Location: Southern tip of Manhattan

Battery Park was originally named for a line of cannons that defended the southern edge of Manhattan in the 17th and 18th centuries. The only remaining remnant of these fortifications is Castle Clinton, a circular fort built in 1811 that later became a theater called Castle Garden and now holds ticket offices for the Statue of Liberty Ferry. Most of the park is built on land that was reclaimed from the harbor during the 19th century; an additional two acres were created with dirt dug from the Brooklyn–Battery tunnel. The park is lush and pleasant, with stunning views of the harbor, the Statue of Liberty, Brooklyn, and the Verrazano Narrows Bridge.