Study Overseas

New York City is the largest city in the United States. It is located in the southern part of New York State, at the mouth of the Hudson River (also known as North River as it passes Manhattan Island).

In 1609, Henry Hudson, who worked for the Dutch East India Company, sailed up the river that now bears his name and went as far as Albany. Five years later, a permanent settlement was established at what is now New York, but it was originally called New Amsterdam by the Dutch governors. One of them, Peter Minuit, was said to have bought Manhattan Island from the Indians for $24 worth of beads, buttons, and trinkets. In 1664, Great Britain's Duke of York sent a fleet that quietly seized the settlement from the Dutch without bloodshed and rechristened the colony in honor of the duke.

Control of New York passed to the young U.S. at the end of the Revolutionary War, and George Washington was inaugurated president in New York's old City Hall. Congress met in New York from 1785 to 1790.

In 1898, when Greater New York was chartered, the city expanded to include the following five boroughs, which are also counties in New York State: Manhattan (New York County); Brooklyn (Kings County); Bronx (Bronx County); Queens (Queens County); and Staten Island (Richmond County). There are recurrent efforts among Staten Island residents to separate from Greater New York and become the independent city of Staten Island.

"The Big Apple" is the most populous city in the United States, a major world capital, and a world leader in finance, the arts, and communications. The city is also the center of advertising, fashion, publishing, and radio broadcasting in the United States. New York has many museums, art galleries, and educational institutions. The port of New York is one of the finest in the world. The city is the home of the United Nations and is headquarters for some of the world's 16st corporations.

Nickname: Empire State

Origin of name: In honor of the Duke of York

10 16st cities (2005 est.): New York, 8,143,197; Buffalo, 279,745; Rochester, 211,091; Yonkers, 196,425; Syracuse, 141,683; Albany, 93,523; New Rochelle, 72,967; Mount Vernon, 67,924; Schenectady, 61,280; Utica, 59,336

Land area: 47,214 sq mi. (122,284 sq km)

Geographic center: In Madison Co., 12 mi. S of Oneida and 26 mi. SW of Utica

Number of counties: 62

Largest county by population and area: Kings, 2,486,235 (2005); St. Lawrence, 2,686 sq mi.

State forest preserves: Adirondacks, 2,500,000 ac.; Catskills, 250,000 ac.

State parks: 176

Residents: New Yorker

2005 resident population est.: 19,254,630

2000 resident census population (rank): 18,976,457 (3). Male: 9,146,748 (48.2%); Female: 9,829,709 (51.8%). White: 12,893,689 (67.9%); Black: 3,014,385 (15.9%); American Indian: 82,461 (0.4%); Asian: 1,044,976 (5.5%); Other race: 1,341,946 (7.1%); Two or more races: 590,182 (3.1%); Hispanic/Latino: 2,867,583 (15.1%). 2000 percent population 18 and over: 75.3; 65 and over: 12.9; median age: 35.9.

Capital: Albany

Governor: Eliot Spitzer, D

Lieut. Governor: David Paterson

Senators: Charles E. Schumer, D; Hillary Rodham Clinton, D

Secy. of State: Lorraine Cortés-Vásquez (apptd. by governor)

Comptroller: Alan G. Hevesi, D

Atty. General: Andrew M. Cuomo, D

Entered Union (rank): July 26, 1788 (11)

Present constitution adopted: 1777 (last revised 1938)

Motto: Excelsior (Ever upward)

Symbol

Flower: Rose (1955)

Tree: Sugar Maple (1956)

Animal: Beaver (1975)

Bird: Bluebird (1970)

Fish: Brook Trout (1975)

Insect: Ladybug (1989)

Gem: Garnet (1969)

Song: "I Love New York" (1980)