Before Central Park was built, a historically black community was destroyed.If you’ve been to New York, you’ve probably visited Central Park. But there’s a part of its story you won't see. It’s a story that goes back to the 1820s, when that part of New York was largely open countryside. Soon it became home to about 1,600 people. Among them was a predominantly black community that bought up affordable plots to build homes, churches and a school. It became known as Seneca Village. And when Irish and German immigrants moved in, it became a rare example at the time of an integrated neighborhood. Everything changed on July 21, 1853. New York took control of the land to create what would become the first major landscaped park in the US -- they called it “The Central Park.”
After Being Partially Paralyzed, Hannah Gavios Is Completing Marathons
Hannah Gavios runs using crutches. The native New Yorker calls it “crutching” or “going for a crutch.” An avid runner since high school, Gavios suffered a spinal cord injury after a horrific attack in 2016 that left her partially paralyzed. Unable to imagine a life without running, Gavios learned how to run in a different way. She also became a certified yoga instructor and began studying Krav Maga. In 2019, she completed the 2019 New York City Marathon. “No matter how much you’ve lost in your life, there’s always gains,” Gavios says.