A closer look
Getting deeply lost in an 843-acre urban forest in the middle of Manhattan is surprisingly common, but the city left a cheat code. Every single cast-iron lamppost in Central Park features an embossed four-digit number on its base. The first two digits correspond to the nearest cross street, and the last two indicate whether you are on the east or west side of the park. It’s an incredibly clever analog GPS system designed so panicked tourists can tell 911 dispatchers exactly where they are.
