Columbus Park (Manhattan)

Columbus Park formerly known as Mulberry Bend Park, Five Points Park and Paradise Park, is a public park in Chinatown, Manhattan, in New York City that was built in 1897.

"Paradise Park (Manhattan)" redirects here. For the former amusement park in Upper Manhattan, see Fort George Amusement Park.

Columbus Park
Xiangqi (Chinese chess) players and onlookers in the park in 2008
LocationChinatown, Manhattan
Nearest cityNew York City, United States
Coordinates40°42′53.5″N 73°59′59.5″W
Operated byNew York City Department of Parks and Recreation

American photojournalist Jacob Riis (best known for How The Other Half Lives) is generally credited with "transforming Mulberry Bend from a 'notorious slum' to a park" in order to improve tenement dwellers' quality of life in the neighborhood.[1]

History

Prior slum
Main article: Mulberry Bend
Baxter Street in Mulberry Bend c. 1890, now destroyed;[2] photographed by Riis

During the 19th century, Mulberry Bend (a curve of Mulberry Street) was the center of the Five Points neighborhood, the most dangerous ghetto area of immigrant New York.

Before the park's establishment, Mulberry Bend was an alley Riis considered the "foul core of New York’s slums."[3] The Bend is the site of Riis's 1888 photograph, Bandits' Roost, 59 1/2 Mulberry Street.[4][5]

Photographer and social activist Jacob A. Riis, "friend of the tenement house children,"[6] campaigned for the creation of the park.

1897 establishment

In 1897, due in part to Riis's advocacy, Mulberry Bend was demolished, tearing down "several blocks" of what the American Park and Outdoor Art Association called "the worst tenement-houses in the world."[7]

William Dean,[8] captain of Manhattan's Sixth Precinct,[9] stated in 1897,

The establishment of Mulberry Bend Park is one of the greatest blessings that could be bestowed on the people of this precinct, as it eradicated one of the worst blocks in the city, which was made the home of a horde of the most depraved and debased classes, male and female, of all nationalities. Since the eradication of this block, the whole neighborhood has taken a change, and decidedly for the better.[7]

The same year, Riis praised the park's positive effects on the impoverished children and the neighborhood crime rate:

The troublesome boys had not moved away. They had found something better to do than smashing lamps and windows and getting themselves arrested. They had a place now to romp in. That was all they wanted...In healthy play, youthful energies find a safe outlet.[7][6][10]

20th century

A postcard claims it was widened circa 1905.[11]

In 1911, Frederick Law Olmstead[12] and Calvert Vaux completed a redesign of the park, which was then renamed Columbus Park.[13][14][15]

21st century

As of 2013, the park often serves as a gathering place for the local Chinese community, where "the neighborhood meets up here to play mahjong, perform traditional Chinese music... [and] practice tai chi in the early mornings."[16]

In 2019, a statue of Dr. Sun Yat-sen by Lu Chun-Hsiung and Michael Kang was permanently installed in the northern plaza of the park. The plaza was also renamed for the founder of the first Republic of China, who lived in Manhattan's Chinatown for a time.[17][18]

In October 2021, a large-scale crochet mural made of over 1,500 flowers was put up on the fences of Columbus Park by Chinatown Yarn Circle and Think!Chinatown.[19] The project and its flowers are "in tribute to AAPI community builders, embodying collaboration, triumph over struggle and inspiring future generations."[19]

See also

References
  1. unav (c. 1900). "Mulberry Bend Park". Community Service Society photographs. doi:10.7916/ckwz-x130. Retrieved June 22, 2023.
  2. "Museum of the City of New York - Baxter Street Alley in Mulberry Bend, now destroyed". collections.mcny.org. Retrieved June 22, 2023.
  3. Riis, Jacob August (1914). How the Other Half Lives: Studies Among the Tenements of New York, pp. 55-56. Charles Scribner's Sons.
  4. Bandits' Roost, 59 1/2 Mulberry Street, The Art Story
  5. Michael Burgan, Exposing Hidden Worlds: How Jacob Riis' Photos Became Tools for Social Reform, Compass Point Books, 2018, pp. 8-9
  6. Gardening. Gardening Company. 1899. p. 57.
  7. Association, American Park and Outdoor Art (1897). Report of the American Park and Outdoor Art Association. The Association.
  8. Writ of Certiorari and Return. 1902.
  9. "6 Precinct - NYPD". www.nyc.gov. Retrieved June 22, 2023.
  10. Parks, New York (N Y. ) Committee on Small (1897). Report of Committee on Small Parks. Brown.
  11. "Museum of the City of New York - Mulberry Bend Park. New York". collections.mcny.org. Retrieved June 22, 2023.
  12. "Park designer Olmsted made a lasting mark on Midwest". The Columbus Dispatch. Retrieved June 22, 2023.
  13. Coneybeare, Matt (August 25, 2017). "Vintage Photograph Shows Lower East Side's Mulberry Bend Park Circa 1905". Viewing NYC. Retrieved June 22, 2023.
  14. "Mulberry Bend | CultureNow". themuseumwithoutwalls.org. Retrieved June 22, 2023.
  15. "Columbus Park". New York City Department of Parks and Recreation. Retrieved June 20, 2014.
  16. Nelson, C. (April 19, 2013). "24-Hour Introduction to Chinatown". NewYork.com. Retrieved January 21, 2015.
  17. Maisel, Todd (November 12, 2019). "Chinatown park plaza renamed for Dr. Sun Yat-Sen with bronze statue". www.amny.com. Retrieved November 14, 2019.
  18. Pereira, Sydney (February 6, 2019). "Chinese Revolutionary Honored With LES Statue". Lower East Side-Chinatown, NY Patch. Retrieved November 14, 2019.
  19. Rahmanan, Anna (January 5, 2022). "This massive crochet mural in Chinatown is made of over 1,500 flowers". Time Out New York. Retrieved January 21, 2022.


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