Animating Central Park

The entangled human and more-than-human histories of one of the world¿s iconic urban green spacesFrom deer and beavers to ¿free range¿ pigs and goats in and around Seneca Village, what we now know as Central Park has long been home to an abundance of animals. In 1858, the city adopted the Greensward Plan and began the long process of reshaping the 843 acres of land into a park where everything¿from the trees to the trails to the inhabitants¿would be meticulously planned to benefit New Yorkers and to promote the city as a global metropolis among the likes of London and Paris. But this vision of Central Park embodied white elite European values, and disagreements about which creatures belonged in the park¿s waters and green spaces have often perpetuated systems of oppression. Illuminating the multispecies story of Central Park from the 1850s to the 1970s, Dawn Day Biehler examines the vibrant and intimately connected lives of humans and nonhuman animals in the park. She reveals stories o