Moving to New York - New York City, Long Island, Albany
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New York,
the largest of the Middle Atlantic states, is bordered on the east by
Vermont, Massachusetts, and Connecticut, on the southeast by the Atlantic
Ocean, on the south by Pennsylvania and New Jersey, on the west by Lakes
Erie and Ontario and the Canadian province of Ontario, and on the north
by the province of Quebec. New York has a total area of 139,832 sq km
(53,989 sq mi), of which 17,521 sq km) (6,765 sq mi) are water. New York's
population is 18,169,000 (1994 est.), up slightly from the 1990 resident
census population of 17,990,455. In 1994, however, New York's population
rank dropped from second to third place, after California and Texas.
In 1664 the colony passed from Dutch to British hands and was named New
York for the duke of York (later King James II). Almost from its beginnings
New York has been known as the Empire State. Until recently it led all
other states in population, and it is a leading state in wholesale trade,
communication, and finance. Although New York's economy has generally
been healthy, the state has experienced periods of slower economic growth
than other parts of the country, of slowing or declining population growth,
and of rising costs for social services and education. Political leaders
warn of the growing gap between rich and poor.
LAND AND RESOURCES
The Adirondack Mountains, part of the Laurentian Mountain system, in northeastern
New York, constitute about a quarter of the state and rise to elevations
above 1,500 m (4,920 ft). Mount Marcy, the highest point in New York state,
has an elevation of 1,629 m (5,344 ft). West of the Adirondacks the Tug
Hill Plateau is a tableland of low relief and sluggish streams. Northeast
of the Adirondacks the St. Lawrence-Champlain lowland forms a corridor
between the Great Lakes and the Atlantic Ocean.
The Hudson River originates in the Adirondacks and flows south through
its 16-to-32-km-wide (10-to-20-mi) valley. The Taconic Mountains, which
lie along the eastern border of the state to the east of the Hudson, reach
elevations above 610 m (2,000 ft). South of the Taconics the Manhattan
Hills include most of Westchester County and Manhattan Island.
West of the Hudson River the Hudson highlands, about 305 m (1,000 ft)
in elevation, extend southwest. The Triassic lowland is a wedge of low,
rolling terrain just south of the Hudson highlands. Their best-known feature
is the Palisades, sheer cliffs of igneous rock forming the west bank of
the Hudson River. The major features west of the Hudson, however, are
part of the Appalachian Mountain system, which occupies nearly half the
state in the south. The eastern part of this region is known as the Catskill
Mountains, a rugged section with elevations reaching about 1,220 m (4,000
ft), with steep, narrow valleys. Slide Mountain, at an elevation of 1,281
m (4,203 ft), is the highest peak. West of the Catskills the land is hilly,
the central and lowest portion of the upland consisting of the Finger
Lakes Hills, characterized by deep glaciated valleys. Near the extreme
southwest corner of the state are the Allegheny Mountains, the only unglaciated
part of the upland.
Soils
A broad belt of lime-rich soils extends eastward along the Erie-Ontario
Lake plain, into the Mohawk and Hudson valleys, and along parts of the
St. Lawrence valley. Most of the Adirondacks, Tug Hill Plateau, and Catskills
are covered by shallow acid soils. On a large part of the Appalachian
Plateau soils are deep and acid. Major stream valleys are generally composed
of relatively fertile alluvial soils.
Climate
Mean annual precipitation for most of the state is about 889 to 1,143
mm (35 to 45 in). Along Lakes Erie and Ontario are belts of especially
heavy snowfall. The Tug Hill Plateau, for example, receives more than
4,445 mm (175 in) of snow each winter--the heaviest snowfall east of the
Rocky Mountains. Generally, January mean temperatures in the state are
below 0 degrees C (32 degrees F), except in the New York City area, and
July mean temperatures are about 21 degrees C (70 degrees F).
Rivers and Lakes
About 13% of New York's total area is made up of water, including streams,
lakes, ponds, and some coastal waters. East of the Adirondacks is Lake
Champlain, on the border between New York and Vermont, and just south
of it is Lake George. The Finger Lakes are in central New York, and northeast
of Syracuse is Lake Oneida.
New York's waters reach the ocean at widely separated locations from the
Gulf of St. Lawrence to the Gulf of Mexico. The largest of the drainage
basins consists of the Great Lakes-St. Lawrence systems, which carry the
waters of much of western, central, and northeastern New York. The Niagara
River as well as the Genesee and the Black rivers are in this system.
The Hudson River system drains parts of eastern New York, reaching the
Atlantic Ocean at New York Bay. Its largest tributary is the Mohawk River.
Southwestern New York is drained by the Allegheny River system, which
reaches the Gulf of Mexico by way of the Ohio and Mississippi rivers.
Central New York is drained by the Susquehanna River and its tributaries
and by the Delaware River basin, both flowing into Chesapeake Bay.
