Find A Park > Central Park > Highlights > The Bridges of Central Park - Bow Bridge

Central Park

Back to Highlights List

The Bridges of Central Park - Bow Bridge

This text is part of Parks’ Historical Signs Project and can be found posted within the park.

When Frederick Law Olmsted (1822-1903) and Calvert Vaux (1824-1895) designed Central Park in 1858, they developed an innovative interwoven transportation system of pedestrian paths, bridle trails, and carriage drives. Since the park is only one-half mile wide, the designers had to create a compact system of bridges and arches that allowed for separate levels of pathways. Vaux and his assistant Jacob Wrey Mould (1825-1886) created 35 unique structures, each with its own distinct style. They used brick, granite, marble, cast iron, and rustic wood and fashioned rusticated gneiss boulders out of the rock outcrops. Subsequent changes in the system of paths led to tearing down three of the original arches and the construction of four others.

Bow Bridge, shaped like an archer's bow, was built between 1859 and 1862. It connects the Ramble and Cherry Hill, and spans more than 60 feet of the Lake. Because the south bank was higher than the north, construction of the cast iron bridge included raising the height of its northern abutment. Janes, Kirkland, and Co., the firm responsible for the dome of The Capitol in Washington, D.C., did the ironwork for the span of Bow Bridge. Vaux and Mould created the ornamental iron railing that incorporates elements of Gothic, Neo-Classical, and Renaissance design.

Check out your park's Vital Signs

Clean & Safe

91
Park Condition Score
$70.7M
Recent Investment

Green & Resilient

12.3K
Mapped Trees
74
Acres of Natural Areas

Empowered & Engaged Users

257
Recent & Future Events
Yes
Volunteer Engagement

Share your feedback or learn more about how this park is part of a Vital Park System

Park Information

Know Before You Go

Ice Skating Rinks
Harlem Meer Center (formerly Lasker Rink)
The Harlem Meer Center is closed in order to rebuild the facility to increase access to nearby communities and enhance year-round programming. For more information, visit Central Park Conservancy's Rebuilding Harlem Meer Center page.
Anticipated Completion: Spring 2024
Outdoor Pools
Harlem Meer Center
The Harlem Meer Center is closed in order to rebuild the facility to increase access to nearby communities and enhance year-round programming. For more information, visit Central Park Conservancy's Rebuilding Harlem Meer Center page.
Anticipated Completion: Spring 2025

Partner Organization

Central Park Conservancy

Contacts

Central Park Information: (212) 310-6600
Central Park Information (for the Hearing Impaired): (800) 281-5722
Belvedere Castle, The Henry Luce Nature Observatory: (212) 772-0210
The Charles A. Dana Discovery Center: (212) 860-1370
The Dairy Visitor Center and Gift Shop: (212) 794-6564
North Meadow Recreation Center: (212) 348-4867
Loeb Boathouse (Bike rentals, boat rentals & gondolas): (212) 517-2233
Carousel: (212) 879-0244
Fishing at Harlem Meer (Catch & Release): (212) 860-1370
Harlem Meer Performance Festival: (212) 860-1370
Horseback Riding - Claremont Stables: (212) 724-5100
Metropolitan Opera (Performances on the Great Lawn): (212) 362-6000
New York Philharmonic (Performances on the Great Lawn): (212) 875-5709
Shakespeare in the Park - The Public Theater at the Delacorte Theater: (212) 539-8655
Ice Skating - Lasker Rink: (917) 492-3856
Skating - Wollman Rink (Ice Skating & In-Line Skating): (212) 439-6900
Central Park SummerStage: (212) 360-2777
Swedish Cottage Marionette Theater: (212) 988-9093
Tennis: (212) 280-0205
Weddings, Ceremonies and Photography at the Conservatory Garden: (212) 360-2766
Wildlife Center & Tisch Children's Zoo: (212) 439-6500