Jewel of Manhattan: LIFE in Central Park, 1961

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Dancers in Central Park, 1961.
Dancers in Central Park, 1961.Leonard McCombe—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images
By Ben Cosgrove

New York’s Central Park has been around, in various incarnations, for more than 150 years. In that time it has been hailed as a masterpiece of landscape design; served as a punchline in jokes about muggings and violent crime; provided the setting for key scenes in books, plays and movies; and remains, for New Yorkers and for countless visitors to Gotham, one of the world’s urban wonders—840 acres of tree-lined paths, public plazas, open fields, gardens, ponds, lakes, bridges, arches, performance spaces, a castle on a hill, a quite charming zoo and, arguably, the world’s greatest museum.

Here, LIFE.com celebrates Frederick Law Olmsted’s and Calvert Vaux’s best-loved and most-frequented creation with a series of photos from 1961.

Liz Ronk, who edited this gallery, is the Photo Editor for LIFE.com. Follow her on Twitter @lizabethronk.

Dancers in Central Park, 1961.
Dancers in Central Park, 1961.Leonard McCombe—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images
Unicyclist in Central Park, 1961.
Unicyclist in Central Park, 1961.Leonard McCombe—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images
Warming up before a soccer match, Central Park, 1961.
Warming up before a soccer match, Central Park, 1961.Leonard McCombe—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images
Scene in Central Park, 1961.
Scene in Central Park, 1961.Leonard McCombe—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images
A painter finds a secluded spot, Central Park, 1961.
A painter finds a secluded spot, Central Park, 1961.Leonard McCombe—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images
Central Park's Bethesda Fountain, 1961.
Central Park's Bethesda Fountain, 1961.Leonard McCombe—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images
Rowers on the Lake in Central Park, 1961.
Rowers on the Lake in Central Park, 1961.Leonard McCombe—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images
Fishing in Central Park, 1961.
Fishing in Central Park, 1961.Leonard McCombe—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images
Sunbathers cool their feet, Central Park, 1961.
Sunbathers cool their feet, Central Park, 1961.Leonard McCombe—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images
Scene near the Boat House, Central Park, 1961.
Scene near the Boat House, Central Park, 1961.Leonard McCombe—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images
Model sailboats in Conservatory Pond, Central Park, 1961.
Model sailboats in Conservatory Pond, Central Park, 1961.Leonard McCombe—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images
Nelson's flagship 'Victory' gets a tender launching by its builder, Arthur Langton.
Caption from LIFE. "Nelson's flagship Victory gets a tender launching by its builder, Arthur Langton."Leonard McCombe—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images
Dogs in a fountain, Central Park, 1961.
Dogs in a fountain, Central Park, 1961.Leonard McCombe—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images
Chess players, Central Park, 1961.
Chess players, Central Park, 1961.Leonard McCombe—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images
Water fountain, Central Park, 1961.
Water fountain, Central Park, 1961.Leonard McCombe—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images
In a wonderland for climbers a bronze Alice is cluttered with children who have scrambled over Mad Hatter and other Lewis Carroll creatures.
Caption from LIFE. "In a wonderland for climbers a bronze Alice is cluttered with children who have scrambled over Mad Hatter and other Lewis Carroll creatures."Leonard McCombe—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images
A trio of newly graduated students strolls soberly past a trio of figures dancing ring-around-a-rosy at a fountain.
Caption from LIFE. "A trio of newly graduated students strolls soberly past a trio of figures dancing ring-around-a-rosy at a fountain."Leonard McCombe—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images
Central Park 1961
Caption from LIFE. "The park's carriage trade, out for a morning ride, moves in conversational formation along a broad pavement."Leonard McCombe—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images
Scene in Central Park, 1961.
Scene in Central Park, 1961.Leonard McCombe—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images
Elephants in Central Park, 1961.
Elephants in Central Park, 1961.Leonard McCombe—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images
Seals in Central Park, 1961.
Seals in Central Park, 1961.Leonard McCombe—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images
Kodiak bears, Central Park, 1961.
Kodiak bears, Central Park, 1961.Leonard McCombe—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images
Couple on a bench, Central Park, 1961.
Couple on a bench, Central Park, 1961.Leonard McCombe—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images
A young woman is helped down from a horse-drawn carriage, Central Park, 1961.
A young woman is helped down from a horse-drawn carriage, Central Park, 1961.Leonard McCombe—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images
Scene in Central Park, 1961.
Scene in Central Park, 1961.Leonard McCombe—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images

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