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Public park in Brooklyn, New York

First proposed in legislation passed in 1859, Prospect Park was laid out by Frederick Law Olmsted and Calvert Vaux, who also helped design Manhattan's Central Park, following various changes to its design. Prospect Park opened in 1867, though it was not substantially complete until 1873. The park subsequently underwent numerous modifications and expansions to its facilities. Several additions to the park were completed in the 1890s, in the City Beautiful architectural movement. In the early 20th century, New York City Department of Parks and Recreation (NYC Parks) commissioner Robert Moses started a program to clean up Prospect Park. A period of decline in the late 20th century spurred the creation of the Prospect Park Alliance, which refurbished many parts of the park from the 1980s through the 2020s. Main attractions of the park include the Long Meadow; the Picnic House; Litchfield Villa; Prospect Park Zoo; the Boathouse; Concert Grove; Brooklyn's only lake, covering ; and the Prospect Park Bandshell that hosts outdoor concerts in the summertime. The park also has sports facilities, including the Prospect Park Tennis Center, basketball courts, baseball fields, soccer fields, and the New York Pétanque Club in the Parade Ground. There is also a private Society of Friends (Quaker) cemetery on Quaker Hill near the ball fields. In addition, Prospect Park is part of the Brooklyn Queens Greenway, a network of green spaces that stretch across western Long Island.

Approximately 17,000 years ago the terminal moraine of the receding Wisconsin Glacier that formed Long Island, known as the Harbor Hill Moraine, established a string of hills and kettles in the northern part of the park and a lower lying outwash plain in the southern part. Mount Prospect (or Prospect Hill), near the intersection of Flatbush Avenue and Eastern Parkway, is one of the tallest hills in Brooklyn, rising 200 feet (61 m) above sea level. It is the highest among a string of hills that extends into the park, including Sullivan, Breeze, and Lookout hills. The area was originally forested, but became open pasture after two centuries of European colonization. Significant stands of trees remained only in the peat bogs centered south of Ninth and Flatbush Avenues, as well as in a large bog north of Ninth Street, and contained chestnut, white poplar, and oak. Some of these stands were preserved in the modern day Prospect Park Ravine and nicknamed "The Last Forest of Brooklyn". During the American Revolutionary War (1775–1783), the park was a site of the Battle of Long Island (aka Battle of Brooklyn). American forces attempted to hold Battle Pass, an opening in the terminal moraine where the old Flatbush Road passed from the villages of Brooklyn to Flatbush, where a large white oak tree was cut down to block the progress of the British forces. It fell after some of the heaviest fighting in the engagement, and its loss contributed to George Washington's decision to retreat. Even though the Continental Army lost the battle, they were able to hold the British back long enough for Washington's army to escape across the East River to Manhattan. Plaques north of the zoo, as well as the Maryland Monument at Lookout Hill's foot, honor this event. The City of Brooklyn built a reservoir on Prospect Hill in 1856 to serve the western half of the city with water pumped from the Ridgewood Reservoir. The need to keep the lots around the reservoir free of development, as well as the preservation of the Battle Pass area, were cited as two reasons for establishing a large park nearby.

