83-575: Bronx Park is a public park along the Bronx River , in the Bronx , New York City. The park is bounded by Southern Boulevard to the southwest, Webster Avenue to the northwest, Gun Hill Road to the north, Bronx Park East to the east, and East 180th Street to the south. With an area of 718 acres (2.91 km), Bronx Park is the eighth-largest park in New York City . Founded in the late 1880s, Bronx Park
166-636: A 2002 renovation, the library also included a 48-foot-long (15 m) wooden reference desk and a 50-seat study room. Since the International Plant Science Center's opening, the library collections and herbarium have been located in that building. The William & Lynda Steere Herbarium , located inside the International Plant Science Center, is one of the largest herbaria in the world, with approximately 7.2 million to 7.8 million specimens. The Science and Education Building contains offices, educational and environmental facilities, and
249-587: A 2004 NYC Parks report, include the 182nd Street Dam, the Bronx Zoo Dam, the Snuff Mill Dam, and the Westchester dams. As a result of these long term blockages, NYC parks did not expect fish to return to these migration routes, requiring the release of fish in historical spawning areas after fish passage remediation. In 2011, New York City parks began the process of adding a 1.5 million passage to Bronx Park, which
332-672: A boundary between loosely associated bands under sachems of the informal confederacy of the Wecquaesgeek . Europeanized as the Wappinger , the east bank of the river was the boundary for the Siwanoy , clammers and fishermen. The same line was retained when manors were granted to the Dutch and the English. The Algonkian significance of the name is variously reported. The acca- element, as represented in
415-418: A central pavilion topped by a dome, with two side wings. The Mertz Library was built on uneven ground, such that the basement is at the same elevation with the ground to the east, north, and south of the library, while the first floor is level with the ground to the west. The building has four annexes. The International Plant Science Center is located east of the northern wing and faces Southern Boulevard to
498-560: A fish passageway was built at the 182nd Street dam. In February 2007 biologists with the Wildlife Conservation Society , which operates the Zoo, spotted a beaver ( Castor canadensis ) in the river. "There has not been a sighting of a beaver lodge or a beaver in New York City for over 200 years. It sounds fantastic, but one of the messages that comes out of this is if you give wildlife a chance it will come back," said John Calvelli,
581-506: A greenhouse used to simulate environments for plants. It is connected to the original building by a passage at its northwest end, and is used by the NYBG's School of Professional Horticulture. Herbarium specimens are stored in the one-story annex that connects directly to the south wing of the original building. The Fountain of Life , in front of the library's main entrance, was designed by Carl Tefft and completed in 1905. The central focus of
664-463: A new bison "prairie" in the Bronx Zoo. A larger lake, the 25-acre (10 ha) Bronx Lake, is located south of Lake Agassiz and stretches for nearly 1 mile (1.6 km) through the zoo. It was previously used for boating, and a 1912 New York Times article mentioned that over 46,000 people had used boats in the lake in 1911. The Bronx Lake used to have a boathouse north of the 182nd Street Dam, but it
747-400: A new entrance to the basement lecture hall and library and the renovation of 10,000 square feet (930 m ) in the existing structure. The original building's rotunda was restored as well. Construction started in 1998, and though the expansion was originally supposed to be complete in 2000, the opening was ultimately delayed until 2002. Upon the annex's opening, the library collections and
830-510: A popular destination for urban canoeing in New York City. It bisects Bronx Park and the Bronx Zoo. A monorail built in the late 20th century takes zoo visitors over the river to an exhibit of Asian animals on the left bank, with a narration presenting the river as the Irrawaddy . Shoelace Park is a one-mile long linear park on the east bank of the Bronx River, from 211th to 231st Street in
913-510: A result, NYBG officials planned for a four-story expansion to the east of the original building's north wing, set to open in 1991. A three-month restoration of the rotunda was completed in November 1988, and a new orchid terrarium was dedicated. The addition of the northern annex was delayed in 1992, when the NYBG announced that the annex would cost $ 32 million ($ 62.4 million in today's dollars ) and be completed in 1994. A one-story annex to
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#1732849109710996-536: A similar design to the original building. The wing was to include classrooms, conference rooms, offices, and reading rooms. In 1964, Mayor Robert F. Wagner Jr. approved the plan, with the city and NYBG contributing equally toward the cost. The original rear wing behind the central pavilion was destroyed. The annex was dedicated as the Harriet Barnes Pratt Library Wing in late 1965, after a notable NYBG benefactor, and opened in 1966. Additionally,
