Theodore Roosevelt Park

Theodore Roosevelt Park is a 17.57-acre park on the Upper West Side surrounding the American Museum of Natural History, bounded by Central Park West, Columbus Avenue, and 77th to 81st Streets. The park is named for the 26th President of the United States, who was born in Manhattan and whose fascination with the natural world began as a child in New York City.

Roosevelt was one of America's most consequential conservationists, establishing the National Park Service, creating 150 national forests, 51 federal bird reservations, and 5 national parks during his presidency. His childhood collection of animal specimens became the seed of what would grow into one of the museum's earliest natural history collections.

The park includes a playground, a dog run, lawns, and shaded walkways that surround the museum's massive Romanesque Revival building complex. The museum's main entrance on Central Park West features an imposing equestrian statue of Roosevelt (the subject of ongoing public debate about its depiction of racial hierarchy, which led to its removal in 2022).

The park's location between Central Park and the residential streets of the Upper West Side makes it a well-trafficked transitional space, with families, museum visitors, dog walkers, and joggers sharing the grounds throughout the day. The park's benches and lawns provide a decompression zone for visitors before or after exploring the museum.

Theodore Roosevelt Park connects one of the world's great natural history institutions to the president who did more than any other to preserve America's natural heritage. The park's grounds, while modest compared to the museum's encyclopedic collections, offer a living complement to the preserved specimens within.