The original impetus to build Prospect Park stemmed from an April 18, 1859, act of the New York State Legislature, empowering a twelve member commission to recommend sites for parks in the City of Brooklyn. At the time, Brooklyn was the world's first commuter suburb, and it became the third largest city in the country from 1860 to 1880, behind New York City (which then included Manhattan and parts of the Bronx) and Philadelphia. During this time, concepts concerning public parks gained popularity. In 1858, Frederick Law Olmsted and Calvert Vaux had created the design for Central Park in Manhattan, which became the first landscaped park in the United States. In February 1860, a group of fifteen commissioners submitted suggestions for locations of four large parks and three small parks in Brooklyn, as well as a series of boulevards to connect said parks. The largest of these proposed parks was a plot centered on Mount Prospect and bounded by Warren Street to the north; Vanderbilt, Ninth, and Tenth Avenues to the west; Third and Ninth Streets to the south; and Washington Avenue to the east. Egbert Viele began drawing plans for "Mount Prospect Park", as the space was initially called, and published his proposal in 1861. The park was to straddle Flatbush Avenue and include Prospect Hill, as well as the land now occupied by the Brooklyn Public Library, Brooklyn Botanic Garden, and Brooklyn Museum. Vaux took issue with Flatbush Avenue's division of the park, thought that the park should have a lake, and urged for southward expansion beyond the city limits and into the then independent town of Flatbush. Vaux's February 1865 proposal reflected the present layout of the park: three distinctive regions, meadow in the north and west, a wooded ravine in the east, and a lake in the south, without being divided by Flatbush Avenue. Vaux included an oval plaza at the northern end of the park, which would later become Grand Army Plaza. The revised plan called for the purchase of additional parcels to the south and west to accommodate Prospect Lake, but it excluded parcels already purchased east of Flatbush Avenue, including Prospect Hill itself. In addition, engineer in charge Joseph P. Davis and assistants John Bogart and John Y. Culyer were named to work on the project. By then, land speculation was underway. The plot bounded by Ninth and Tenth Avenues between Third and Fifteenth Streets was held by real estate developer Edwin Clarke Litchfield, who had erected his home, Litchfield Manor, on the east side of Ninth Avenue in 1857. The Parks Commission ultimately acquired the Litchfield plot in 1868 for $1.7 million, forty two percent of the overall expenditure for land, even though the plot constituted just over five percent of the park's acreage. Much of this acreage houses the maintenance yards and is rarely seen by the public. In 1866, the New York state legislature passed a bill approving the acquisition of additional land on the southwest side of the park. The park was built around the preexisting Quaker cemetery, The revised plan was accepted by May. Construction started the following month, and initial work focused on draining the land. Much of the landscaping focused on removing obstructions such as pits and swamps, and enhancing other natural features such as hills. Trees were only removed if they blocked a roadway or path that was being built. The first section of the park opened to the public on October 19, 1867, while it was still under construction. The segment that was open to the public included part of the East Drive between the north end of the park, at modern day Grand Army Plaza, and Coney Island Avenue at the southeast corner. The park initially contained the Playground, which had a croquet lawn, a sailboat pond, a maze, and a summer house. By 1868, the open portions of Prospect Park were patronized by 100,000 people per month, However, the high patronage also had downsides: an 1875 editorial in the Times observed that many people would take shortcuts along the grass rather than travel on designated routes. Prospect Park was substantially complete in 1873, but with the financial panic of that year, Olmsted and Vaux stopped collaborating on the park's construction. Some of the originally envisioned facets of the park, such as an observation tower, a terraced restaurant, and a top shaped Carriage Concourse, were not built. securing funding to build the park, and after the park's completion, defending the park against changes that were not compatible with the overall design. A statue of James S. T. Stranahan was proposed in 1890. Located inside the Grand Army Plaza entrance, the statue was sculpted by Frederick MacMonnies and presented to Stranahan in June 1891.

Prospect Park became widely used after its opening, and many sports were hosted there. By the late 19th century, archery was among the most popular sports being practiced on the Long Meadow, During winters, people practiced "ice baseball" on the lake. Ice skating was also a common sport, and was frequently practiced on the lake during the winter. Because picnicking was banned in Central Park, and generally disapproved of in many other parks in Manhattan, Prospect Park became a popular picnic spot. However, this also resulted in litter, and by 1881, The New York Times was receiving complaints about a lack of cleanliness in the park. No new structures were constructed in Prospect Park until 1882, when a utilitarian brick stable was constructed on the park's western side. The action, however, did signal a change in the style of park management, which grew to embrace neoclassicism. Subsequently, the Brooklyn Parks Commission embarked on a $200,000 program to restore the park. It repaved many of the walkways and drives, as well as replanted flora. The commission also proposed purchasing the land around the Mount Prospect Reservoir, northeast of modern day Prospect Park, which had been excluded from the final plan for the park. Instead, this space was developed as the Brooklyn Museum in the 1890s, followed by the Brooklyn Central Library and Brooklyn Botanic Garden in the early 20th century.

The city of Brooklyn merged with Manhattan and other outlying boroughs in 1898, creating the City of Greater New York. By the end of the century, Prospect Park saw about 15 million visitors per year. In 1907, lights were installed to deter couples from kissing or other intimate activity within the park. At the same time, the city embarked on an improvement program at Prospect Park by cleaning out the landscape, constructing the Bartel Pritchard Square entrance, and removing an old boathouse that had been supplanted by the Boathouse on the Lullwater. The construction of structures continued in the first decade of the 20th century. The neoclassical Peristyle (1904), Boathouse (1905), Tennis House (1910), and Willink Comfort Station (1912) were all designed by Helmle, Hudswell and Huberty, alumni and proteges of McKim, Mead, and White. After the end of World War I, a memorial commemorating fallen soldiers was proposed; it was dedicated in 1921. However, Prospect Park was in stasis for the most part, and like many of the city's parks, it was run year after year with declining budgets. The New York Times observed that by the 1930s, "generations of Parks Department officials had lived well and got rich by diverting maintenance funds, and the park showed the result of a half century of abuse and neglect."