1079-599: A spokesman for the Society. The beaver is named Jose Serrano , after the Congressman, and was sighted below the East Tremont bridge at Drew Gardens as recently as June 2009. Beavers had not lived in New York City since the early 19th century, when trappers extirpated them completely from the state. In the summer of 2010 a second beaver joined Jose, doubling the beaver population in New York City. Beaver were once important to
1162-488: Is adjacent to the Bronx River. The project, including dam repair in addition to construction of the fish ladder, was slated to be one of three fish ladders that were to be installed across the Bronx River. Restoration programs based on fishway construction and hatcheries may have sustained remnant populations, but large-scale restoration has not been achieved. This is a partial listing, listed north to south: LuEsther T. Mertz Library The LuEsther T. Mertz Library
1245-507: Is believed to be the only woodland in New York City that has never been cleared . In addition, there is another set of ballfields called the Allerton Avenue Ballfields adjacent to the preserve. The ballfields are named after Daniel Allerton , an early Bronx settler, and consist of three baseball fields and a comfort station. The Bronx Skate Park is located nearby on Bronx Park East between Allerton Avenue and Britton Street, near
1328-507: Is fed by Troublesome Brook . At Bronxville, it is fed by Sprain Brook , its longest tributary system, which originates at Greenburgh Town Park . The river divides Westchester County into eastern and western areas, forming the border between the large cities of Yonkers and Mount Vernon , and flows into the northern end of The Bronx , where it divides East Bronx from West Bronx , southward through Bronx Park , New York Botanical Garden , and
1411-837: Is located at the New York Botanical Garden (NYBG) in the Bronx , New York City. Founded in 1899 and renamed in the 1990s for LuEsther Mertz , it is the United States' largest botanical research library , and the first library whose collection focused exclusively on botany . The library contains large collections of books relating to botany and horticulture , and are used for studies in fields such as history, anthropology, landscape and building design, architectural history, ethnobotany , economic botany, urban social history, and environmental policy. Its holdings include current scholarly books and serials, as well as many rare and historically important works. Robert W. Gibson designed
1494-692: Is now the Kensico Reservoir , in Westchester County north of New York City , on a hill about 650 feet above sea level in what is now New Castle, New York . The river originated in an area the Weckquasgeek called Quaropes, which means White Marshes. It was fed by the Fulton Brook , Manhattan Park Brook , Davis Brook , and Tompkins Brook . With the construction of the Kensico Dam in 1885, however,
1577-667: Is now the New York Botanical Garden within the northern section of Bronx Park. The snuff mill, a National Historic Landmark , still remains and is the oldest existing tobacco manufacturing building in the United States. Land was also acquired from the Lydig family, another prominent local family, who had bought it from the DeLanceys, yet another local family. The original 640 acres (2.6 km) were acquired in 1888–1889. The northernmost 250 acres (1.0 km) were allocated in 1891 to
1660-598: Is the location of the New York Botanical Garden and the Bronx Zoo , which respectively occupy much of the northern and southern portions of the park. Fordham Road runs east–west between the zoo and botanical garden, bisecting Bronx Park, while the Bronx River Parkway runs north–south near the eastern edge. The park is operated by the New York City Department of Parks and Recreation . The land for Bronx Park
1743-553: The Botanical Garden station of the New York Central Railroad (now Metro-North Railroad ), which made the building easily accessible from other locations. A design contest for the museum was held, attracting firms and architects like Ernest Flagg , William Appleton Potter , N. Le Brun & Sons, Parish & Schroeder , and Clinton & Russell . Robert W. Gibson won the commission and filed building plans with
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#17328491097101826-564: The Bronx Zoo and continues through neighborhoods of the South Bronx . It empties into the East River , a tidal strait connected to Long Island Sound , between the Soundview and Hunts Point neighborhoods. Prior to European settlement, The Bronx River Valley was known as Laaphawachking--"the place of stringing lakes." In the 17th century, the river—called by the natives "Aquehung"—served as
1909-412: The East River , running for 2 miles (3.2 km) through the park. The section of river within the park is for the most part a natural watercourse. The river hosts a diverse ecosystem with a hardwood swamp and floodplain forest composed of red maple trees. A number of tributaries run into the river from both the New York Botanical Garden and the Bronx Zoo. The river, once a heavily polluted waterway,
