For centuries, pedestrians had undifferentiated dominion over both the sidewalks and the roadbed — sidewalks were not pedestrian cattle pens, but off-limits zones for vehicles. “The street” meant the entire open area, from building line to building line.

Over time, without express agreement or even acknowledgment, the streets gradually became off-limits to the unwheeled. The pecking order was further clarified in 1950, when permanent street parking, which had long been forbidden, was allowed — you couldn’t walk in the street, but car storage was fine. Again the map was redrawn.

Find out more at http://www.nytimes.com/2011/11/13/realestate/streetscapes-the-pedestrian-loses-the-way.html