In January 1934, newly elected Mayor Fiorello La Guardia appointed Robert Moses as the commissioner of the New York City Department of Parks (NYC Parks), a new organization that eliminated borough park commissioners. Moses would remain commissioner for the next twenty six years, leaving significant impacts on the city's parks. Moses used federal monies made available to relieve Depression era unemployment, and this resulted in a boom in construction at Prospect Park. The Bandshell and five playgrounds were also constructed toward the end of the 1930s. Moses also enacted new policies at the park, including a ban on sheep grazing at the Long Meadow. In 1959, the southern third of the Long Meadow was graded and fenced off for ballfields. Plans for the Kate Wollman Memorial Rink were approved in 1960, The rink was built on a filled in portion of Prospect Lake, necessitating the removal of Music Island and the panoramic view of the lake created by Olmsted and Vaux. To make the park more visually appealing, NYC Parks also began to clear the area of weeds and invasive species, though this had the unintended effect of hastening erosion. It was not unusual in the Moses years, and especially the decade after his departure, to quietly remove underutilized or redundant structures. To do so was regarded as economical and prudent management. Several structures had been destroyed by the time Moses left his position as NYC Parks commissioner in May 1960. These included the Dairy, destroyed 1935; Music Island, razed 1960; In September 1964, the Parks Department was within forty eight hours of demolishing the Boathouse on the Lullwater. At the time the structure was underutilized; the boat concession only operated on weekends and its peak traffic was fewer than ten people per hour. However, the Boathouse shared many architectural design features with the famous station. A preservation group, The Friends of Prospect Park, including in its membership, poet and longtime Brooklyn resident Marianne Moore, built public awareness over disappearing historical structures and threatened flora within the park. Public pressure induced Park Commissioner Newbold Morris to rescind the decision to demolish the Boathouse in December 1964. Projects to restore Prospect Park were taken up by the late 1960s. In 1965, the city allocated $450,000 to renovate the Vale of Cashmere and the Rose Garden ahead of Brooklyn's 300th anniversary, and the park's 100th anniversary, the following year. Another $225,000 was allocated to renovate the boathouse, and $249,000 was allotted to overall renovations. The city renovated part of the Long Meadow on the northwest side of the park, as well as the children's farm. However, some of the contracts were delayed, including renovations to the Boathouse and the tennis courts, as well as a reconstruction of the Music Pagoda, which had burned down in 1968. By 1971, the city had spent $4 million to renovate Prospect Park, including renovating the Boathouse and dredging the lake. The Rose Garden and the Vale of Cashmere had also been re landscaped. Also part of the renovation was a restoration of the Prospect Park Carousel from 1971 to 1974, and the exterior of the Boathouse was restored in 1979. By the 1970s, Prospect Park was beset by crime; a 1974 report found that 44 percent of city residents would warn people to stay away from the park under any circumstances. Over the next seven years, the city invested $17 million in cleaning up the park, Annual visitor numbers had nearly tripled to 5 million between 1980 and 1987. The Alliance's first major project was the $550,000 restoration of the Carousel in 1987–1989. The carousel had not operated since 1983, and its original horse shaped seats were removed during the restoration. Nine years later, in 1996, it started a $4.5 million restoration of the Ravine. and the building became the site of the nation's first urban Audubon society. The restoration of the Harmony Playground and Bandshell was completed the same year. However, other parts of Prospect Park remained neglected, such as the eastern side of the park, where the surrounding community was generally poorer than the western side.