1992-610: The New York Botanical Society . Another 261 acres (106 ha) were allocated in 1897 to the New York Zoological Society . An additional 66 acres (270,000 m) were acquired in 1906, at the southeast end of the park; this area is now known as Ranaqua, where the Parks headquarters is located. Much of Bronx Park is taken up by the Bronx Zoo and New York Botanical Garden, both of which are private entities. However,
2075-516: The New York City Department of Buildings in November 1896. In January 1897, the city authorized the NYBG to proceed with construction of the museum. By July 1897, construction was delayed due to disputes over whether the presence of the museum and the NYBG conservatory would detract from the naturalistic look of the rest of the garden. The magazine American Architect and Architecture , calling these objections "an unfortunate controversy", reported that
2158-479: The New York City Department of Parks and Recreation (NYC Parks) still pays for some of the maintenance costs. According to NYC Parks, Bronx Park is 718 acres (2.91 km), making it the third-largest park in the Bronx and the eighth-largest park in the city. However, another measurement in the Encyclopedia of New York City places the park as only being 662 acres (268 ha) in area. As originally stipulated in
2241-689: The Renaissance Revival style building in 1896; it was finished five years later. The four-story structure, originally known as the Museum Building and later as the Administration Building , has a facade of gray- buff brick with buff terracotta . The sculptural Fountain of Life , as well as a tree-lined avenue called the Tulip Tree Allee, are located outside the front entrance. All three were included as contributing resources when
2324-513: The Wakefield and Williamsbridge areas of the Bronx. Officially named Bronx River Park, it is more commonly known as Shoelace Park because of its shape. The park was renovated in 2020 to create bicycle and pedestrian paths over what was the original roadbed of the Bronx River Parkway . A small pier at 219th street provides access to the river for canoes and kayaks. The fragmentation of
2407-478: The 1930s as part of a Works Progress Administration project. The southwest corner of Bronx Park contains River Park, a small park and playground that overlooks the Bronx River south of the zoo. The park is located just south of the 182nd Street Dam, a small cascade on the river. The park has five entrances: The main watercourse in Bronx Park is the Bronx River , which flows southward from Westchester County to
2490-556: The Boston Road entrance to the zoo. At this location, there is a small island that splits the waterfall into two cascades. A third waterfall is the 182nd Street Dam near River Park. It was formerly used by the DeLancey family, which operated a farm in what is now the Wild Asia section of the Bronx Zoo, but now consists of a Fordham gneiss dam with a fish ladder . As such, the 182nd Street Dam
2573-504: The Bronx River by dams has eliminated diadromous species from the river system, and as human development has progressed across the Bronx river, historic fish migration routes have been severed. According to the NYC Department of Environmental Protection: "At the beginning of the 18th Century, roughly 12 water mills were producing paper, pottery, flour, tapestries, and snuff along the Bronx River." Several identified blockages, according to
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2656-527: The Long Island place-name Accabonac , was deformed into the more familiar, suitably watery European morpheme aque- . The tract purchased by Jonas Bronck , a Swedish immigrant, in 1639 lay between the Harlem River and the river that came to be called "Bronck's river". During the 19th and 20th centuries, the river became a natural sewer into which industrial waste was poured every day. An early mill on
2739-545: The NYBG was designated a National Historic Landmark in 1967; in 2009 they were made New York City designated landmarks . An act of the New York State Legislature , passed in 1891, set aside land within Bronx Park in the north-central part of the Bronx for the creation of the New York Botanical Garden (NYBG) on the condition that a board of directors raise $ 250,000 ($ 7.66 million in today's dollars ) for
2822-459: The NYBG's rare-art collection. However, a book published in 2014 by the NYBG mentioned that the library had "550,000 physical volumes and 1,800 journal titles". As of 2016 the Mertz Library still contained one of the world's largest collections of botany-related texts. Stephen Sinon, who leads the NYBG's special collections, research and archives, called its collection "the largest of its kind in
2905-492: The New Parks Act, Bronx Park is the center of a system of parks across the Bronx. Mosholu Parkway runs to Van Cortlandt Park in the northwest, while Pelham Parkway runs to Pelham Bay Park in the east, and Southern Boulevard/Crotona Parkway runs to Crotona Park in the south. The park is crossed by a road connecting Fordham Road to the west and Pelham Parkway to the east. Adjacent neighborhoods include Pelham Parkway to
