Anti-nuclear demonstration (1982)

 750,000 people

Simon & Garfunkel concert (1981)

 600, 000 people

Luciano Pavarotti concert (1993)

 250,000 people

Pope John Paul II (1995)

 130,000 people

1853

The New York State Legislature authorizes the city to buy a parcel of land for the park.

1899

 First car drives in Central Park

1931

 Lower Croton Reservoir is drained to become the Great Lawn

1965

 Central Park became a National Historic Landmark

1970

 First Earth Day Celebration

2005

 Central Park hosts artists’ Christo and Jeanne-Claude’s “The Gates, Central Park, New York City, 1979 – 2005”