The first major public example of landscape architecture, Manhattan's Central Park remains the greatest illustration of the American park, a tradition that would become part of nearly every community following the 1860s. This grand park offers a facility for recreation and peaceful contemplation, a solution to the enduring American search for a "happy medium" between the natural environment and human civilization.

Initially, the construction of parks responded to utilitarian impulses: feelings began to develop in the early 1800s that some urban areas were becoming difficult places in which to reside. Disease and grime were common attributes attached to large towns and cities. Of particular concern, many population centers possessed insufficient interment facilities within churchyards. The first drive for parks began with this need for new cemeteries. The "rural cemetery" movement began in 1831 with the construction of Mount Auburn outside of Boston. Soon, many communities possessed their...