2988-425: The New York City parks commissioners had already hired the respective architects for the museum and conservatory, and were applying for construction funds for both projects. The New York City Board of Estimate again blocked the $ 500,000 appropriation in mid-September 1897, citing the concerns about the building's aesthetics and possible cost overruns, before approving it at the end of that month. A request for bids
3071-716: The New York Zoological Society, it first opened on November 8, 1899. The zoo covers 265 acres (107 ha), making it among the United States' largest urban zoos. The zoo contains about 4,000 animals from 600 species. The Bronx Zoo has several landmarked features, including the Rainey Memorial Gates at the Fordham Road entrance, which is a New York City designated landmark and a National Register of Historic Places listing. The eastern section of Bronx Park contains several recreational facilities that mainly serve
3154-589: The Steere Herbarium were relocated to it, and the Museum Building was renamed the Library Building. The original Mertz Library building was designed by Robert W. Gibson ; its main facade is 308 feet (94 m) long. The side facades, as noted in the building plans, measured 115 feet (35 m) on one end and 87 feet (27 m) on the other. Designed in the Renaissance Revival style , it consists of
3237-428: The annexes. There is an entrance to the ground/basement level from the northern portion of the rear facade. The side facades to the north and south were originally five bays wide. On the south side, all five window bays are intact, but a former archway to the basement has been filled in, and a covered passageway from that arch leads to the one-story annex. On the north side, only the westernmost three bays can be seen from
3320-458: The brick walls. By September 1898, according to The New York Times , the steel frame was 75 percent finished and the exterior walls had been built up to the second floor. The city approved the disbursement of another $ 200,000 in bonds that November. A contract to build the "front central portico" was carried out between July and October 1899. According to a Brooklyn Daily Eagle article in March 1900,
3403-428: The building had "just been completed". The NYBG's contract with John H. Parker ended the next month, with work on the end pavilions' ornamentation being delayed. The library initially had 2,500 volumes; in 1899, Columbia College donated another 5,000 from its botanical collection. In April 1901, Wilson & Baillie Manufacturing were contracted to build the fountain at the Museum Building's main entrance, as well as
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3486-491: The central bay is an entablature containing the seal of New York City , while smaller entablatures with the seals of New York state and the United States are located on the left and right bays. On the third story, above the center bay, there is a cartouche of the New York Botanical Garden. The steps leading to the entrance bays are made of granite, and the sidewalls are made of brick with granite coping . The pavilions on
3569-571: The city's economy. A pair of beaver appear on the city's official seal and flag . A pod of dolphins visited the river in January 2023. Along much of its length in Westchester County and the northern Bronx the river is paralleled by the Bronx River Parkway . It has a bicycle path from Bronxville to the Kensico Dam plaza. The Bronx River Greenway project proposes a unified management plan for
3652-525: The east, West Farms to the south, and Belmont to the west. The New York Botanical Garden is located on the northern side of Bronx Park, west of the Bronx River Parkway. It was founded by the New York Botanical Society in 1891. The botanical garden covers 250 acres in total. Much of this is the former grounds of the Lorillard estate, although the garden also includes a parcel that was formerly
3735-584: The easternmost portion of the campus of St. John's College (now Fordham University ). The Botanical Garden contains more than a million living plants on its grounds, as well as the LuEsther T. Mertz Library and the Enid A. Haupt Conservatory . Since 1967, the Botanical Garden has been a National Historic Landmark. The Bronx Zoo is located on the southern side of Bronx Park, west of the Bronx River Parkway. Founded by
3818-484: The excavations a large sand bar was uncovered where sand had accumulated at the bend over hundreds of years and made a sandy beach. In the 21st century, environmental groups including the Bronx River Alliance proposed to return the river to its original state as a clean waterway. The river became a favorite project of U.S. Representative José Serrano , who secured US$ 14.6 million in federal funding to support
3901-465: The first dam on the river in April 2009. An analysis revealed they were 3 years old, with the assumption of scientists being that these were descendants of the alewife released 3 years before in March 2006. The next step will be to erect fish ladders , aka. fish passageways over the 3 dams lowest on the river, allowing the alewife access to a portion of the river with more suitable spawning habitat. In 2015