By 2000, the Wollman Rink was deteriorating, and there was a need to replace it. The Alliance soon formed plans to restore Music Island and the original shoreline, both obliterated by the construction of the original rink in 1960. Several Moses era playgrounds and the Bandshell were retained because their venues were popular. Original rustic summer houses were restored or recreated on the shores of Prospect Park Lake, along the Lullwater and in the Ravine. Work on the LeFrak Center began in 2009, and the Wollman Rink had been demolished by 2011. The Samuel J. and Ethel LeFrak Center at Lakeside was completed in December 2013 at a cost of $74 million. As part of the Wollman Rink's replacement, plans for the restored Music Island were announced in 2009. The Chaim Baier Music Island, and the Shelby White and Leon Levy Esplanade overlooking the island, were restored using a $10 million grant, and were officially rededicated in October 2012. The Prospect Park Alliance subsequently completed or proposed more restoration projects for the park. The following year, the Alliance announced some projects on Prospect Park's eastern side, including the $200,000 restoration of Battle Pass. The Alliance also intended to restore the water damaged Oriental Pavilion for $2 million and replace fencing on Flatbush Avenue for $2.4 million. In 2016, the Alliance also received $3.2 million from NYC Parks' Parks Without Borders program to construct two new entrances on Flatbush Avenue, the park's first new entrances in over 70 years, as well as rebuild the Willink entrance. During the city's 2016 fiscal year, which ended June 30, 2016, politicians also contributed funds toward various restoration projects in the park. These included $2.5 million for renovating Lefferts Historic House, $2 million to rebuild pathways, $1.75 million for replacing fencing on Ocean Avenue, $750,000 for renovating the ballfields on Long Meadow, and $500,000 for the Carousel's restoration. In addition, $100,000 was earmarked for the installation of an experimental running surface on Park Drive, and through a participatory budgeting program, residents of the surrounding communities allocated funds for other projects such as new drinking fountains, a dog run, community barbecue sites, and an aquatic weed harvester. Also in 2016, as part of a project to repair damage caused by Hurricane Sandy in 2012, the Prospect Park Alliance used goats to clean up the shrubbery in woodlands around the Vale of Cashmere, then re landscaped the sites at a cost of $727,000. and the Dog Beach along the watercourse's Upper Pool was renovated. The same year, the Alliance received funds to renovate the Parade Ground, the Tennis House, and ball fields. The Alliance also announced an upcoming renovation of the Rose Garden. Ball fields 6 and 7 were renovated and reopened in 2017, while ball fields 4 and 5 reopened in late 2020. Construction started on the Flatbush Avenue fence repairs in 2018, and the new entrances were slated to start construction in early 2019. Construction of a dog run in the Parade Ground also started in August 2019, and the dog run opened in July 2020. In addition, Amanda Williams and Olalekan Jeyifous were selected in 2019 to design Our Destiny, Our Democracy, a monument near the Ocean and Parkside Avenue entrance.

The Concert Grove Pavilion reopened in April 2021 after a one year renovation. The last two ball fields on Long Meadow reopened in early 2023 after several years of renovations. During mid 2023, the New York City government considered erecting tents in Prospect Park to temporarily house asylum seekers. The Prospect Park Alliance reopened Fallkill Falls to the public in October 2023; prior to Fallkill Falls' reopening, trespassers regularly accessed it. The organization announced in January 2024 that an abandoned comfort station at the Ocean and Parkside Avenue entrance would be converted into a welcome center named for Shirley Chisholm, which was expected to open in 2026.

as of 2018, Prospect Park had 30,000 trees, comprising around 200 unique species. With few exceptions, the trees in Prospect Park were mostly planted manually. In its earliest years, Prospect Park had maintained a nursery of trees and plants, from which over a hundred thousand specimens were eventually taken. Now, Prospect Park Alliance regularly maintains the park's flora, removing invasive species and adding native plants. In late 2011, an oak tree was planted in the park as a memorial to Brooklyn native Peter Steele, a member of the band Type O Negative who had died in 2010. Prospect Park also accommodates a significant bird population. Each year, hundreds of migratory bird species stop at the park, and during winters, urban birdwatchers have reported seeing 60 unique species at the park on a good day, and 100 unique species over a typical season. Though there are no official lists of birds that have been seen at the park, the Brooklyn Bird Club has kept records of the avian species seen there between 1967 and 1990. Grand Army Plaza's largest feature is the Soldiers' and Sailors' Arch, a large triumphal arch in the center of the oval, which was dedicated in 1892. The plaza also includes four Doric columns, built 1894–1896; the Bailey Fountain, constructed 1929–1932 on the site of two former fountains; and several statues of famous figures. The park entrance from the square was designed by Stanford White in 1896. Additional "major" entrances exist at the Parade Ground, on the park's south side; Parkside and Ocean Avenues, at the park's southeast corner; and Willink Hill, at Flatbush and Ocean Avenues on the eastern border. The Ocean/Parkside and Willink entrances were designed in the neoclassical style by McKim, Mead and White, and were built in the 1890s and 1900s. The Willink entrance is flanked by a pair of granite turrets, while the Ocean/Parkside entrance is located between the two portions of a curved granite colonnade.

