Olmsted Didn't Make That... God Did.

 or, How White Males From Monied Families Get Overcelebrated for their Contributions... even Centuries Later.

Not to take away from the man's work, and contributions, but... I thought progressives had convinced their liberal media friends to rethink how they credited those "greats" from the past.  He's not an evil man, but celebrating his birthday for his "creations" all these years later...  pass.

Olmsted’s Enduring Gift

The man behind many of the nation’s beloved public spaces, Frederick Law Olmsted, was born 200 years ago on April 26. His creations are more essential to modern American life than ever. 

He didn't create all that.  God did.  Olmsted was a more a manager, shaping policy, which millions of unseen parks workers have labored over for years.  Isn't that news more fitting to print?

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* It's like, Thomas Jefferson had great ideas and helped put them into practice creating an outline... But the true credit for how America turned out rested on the backs of the millions of citizens who put truth to the American experiment, and made it happen, on the ground.  Without the people working to make it so, Olmsted and Jefferson's plans and ideas were nothing.  If we would just acknowledge and stress those ordinary people who really helped make it happen, there'd be less much less reason to tear down our only too mortal founders and idealist of way back when.  They led using the tools at their disposal.  Nothing more, nothing less. 

Wiki:

Olmsted was born in Hartford, Connecticut, on April 26, 1822. His father, John Olmsted, was a prosperous merchant who took a lively interest in nature, people, and places; Frederick Law and his younger brother, John Hull, also showed this interest. His mother, Charlotte Law (Hull) Olmsted, died before his fourth birthday.^[6] His father remarried in 1827 to Mary Ann Bull, who shared her husband's strong love of nature and had perhaps a more cultivated taste. The Olmsted ancestors arrived in the early 1600s from Essex, England.^[7]

The Olmsted-Beil House in Staten Island.

When the young Olmsted was almost ready to enter Yale College, sumac poisoning weakened his eyes, so he gave up college plans. After working as an apprentice seaman, merchant, and journalist, Olmsted settled on a 125-acre farm in January 1848 on the south shore of Staten Island, New York, a farm which his father helped him acquire. This farm, originally named the Akerly Homestead, was renamed Tosomock Farm by Olmsted. It was later renamed "The Woods of Arden" by owner Erastus Wiman. (The house in which Olmsted lived still stands at 4515 Hylan Boulevard, near Woods of Arden Road.)

More Perspective from Wiki:

Central Park was difficult to construct because of the generally rocky and swampy landscape. Around five million cubic feet (140,000 m³) of soil and rocks had to be transported out of the park, and more gunpowder was used to clear the area than was used at the Battle of Gettysburg during the American Civil War. More than 18,500 cubic yards (14,100 m³) of topsoil were transported from Long Island and New Jersey, because the original soil was neither fertile nor sufficiently substantial to sustain the flora specified in the Greensward Plan. Modern steam-powered equipment and custom tree-moving machines augmented the work of unskilled laborers. In total, over 20,000 individuals helped construct Central Park. Because of extreme precautions taken to minimize collateral damage, five laborers died during the project, at a time when fatality rates were generally much higher.

During the development of Central Park, Superintendent Olmsted hired several dozen mounted police officers, who were classified into two types of "keepers": park keepers and gate keepers. The mounted police were viewed favorably by park patrons and were later incorporated into a permanent patrol. The regulations were sometimes strict.For instance, prohibited actions included games of chance, speech-making, large congregations such as picnics, or picking flowers or other parts of plants. These ordinances were effective: by 1866, there had been nearly eight million visits and only 110 arrests in the park's history.

Late 1850s

The Lake, one of the first features of Central Park to be completed

In late August 1857, workers began building fences, clearing vegetation, draining the land, and leveling uneven terrain.^] By the following month, chief engineer Viele reported that the project employed nearly 700 workers. Olmsted employed workers using day labor, hiring men directly without any contracts and paying them by the day.^[ Many of the laborers were Irish immigrants or first-or-second generation Irish Americans, and some Germans and Italians; there were no black or female laborers. The workers were often underpaid, and workers would often take jobs at other construction projects to supplement their income. A pattern of seasonal hiring was established, wherein more workers would be hired and paid at higher rates during the summers