3984-421: The fountain are the heroic nude sculpted figures atop a granite pedestal. These figures include two horses, both with webbed forefeet ; a female sitting astride one of the horses; a boy attempting to control the other horse while holding a fish; and another boy sitting on a dolphin's back. Within the basin of the fountain is a bronze merman on a crab, and a bronze mermaid , both with startled expressions. At
4067-425: The front approaches and cornice ornamentation . The library's collection grew over the years, and by 1926, an annex was being planned for the Museum Building. However, no progress was made on this proposal, except for the rearrangement of the building's interior. Then in 1958, Eggers & Higgins proposed a $ 1 million ($ 8.1 million in today's dollars ), three-story annex behind the existing structure, with
4150-578: The industrialized river was the Lorillard Snuff Mill , preserved in the grounds of the New York Botanical Garden . With the decline of manufacturing in the area, the river continued to receive water pollution from the communities that lined its banks. In December 1948, flow of the Bronx River was changed to eliminate a curve in its course in Bronxville , to create land on the old riverbed on which to construct an addition to Lawrence Hospital . During
4233-481: The longest is a north–south path on Bronx River Parkway, but bikeways also run northwest along Mosholu Parkway and east along Pelham Parkway. The northern section of Bronx Park is classified by NYC Parks as a Forever Wild nature preserve . The preserve occupies 35 acres (14 ha) and is permanently closed off to development. The preserve is mainly composed of a floodplain forest with eastern hemlock and hardwoods, through which several walking trails run. The forest
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#17328491097104316-628: The narrow ribbon of riverside green spaces in the 8 miles (13 km) in which the river passes through Westchester County and the Bronx, as part of the East Coast Greenway . It includes Concrete Plant Park on the right bank, below Westchester Avenue and Starlight Park above there. Construction on the Bronx River Greenway started in October 2016. In the South Bronx, the river has become
4399-453: The neighborhoods to its east. These include areas for baseball , basketball , bocce , football , handball , soccer , and tennis . There are also hiking trails, kayaking sites, playgrounds, a skate park, and spray showers. Of the seven playgrounds in Bronx Park, four are located on Bronx Park East or Bronx River Parkway: Ben Abrams Playground, Brady Playground, Waring Playground, and Rosewood Playground. The park also has three bicycle paths;
4482-443: The north. The Jeannette Kittredge Watson Science and Education Building is located east of the southern wing, while a one-story annex is located to the south. The Harriet Barnes Pratt Library Wing is located behind the original building to the east of the center pavilion. The original building's facade consists of buff and gray brick interspersed with terracotta decoration. The windows are largely rectangular, except for those on
4565-463: The northeast corner of Bronx Park. Two playgrounds, French Charley's Playground and Frisch Field, are also adjacent to the northern section of Bronx Park. The southeast section, known as Ranaqua, is used as NYC Parks' Bronx headquarters. The name is an Algonquin ( Delaware ) word for "End Place", the original name of the peninsula that was sold in 1639 to the Bronx's namesake Jonas Bronck . The current brick buildings that comprise Ranaqua were built in
4648-422: The original building's front staircase and its balustrade and sidewalls were renovated from 1960 to 1961. The Science and Education Building was built between 1969 and 1972 to a design by William and Geoffrey Platt, and was dedicated to Jeannette Kittredge Watson. By February 1988, the herbarium had taken up all of the vacant space in the original structure, including rooms formerly dedicated to exhibitions. As
4731-479: The original library building. The Jeannette Kittredge Watson Science and Education Building is four stories high. The building is constructed of steel frame with a glass facade interspersed with aluminum and green spandrels . The original building is constructed with a steel frame and concrete floors. The basement contains the Arthur and Janet Ross Lecture Hall, which has a capacity of 400. An economic botany museum
4814-409: The outside, while the eastern two bays have been hidden by the International Plant Science Center. The International Plant Science Center is five stories high, including the basement, and contains a windowless sand-colored facade. Original plans called for it to also include a green wall on the facade. The Harriet Barnes Pratt Library Wing is six stories high and has a similar exterior design to
4897-458: The part of the local community. The lakes had previously been a very popular winter ice skating venue, with free access. Bronx River The Bronx River ( / b r ɒ ŋ k s / ), is a river that is approximately 24 miles (39 km) long, and flows through southeastern New York in the United States and drains an area of 38.4 square miles (99 km ). It is named after colonial settler Jonas Bronck . It originally rose in what