There are numerous other entrances spaced out along the park's border. These include five entrances on Prospect Park West, four on Prospect Park Southwest, and three on Ocean Avenue on the park's eastern border. In total, there are eighteen park entrances.

Prospect Park originally included several arched bridges to provide grade separated crossings for pedestrian and vehicular traffic; usually, the vehicular drive was located on top of the arch, and the pedestrian path was below. This contrasted with other parks at the time, which did not contain such separations. The arches were designed to be as small and natural looking as possible so they did not interfere with the scenery. It was one of the first two arches to be completed, in 1868. Its exterior contained interspersed yellow Ohio sandstone and red New Jersey brownstone. which was completed in 2020. East Wood Arch (or Eastwood Arch) is also located under East Drive, connecting the Nethermead Arch to the Willink Hill entrance on the eastern side of Prospect Park. Cleft Ridge might have been the first concrete arch span in the United States. The drives were originally 40 feet (12 m) wide and paved with gravel. The main loop, composed of West and East Drives, meanders around the park just inside its boundaries. Over the following decades, the hours at which vehicles could use the park were slowly restricted. Supporters of a car ban argued that the park should be a haven from the type of city stress that automobiles represent, and that having them use the park sacrifices the safety of those using the park for recreation, while opponents worried that banning traffic in the park would increase traffic outside. The park's West Drive was closed to traffic in 2015. Following a trial run in which the park was car free during summer 2017, the city determined that there were no major effects on nearby routes, and cars were barred completely from the park beginning in January 2018. All of the drives are designated as protected bike lanes. There are also four hiking trails inside Prospect Park: the Lullwater, Midwood, Peninsula, and Waterfall trails. They range in length from , and NYC Parks classifies all of the trails as "easy". The trails are named after the section of the park where they are located.

The Picnic House is located in Long Meadow on Prospect Park's west side. The structure was designed by J. Sarsfield Kennedy. A garage compound used by NYC Parks abuts the villa directly to the south. Roughly southeast of the Tennis House is the Dog Beach, on the western shore of the Fallkill section of the watercourse. The beach was restored in 2017. The bandshell hosts numerous concerts every summer through the BRIC Celebrate Brooklyn! festival.

The Rose Garden is located next to Flatbush Avenue, on the north side of Prospect Park southwest of the Grand Army Plaza entrance. and in the meantime, it placed 7,000 pinwheels in an effort to attract visitors. The Vale of Cashmere was once used frequently by the well to do. It contains a fountain that originally had a sculpture of a nude youth and six turtles in the center, though the sculpture was stolen in 1941. slightly south of the Rose Garden across Flatbush Avenue from Brooklyn Botanic Garden. As of 2016, Prospect Park Zoo had 864 animals representing 176 species.

The oldest structure in Prospect Park, the Lefferts Historic House, is located south of the zoo, near the intersection of Ocean Avenue, Flatbush Avenue, and Empire Boulevard. The house is a New York City designated landmark and operates as a children's museum of Brooklyn family life during the 19th century. The Prospect Park Carousel is located immediately west of the Lefferts Historic House. The carousel opened in October 1952, It was subsequently restored from 1971 to 1974, it was listed on the NRHP in 1972. South of the Boathouse, past the Cleft Ridge Arch, is the Concert Grove, located on the northeast edge of the Lake. it was designed so park patrons could hear music being played on the later demolished Music Island. The grove's style complements that of the Central Park Mall but was laid out radially. The Samuel J. and Ethel LeFrak Center at Lakeside is located immediately south of the Concert Grove. The Well House is located on the northern shore of the Lake, abutting the southern slope of Lookout Hill on the southwestern side of Prospect Park.

The Dairy Cottage, or "the Dairy", was located near Boulder Bridge west of the zoo. It was a two story stone cottage with two gabled wings; a public room and women's quarters on the first floor; and a single residence on the second floor. The cottage later became part of the Menagerie, the precursor to the modern day zoo, and was encircled by several other zoo buildings to its north and east. All of these buildings were demolished in 1935 when the zoo was built. These structures were both demolished before the 1900s, and the camera obscura later became the site of the now demolished Old Fashioned Flower Garden. Though it was a popular visitor attraction, it was supplanted by the Brooklyn Botanic Garden past the park's eastern edge. The conservatory's greenhouses were renovated in 1929–1930, but the cost of upkeep soon became exorbitant.

