Free previewStop 8 of Central Park Walking Tour: The Pond to Belvedere Castle
The Land That Was a Vote
You've come down from the castle to the west side of the park, along the stretch between West 82nd and West 89th Streets, close to Central Park West. Look for the big hump of bare gray bedrock nearby. That's Summit Rock, the highest natural ground in Central Park. Back then it was known as Goat Hill. This was the edge of a village, and that rock is one of the natural features that still survives from it.
On September 27, 1825, a 25-year-old man named Andrew Williams walked into a land deal. Williams was African American, and he worked as a bootblack. He paid the family of a white farmer, John Whitehead, $125 for three lots up here. That same day Epiphany Davis, a feed store clerk and an AME Zion Church trustee, bought twelve lots for $578. The same week the church bought six more.
That's the opening. The rest plays at stop 8 of Central Park Walking Tour: The Pond to Belvedere Castle (3 min in all). Unlock the tour to hear it all, or try stop 1 free first.