4980-624: The paving and grading of a road and tree-lined avenue leading to the museum building. This was completed in 1902. The contract also called for a seating area and a drinking fountain 16 feet (4.9 m) tall, located at the avenue's western end. These were removed in the 1950s with the construction of a laboratory building at that site. Other components of the avenue included Carolina poplars , planted in 1903, and tulip trees , planted in 1905 between each pair of poplars. The poplars were removed by 1911. The paths were re-graded in 1904 and now have benches, an asphalt surface, and concrete curbs. At
5063-414: The rehabilitation of the waterway, into which some Westchester towns continued to discharge raw sewage intermittently, as sanitary sewer overflows , as late as 2006. Under a November 2006, agreement, the municipalities of Scarsdale , White Plains , Mount Vernon and Greenburgh agreed to stop dumping sewage in the Bronx River by May 2007. Urban runoff pollution continues to be a serious problem for
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#17328491097105146-548: The river was cut off from its natural headwaters and today a small tributary stream originating from the reservoir serves as its source. The Bronx River flows south past White Plains , then south-southwest through the northern suburbs in New York, passing through Edgemont , Tuckahoe , Eastchester , and Bronxville . In the area known as the Aquehung, it is fed by Harts Brook and the north and south Fox Meadow Brooks . At Tuckahoe, it
5229-433: The river. The Bronx River Watershed Coalition, a partnership of local and state agencies, citizen groups and non-profit organizations, have developed watershed management plans to reduce stormwater pollution and improve water quality . Local alewife were released in the river in March 2006. They taken from a coastal tributary in nearby Connecticut . The alewife spawn in the river's headwaters. Their offspring spend
5312-400: The second floor, which contains round-arched window openings with balustrades at their bases. The third story consists of a mansard roof with dormer windows corresponding to the vertical architectural bays below them. Those bays are separated by projecting pilasters topped with Corinthian -style pediments . A cornice runs the length of the second story. A glass dome is located over
5395-413: The side also contain service entrances on the first floor, located under an arched transom . The side and rear facades are similar but contain windows on the basement as well. On the rear (east) side, four window bays on the northern portion are visible from the outside, and the four southernmost window bays are also visible. The remaining window bays cannot be seen from the outside due to the presence of
5478-464: The site. Prominent civic leaders and financiers agreed to match the City's commitment to finance the buildings and improvements. By May 1895, sufficient funds had been raised, but the plans for the NYBG had not been finalized. The Board of Directors then asked landscape architect Calvert Vaux and his partner, Parks Superintendent Samuel Parsons Jr. , to consult on site selection. A topographical survey
5561-477: The south, housing the herbarium specimens, was designed by Coe Lee Robinson Roesch and finished in 1994. During the mid-1990s, the library was renamed after LuEsther Mertz , a major NYBG donor. When plans for the northern annex were finalized in 1997, the project was expected to cost $ 39 million. Polshek Partnership designed the structure, known as the International Plant Science Center. The addition comprised nine new research rooms, herbarium and library space,
5644-401: The summer in the river, migrate out to sea in the fall, and in three to five years return, like all anadromous fish, to their spawning grounds. Stocking was repeated annually for the following five years, to build up the new resident population. The fish, among a group called "river herring," feed low on the food-chain and help reduce eutrophication . Several adult alewife were found below
5727-457: The third-story rotunda, rising 36 feet (11 m) above the third floor. On the front facade facing west, the central pavilion has rusticated stone and a pediment supported by four Corinthian columns, which divide the central pavilion into three bays. At the first floor level, there are three sets of doors, one in each bay. The end sections also have pilasters in the Corinthian style. Above
5810-405: The time of Fountain of Life's commission, there were very few statues of horses with webbed forefeet. One observer wrote that "It was conceived in the spirit of Italian baroque fountains, with the surging movement of galloping horses and muscular riders." The fountain and statue were included in the original plans for the Museum Building in 1897, but except for the granite pedestal, the statue
5893-497: The time of opening, the Mertz Library was the largest botanical library in the U.S. and one of the largest botanical libraries worldwide. A 2002 New York Times article mentioned that the library had 775,000 items and 6.5 million plant specimens in its collection. Furthermore, the Times stated that the Mertz Library had 75 percent of all systematic botany literature in the world and 70 percent of all flora that had been published, as well as