There are numerous sports hosted in Prospect Park, and specialized facilities exist for several sports. Seven baseball fields are located in the Long Meadow between 9th and 15th Streets. Two are major league sized fields serving older age groups, while the other five are slightly smaller and intended for younger children, typically 8–12 years old. The LeFrak Center also accommodates boating and biking. The Prospect Park Track Club, formed in 1970, Reporting over 2,000 members, Prospect Park Track Club records itself as one of the largest running clubs in Brooklyn as of 2023. Organizations including NYCRUNS and the New York Road Runners also host road running races in the park. NYCRUNS's Brooklyn Marathon was first hosted in 2011, with a course that initially consisted of eight laps around Prospect Park; in 2022, the marathon adopted a new course that crossed Brooklyn and passed through the park. Other sports are also played in Prospect Park. The Prospect Park Women's Softball League has been playing softball games on summer evenings in Prospect Park since 1973. Circle rules football is also played seasonally inside the park. Since the 1930s, the nearby Kensington Stables has hosted horse riding lessons in Prospect Park. Pedalboating is also open to the public on the lake. The Bandshell hosts frequent concerts, most notably the "Celebrate Brooklyn!" Performing Arts Festival, a series of summer concerts founded in 1979 that draws performing artists from around the world. The festival is produced by BRIC Arts Media Bklyn.

The site of the present day Parade Ground, at Prospect Park's southwest corner, was first proposed in 1866 and was to be used for training militia. The state approved the acquisition of a rectangular area just south of Parkside Avenue and handed control of the plot to the Prospect Park commissioners. The Parade Ground was designated to be used for sports and military drills. It was set apart from the main section of the park in fear that the high level of activity would damage the grass and plants and disrupt the park's pastoral feel. Initially, the Parade Ground contained a long, wood frame building, which included a two story pavilion for officers' quarters, as well as a restroom to the south and a guard room to the north. The militia no longer use the Parade Ground, but the plot is still an active athletic complex. In its present form, the Parade Ground has fifteen numbered courts and fields, used for soccer, baseball, softball, basketball, and volleyball. Many Major League Baseball stars got their start at the Parade Ground, including Joe Torre and Sandy Koufax. The next year, the Parade Ground underwent a $12.4 million restoration. and a dog run in the Parade Ground opened in 2020. In the fiscal year ending June 30, 2022, the Alliance had net assets (own equity) of about $37.2 million and liabilities of $3.1 million, which amounted to total assets of $40.3 million. Net assets increased $5.9 million from the fiscal year ending June 30, 2021. Prior to the Prospect Park Alliance's founding, there was no private maintenance of the park. The Alliance was created in April 1987

There are four New York City Subway stations that directly serve the park. The eastern side of Prospect Park is served by the park's eponymous station and the Parkside Avenue station The western side is served by 15th Street–Prospect Park Grand Army Plaza is served by the at the plaza's eponymous station. Bus service is provided on the western side by the buses, the southwestern side by the bus; the eastern side by the buses; and the southern side by the B16 bus.

During the 1970s, there were multiple incidents involving animal injuries or deaths at the Prospect Park Zoo. This included the scalding death of a monkey in 1975, allegedly by a zoo employee, as well as an acting zoo director who was accused of shooting at pigeons and killing zoo animals. These incidents, as well as several others at the Central Park Zoo, prompted protests by animal rights groups who wanted to close the two zoos and move the animals to the larger Bronx Zoo. This directly led to the Wildlife Conservation Society's takeover of the Prospect Park Zoo in 1980. In July 2010, federal authorities captured 400 Canada geese in the park and gassed them to death due to air safety concerns brought up after the emergency landing of US Airways Flight 1549 in January 2009.

Several murders have occurred in Prospect Park during its history. In August 1975, a 15 year old recent graduate of Ditmas Junior High School, was strangled with a belt in a wooded area of the Vale of Cashmere. In June 1993, a 42 year old man was shot to death while resisting a group of teenagers trying to steal his bicycle; the shooter received a maximum 25 year prison term. In April 2006, a 61 year old man was found stabbed to death in the Vale of Cashmere. A 41 year old homeless man was found beaten to death in a wooded area near a jogging path two years later, in June 2008. A 23 year old man was fatally shot at the Parade Ground in March 2011, having recently been jailed on charges of being an accomplice in another man's murder. Other incidents have included the April 2018 suicide of lawyer and environmental activist David Buckel, who lit himself on fire to protest the use of fossil fuels.