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This public space was a highly desirable address when it opened in 1847, but it became the site of several unfortunate and unsavory events--including the murder of architect Stanford White atop one of his creations, the second Madison Square Garden, in 1901. By the 1990s, the park had become a decaying no-go zone given over to drug dealers and the homeless, but got a much-needed makeover in 2001. Now a verdant oasis, it hosts a series of summer concerts, literary readings and kids events.

Find more great things to do at Time Out New York.