New York boasts many dramatic contrasts. You can marvel at Niagara Falls, located in the state’s western region, or enjoy the more rugged northeastern Adirondacks. And of course the ethnically diverse and culturally rich “Big Apple”, Manhattan’s nickname, in the state’s southeastern portions.
Though New York no longer is ranking first in manufacturing or population, it still needs to be seen as the “Empire State” because of the combination of cultural institutions, historical tradition, industry, commerce, finance, international influence, and notable natives.
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Quick Facts about New York
– World’s largest deepwater seaport
– The Verrazano-Narrows is the world’s longest suspension bridge
– World-leading financial center
– Biggest in publishing, photography industry, furs, and the garment industry
– Historical Indian power center
– New York City was the first U.S. capital
– Leading tourism center in the world
New York brief history
1524 was the year that Giovanni de Verrazano, as the first European probably, set foot on what we now know as New York. In the same year, a black explorer, the Portuguese Estabale Gomez, may have done the same.
Sir Henry Hudson, the British sea explorer, sailed up the Hudson River in 1609, and he went up all the way to where now Albany is. Later that year, Samuel de Champlain discovered the region around Lake Champlain.
What Hudson discovered was supporting Dutch claims. The Dutch built Fort Nassau in 1614 at a site that now is Albany, and in 1624 the first settlers were arriving at what now is New York City.
In the year 1664, the English Duke of York directed 2 big fleets over to the region in order to conquer the area for Britain, and the Dutch had no choice but to surrender.
In 1735, a New York jury acquitted publisher John Peter Zenger, who had been printing the New York Weekly Journal from 1733. Zenger had published several articles that were pretty critical of William Crosby, the colonial governor. Zenger had become an American freedom of press hero, and his acquittal of libel charges was crucial to maintaining the right to freedom of the press.
In the year 1761, there came an end to more than a century of warfare between England and France. Both nations had been fighting for absolute control of the region, but finally, in 1761, that era ended as the British took full control. 1775 was the year that 225 Coxsackie residents were signing the important declaration of independence, and this happened actually more than one year before the agreement of American national independence came into effect.
The state of New York was among the young nation’s key Revolutionary battlegrounds. The state suffered one-third of all battles, 92 in total. In October and August 1776, the city of New York had fallen in the battles of Fort Washington and Long Island.
Henry Hudson said, upon visiting an Indian village:
…As we entered the house, two nice mats were spread out to us to sit upon, and some fine foods were also immediately being served in red, well-made, wooden bowls. Later they likewise were killing a fatty dog, and they skinned it in great haste…
Explorer Giovanni de Verrazano wrote:
…We had found an agreeable place between little but steep hills… and coming from those hills, a deep mouthed and mighty river was running into the sea…