5976-475: The world under one roof". The collection grew both through the purchase of books and through the donation of significant botanical and horticultural libraries from notable botanists, gardeners, scientists and book collectors. Other items were collected from NYBG expeditions abroad. The items in the collection include rare plant books such as two copies of the Circa Instans (dated circa 1190 and 1275). Among
6059-575: The zoo in the 1990s. In 2009, the Center for Global Conservation opened on the lake. Another pond, Twin Lake, is located at the northern portion of Bronx Park, next to the Pfizer Lab in the New York Botanical Garden. It is popularly known as French Charley's after a restaurant located there in the 19th century. The scenic ponds were formerly a public area, but were confiscated by the botanical garden, causing an uproar on
6142-412: Was acquired with funds authorized by the 1884 New Parks Act , which was intended to preserve lands that would soon become part of New York City. Much of the land was acquired from Fordham University , which gave away the land on the condition that it be used as a zoo and botanical garden . Other sections were obtained from the family of Pierre Lorillard , who operated the Lorillard Snuff Mill in what
6225-450: Was cleaned in 1968 after a period of deterioration, by which point the plinth and basin had started to crack, and the mermaid, merman, and part of the crab claw had been removed. In 2005, the mermaid, merman, and claw figures were replaced, and a bronze book was placed within the basin. At that time, the fountain was named for Lillian Goldman , a prominent donor. In 1901, a contract was given to Wilson & Baillie Manufacturing Company for
6308-598: Was cleaned up in the late 20th century due to an effort led by the Bronx River Alliance. The Mitsubishi Riverwalk, a free public trail along the Bronx River that opened in 2004, runs along the eastern bank of the river within the Bronx Zoo's Boston Road parking lot. There are three waterfalls in Bronx Park. The first is a cascade near the Lorillard Snuff Mill. To the south is a waterfall of pink granite, about 12 feet (3.7 m) high, located slightly upstream of
6391-453: Was completed in March 1896. As part of the topographical survey, a three-story museum with 90,000 square feet (8,400 m ) of space was planned for the grounds of the NYBG, near the main entrance at Southern Boulevard and Bedford Park Boulevard. It would be the first museum in the U.S. with a collection focused specifically and exclusively on botany. The board selected the museum site for its hilltop location 1,000 feet (300 m) east of
6474-460: Was demolished after the 1950s. In 1983, the JungleWorld exhibit in the Bronx Zoo was built atop the site of the boathouse. In addition, there are several ponds not connected to the river. Cope Lake, located near the Fordham Road entrance to the Bronx Zoo, is a pond that predates the zoo. In the mid-20th century it became used by pelicans . However, the pelicans were moved to an indoor exhibit inside
6557-412: Was developed on the first floor, and a general botany museum with exhibits on plant families was located on the second floor. The economic botany museum was developed in 1907 and later split into two sections: the economic/food plants and the plant-families sections. The third floor contained a library with a reading room, stacks , herbaria , and laboratories for plant embryology and taxonomy . After
6640-459: Was known as Delancey's Falls, and also as Lydig's Falls after another local family. Within Bronx Park, there are two large lakes of note along the Bronx River. South of Fordham Road, the river widens into a small lake called Lake Agassiz, which is fed by two streams within the zoo. The lake was described as being 6 acres (2.4 ha) in the early 20th century, although in 1971, 3 acres (1.2 ha) of Lake Agassiz were taken by land reclamation for
6723-483: Was not completed with the original building in 1900. That year, NYBG held a design contest for the proposed bronze statue, but all of the submitted designs were rejected. NYBG then asked the National Sculpture Society to appoint a committee, which would review submissions for a second fountain-designing competition. Of the 15 proposals submitted in early 1903, Tefft's design was deemed the best, and he
6806-490: Was opened, and 12 contractors submitted construction bids the following month, with the John H. Parker Company submitting the least expensive bid. After the city invalidated these bids, another request for proposals was opened. Seven contractors submitted bids, of which Parker's was again the cheapest. A groundbreaking ceremony was held on December 31, 1897, to mark the start of construction. By May 1898, construction had started on
6889-513: Was selected for the commission. Thereafter, Roman Bronze Works of Greenpoint, Brooklyn , was selected to cast the sculpture in December 1904. The statue was completed in May 1905 and installed that July. The Fountain of Life was initially circled by a driveway on all sides, but the western part of that driveway (in front of the fountain) was turned into an unpaved pedestrian path in 1961. The fountain
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