Incredible photos of New York City when sheep roamed Central Park

Publish date: 2024-07-19

2018-02-01T17:20:00Z

Manhattan's Central Park has all the features of a great public space: It's car-free, features a range of flora and fauna, and anyone can access it.

Before Central Park became the landmark it is today, a 15-acre swath of the park had an unusual purpose in the 19th century.

Dubbed Sheep Meadow, the reserve hosted around 200 pedigree Southdown sheep for 70 years. Visitors would watch the flock of sheep while they grazed. The idea was to help Sheep Meadow further the mission of Central Park, envisioned by its architects as a refuge from the stresses of urban living.

Take a look at the meadow's history below:

In 1858, architects Frederick Law Olmsted and Calvert Vaux designed Manhattan's Central Park, which spans 843 acres.

NYPL

Source: NYC Parks

Olmsted and Vaux originally reserved 15 acres of the park for military drills and exhibitions. They later realized that a quiet park would probably not be the best place for this.

Sheep Meadow, New York City, circa early 1850s. NYPL

To make way for the new public space, the city forced Irish, German, and African-American immigrants from their homes, which were bulldozed.

In 1864, the architects persuaded park commissioners to add 200 pedigree Southdown sheep there and call the area Sheep Meadow.

Sheep Meadow, New York City, 1864. The Library of Congress

Source: Modern Farmer

They hoped that the wooly animals would elicit idyllic images of traditional English pastures.

Sheep Meadow, New York City, circa 1860s. The Library of Congress

Most of the time, the public couldn't visit Sheep Meadow. But people could watch the sheep from afar.

The sheep slept in a nearby barn next to a Victorian-style building. Twice per day, a shepherd would bring the animals over a crossing to the park and disrupt carriage traffic in the process.

Sheep Meadow, New York City, circa 1880. Public Domain

The City of New York paid for the flock's upkeep. But the animals also helped mow the lawn, and their wool was auctioned off.

People could visit the sheep during the day at the barn and building, where the shepherd lived with his family.

Central Park, New York City, 1900 NYC Municipal Archives

As part of the park's menagerie (which later became the Central Park Zoo), camels came to Sheep Meadow periodically. One pair of camels named the Volsteads was particularly beloved by New Yorkers.

Sheep Meadow, New York City, 1869. New York City Parks Photo Archive

For 70 years, the sheep stayed at Sheep Meadow. In 1934, Central Park commissioner Robert Moses moved them to Prospect Park in Brooklyn.

Sheep Meadow, New York City, circa early 1900s. The Library of Congress

The animals were moved again to the Catskill Mountains during the Great Depression, largely due to fears that impoverished and hungry New Yorkers would capture and eat them.

Over the next few decades, Sheep Meadow took on new uses. In this 1947 photo in the park, Army officials are carrying a casket containing a soldier who died during World War II.

Sheep Meadow, New York City, 1947. AP

On most days, Sheep Meadow served as a hangout spot where visitors sunbathed.

Sheep Meadow, New York City, 1967. Ken Clare

It also became the site of political protests against the Vietnam War. This 1968 photo shows folk singer Joan Baez and her husband Dave Harris surrounded by reporters at a draft resisters demonstration:

In the 1960s, New Yorkers hosted several protests, called "be-ins," against the war and racism.

Supporters of the Vietnam moratorium lie in the Sheep Meadow of New York's Central Park Nov. 14, 1969 as hundreds of black and white balloons float skyward. AP

An estimated 10,065 people participated in the 1967 Easter be-in at Sheep Meadow.

Source: Village Voice

And on June 28, 1970, there was an LGBT be-in to commemorate the first anniversary of the Stonewall riots.