Since the early days of Central Park, sheep grazed in—where else—the Sheep Meadow. Lazing around munching grass all day in New York City? Not a bad way to pass the time.
Too bad the flock was kicked out and relocated to Prospect Park in 1934, where they joined a different flock of sheep that had been grazing Long Meadow since at least 1922, when park commissioner John Harmon brought them in.
Sheep weren’t the only hoofed creatures snacking on New York City. This undated photo shows cows chilling out in Inwood. Hard to believe Manhattan was once so pastoral.
Tags: Central Park sheep, Inwood, New York City animals, Prospect Park sheep
Ephemeral New York 
July 26, 2008 at 9:04 am |
[…] Ephemeral New York finds mythical sea creatures on Manhattan buildings and farm animals in Central Park. […]
December 13, 2010 at 4:47 pm |
[…] Here’s more farm animals grazing and chilling in New York. […]
March 16, 2012 at 11:51 am |
What ever happened to old New York? Shame
January 30, 2014 at 6:54 am |
[…] 1934, the sheep got the boot by Parks Commissioner Robert Moses, who had other ideas about how Central Park should serve the […]
October 1, 2018 at 4:25 am |
[…] Upper Manhattan was the last part of the island to be developed, and well into the late 19th and even early 20th century, large swaths of Harlem, Washington Heights, and Inwood still retained a rural character—with woods, fishing boats, even cow pastures. […]
October 1, 2018 at 7:38 am |
[…] Upper Manhattan was the last part of the island to be developed, and well into the late 19th and even early 20th century, large swaths of Harlem, Washington Heights, and Inwood still retained a rural character—with woods, fishing boats, even cow pastures. […]