist Randolph Rogers and dedicated in 1876, the bronze statue shows Seward seated in a Renaissance-style senatorial chair, holding a pen in his left hand and a parchment in the right, a stack of books is piled beneath his chair.

Seward was the first New Yorker to be honored in a sculpture. “What he [Seward] was most famous for today was that he was secretary of state under Lincoln and his successor president,” stated Frederick Cookinham, one of the three Flatiron walking tour guides.

The other three monuments are of Roscoe Conkling, President Chester A. Arthur, and war hero Adm. David Glasgow Farragut.

On the southeast corner of the park stands the eight-foot-tall bronze statue of Roscoe Conkling (1893). Conkling wears a bow tie, vest, and long coat, and has his right hand at his side and his left thumb confidently tucked into his pants pocket. Artist John Quincy Adams Ward created the statue.

Conkling was a lawyer, a district attorney, a United States congressman, and a senator. The story of his statue begins with his death. Conkling perished after suffering from severe exposure during a blizzard in 1888 when he attempted to make his way home on foot through 3 feet of snow from his office on Wall Street to his home on Madison Square.

Located at the north side of the historic park, the Admiral David Glasgow Farragut Monument commands a strong presence. Dedicated in 1881, the sculpture was conserved in 2002, and was sculptor Augustus Saint-Gaudens’ first public commission. It portrays Adm. Farragut in naval uniform, standing erect with a sword at his side.

An example of 19th century American commemorative sculpture, the monument was a collaboration between Saint-Gaudens and architect Stanford White. White designed the semi-circular base on which the monument stands.

“This is a very unusual base for a statue. Stanford White liked beaches. He had a summer home out at Long Island. So he’s given us a little artificial beach here with sand, pebbles, and a crab, and his signature is on the crab,” said Cookinham.

The fourth statue is the bronze likeness of Chester Alan Arthur, the 21st United States president, located at the shady northeast corner of the park. Arthur is portrayed with bushy sideburns, standing in a frock coat in front of a chair that is draped with a heavy textile.

Sculpted by George Edwin Bissell and dedicated in 1899, it was a gift from Catherine L. Worfe, a resident on the east side of the park. James Brown Lord designed the black granite base.


HISTORIC BUILDINGS AROUND PARK


All the buildings on the north, south, east, and west corners of the park were built between 1902 and the 1920s, according to Flatiron tour guides Bernam and Cookinham. The buildings share the same architectural detailing as what they replaced, to maintain the feel and historical flavor of the place.

The Flatiron, an iconic New York City and national landmark building, was completed in 1902. “It was not the first skyscraper, it was not the tallest building in the world, but it has always been a favorite of photographers and painters because of its unusual shape and its beautiful design,” explained Cookinham.

As Berman puts it, Madison Square and Flatiron are “an inseparable duo.” They will always be inspiring, captivating, and irresistible to both New Yorkers and visitors. The “delightful sense of pomp and elegance of a vital past will continue to endure for generations to come,” stated Miriam.

Other notable buildings include the International Toy Center (1908) or 200 Fifth Avenue Building, and the New York Life Insurance Building, built in 1926.

Next: The Park Today


THE PARK TODAY


<a href="https://www.theepochtimes.com/assets/uploads/2015/07/Conklin_medium.jpg"><img src="https://www.theepochtimes.com/assets/uploads/2015/07/Conklin_medium.jpg" alt="STATESMAN: The bronze statue of Roscoe Conkling (1829-1888) stands eight feet tall on the southwest corner of Madison Square Park. Conkling was a lawyer, a district attorney, a U.S. congressman, and a senator. (Phoebe Zheng/The Epoch Times)" title="STATESMAN: The bronze statue of Roscoe Conkling (1829-1888) stands eight feet tall on the southwest corner of Madison Square Park. Conkling was a lawyer, a district attorney, a U.S. congressman, and a senator. (Phoebe Zheng/The Epoch Times)" width="320" class="size-medium wp-image-121596"/></a>
STATESMAN: The bronze statue of Roscoe Conkling (1829-1888) stands eight feet tall on the southwest corner of Madison Square Park. Conkling was a lawyer, a district attorney, a U.S. congressman, and a senator. (Phoebe Zheng/The Epoch Times)
An excerpt from “The Sparrows in Madison Square” by O. Henry describes a lovely parallel between the past and the present. “I come in from the West to see if I could get a job [with] a newspaper. I hit the Madison Square Park the first mornin‘ after, and was sitting around on the benches. I noticed the sparrows chirpin’, the grass, and trees so nice and green that I thought I was back in the country again.”

Today, people still find the park and its environment just as inspiring and relaxing. They visit the park to relax while photographers, both professionals and amateurs, take up the challenge to get the best shot of the park and the Flatiron building.

Residents take their dogs to the park for a stroll. People sit on the benches to read a book, a newspaper, or to socialize. Couples snuggle up close to each other to enjoy a loving moment of tranquility amid the hustle and bustle of city life. Mothers take their babies out for a stroll in their prams.

There are always people in the park, regardless of the season. “I always walk across this park [and] see people sitting down. I never tried the Shake Shack but I always see people sitting there till 10 o’clock at night, even on cold winter nights,” said Suresh Maharjan, 25, a student from Baruch College.

Raymond Lebris, 40, from Paris, is a visiting doctoral scholar completing his study in glaciology, says the park offers a place for respite. “I spend a lot of time here, sitting down on the bench and enjoying the city view. I see squirrels [that] I am not prepared to see in the heart of the city, something I don’t get to see in Paris.”

“This is where you bring people out to share. We need to do more of this in this country,” enthused Cliff Fleming, attorney and community activist from Indiana who has just developed the first certified green community and whose aspiration is to take communities back to 100 years ago.