Bowling Green

Bowling Green is New York City's oldest public park, established in 1733 when the Common Council leased this small oval of land to three citizens for the annual rent of one peppercorn. Located at the foot of Broadway in the Financial District, the park has witnessed more than three centuries of New York history.

The park was originally used as a cattle market and parade ground by the Dutch settlers of New Amsterdam. After its formal establishment as a park, it was enclosed by a handsome iron fence in 1771, much of which still stands today, making it one of the oldest surviving man-made structures in New York City. The fence's posts were originally topped with decorative crowns, which were torn off by patriots during the Revolutionary War.

On July 9, 1776, after the public reading of the Declaration of Independence at nearby City Hall, a crowd surged to Bowling Green and toppled a gilded lead equestrian statue of King George III. The lead was reportedly melted down to make musket balls for the Continental Army, a legendary moment in American revolutionary history.

Today Bowling Green is perhaps best known for its proximity to Arturo Di Modica's Charging Bull sculpture, which was guerrilla-installed nearby in 1989 and has become one of the most photographed landmarks in New York City, symbolizing the optimism and energy of Wall Street and American capitalism.

Despite its tiny size (just over half an acre), Bowling Green packs more historical significance per square foot than almost any other park in America. The small oval green, framed by its colonial-era fence, serves as both a functioning neighborhood park for Financial District workers and a living monument to the very beginnings of New York City.