Whatever happened to the bridle path in Central Park—and the riders on horseback who used it?

This 1912 postcard captures a picturesque and fashionable scene: four separate riders on horseback cantering along an unpaved bridle path in Central Park. Looking at the postcard, as well as the more vigorous Edward Hopper painting from 1939 below, made me wonder. Whatever happened to the bridle path, and are visitors still allowed to saddle up and ride a horse in Central Park? Bridle paths were an original feature of the Greensward Plan, the 1858 design for Central Park whose contours still shape the park today. “One of the most innovative features of Frederick Law Olmsted and Calvert Vaux’ design for the park was their traffic circulation system that separated walkers, horseback riders, and horse-drawn carriages, creating intimate landscapes for each type of traveler,” states a 2023 post from the NYC Department of Records & Information Services. “The rides, or bridle trails, generally hugged the perimeter of the park,” the post continued. The Central Park Conservancy website…