Vegetation and Animal Life
Trees cover about 60% of the state. In the southeast oaks are predominant,
and in the higher Adirondacks spruce and fir predominate. Northern hardwoods,
including birch, sugar maple, basswood, ash, and yellow birch, comprise
the majority of trees in the rest of the state. Oaks are intermingled
with the northern hardwoods in the Finger Lakes region and along much
of the Hudson Valley; the Ontario and St. Lawrence plains have an abundance
of elm and red maple.
Animals commonly found in the state are the fox, raccoon, opossum, woodchuck,
muskrat, deer, rabbit, and squirrel. The many species of birds that inhabit
the region include the predatory hawks, eagles, and owls.
Resources
New York is endowed with adequate supplies of both surface and groundwater.
The Adirondack region has some of the state's richest mineral deposits,
such as iron, lead, and zinc. Petroleum and natural gas are found near
Lake Erie. New York's fertile valleys and plains produce varied agricultural
products, especially fruit and dairy products. Commercial fishing is an
important industry off Long Island.
PEOPLE
The average population density (1990 census) was 147 per sq km (381 per
sq mi), but density ranges from about 1 per sq km (3 per sq mi) to more
than 26,097 per sq km (67,615 per sq mi) on Manhattan. More than 60% of
the state's population is concentrated in the New York City urban area,
and over 90% of the total population is urban. Other major urban areas
include Buffalo, Rochester, Syracuse, Albany (the state capital), Niagara
Falls, Utica, Schenectady, Binghamton, and Troy.
The nonwhite population in the state is about 25%, ranging from 48% in
New York City to 11% in Schenectady, the state's tenth-largest city. In
1990 most of the total nonwhite population lived in cities of more than
50,000, and nearly 85% lived in New York's ten largest cities. The state
experienced substantial out-migration during the 1980s. The white population
declined by about 4% from 1980 to 1990, while Asians, New York's fastest-growing
ethnic group, grew by 123%. Roman Catholics make up by far the most numerous
religious group. The Jewish population is over 10% of the total.
Education
Education in New York is the responsibility of the 16 regents of the University
of the State of New York, a body formed in 1784. They have powers to set
standards, distribute public funds, and provide for the supervision of
instruction in public schools and the quality of teaching in private schools.
Libraries, museums, and historical sites are incorporated and regulated
by the regents, and most professions, except law and a few others, are
under their direction. The State University of New York (SUNY) was created
in 1948 (see New York, State University of). The City University of New
York (see New York, City University of) is also a public system. Private
institutions of higher education in the state include Columbia University,
Fordham University, and New York University, in New York City; Cornell
University at Ithaca; Sarah Lawrence College in Bronxville; Skidmore College
in Saratoga Springs; and Vassar College in Poughkeepsie; as well as the
United States Military Academy at West Point and the United States Merchant
Marine Academy at Kings Point.
Cultural Institutions
New York City is the focus of much of the nation's cultural and artistic
life. In addition, Albany has the New York State Museum and the Albany
Institute of History and Art. Binghamton has the Roberson Museum and Science
Center; Buffalo has the Albright-Knox Art Gallery and the Buffalo Museum
of Science. Corning has the famous Corning Glass Center, where the Steuben
glassmaking process may be observed, and the Rockwell Museum. In Rochester
is the International Museum of Photography and Film at George Eastman
House, the Rochester Museum and Science Center, and the Memorial Art Gallery
of the University of Rochester.
Historic Sites
New York has many restored colonial homes and historic sites, among them
Sunnyside, the home of Washington Irving, in Tarrytown. Lyndhurst, the
19th-century mansion of Jay Gould, is maintained, also in Tarrytown, by
the National Trust for Historic Preservation. The Franklin Delano Roosevelt
National Historic Site in Hyde Park is open to the public. The National
Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum is in Cooperstown. Fort Ticonderoga,
on the shores of Lake Champlain, has been restored.
The major vacation areas are Niagara Falls, the Adirondack and Catskill
mountains, the Finger Lakes and Great Lakes, Long Island, and New York
City. The Adirondacks are protected under an 1885 law establishing the
Forest Preserve, and the state park was established in 1892. The state
now owns more than 1 million hectares (2.5 million acres) of the nearly
2.5-million-hectare (6-million-acre) park. The Catskill Park, also part
of the Forest Preserve, covers 285,506 hectares (705,500 acres), of which
about 40% is state owned. The state owns numerous parks in the Finger
Lakes region, and Fire Island is a National Seashore.
New York has several major sports teams, including the New York Jets and
the Buffalo Bills (football); the New York Yankees and Mets (baseball);
the New York Knickerbockers (basketball); and the New York Rangers, New
York Islanders, and Buffalo Sabres (hockey).
ECONOMIC ACTIVITY
New York is a national leader in the banking, securities, and communications
industries. Financial activities--including insurance--and real estate
are important segments of the service industries, which overall provide
about 80% of the gross state product. Manufacturing maintains great importance,
but agriculture, mining, and forestry and fishing, although of local significance,
contribute only small amounts to the gross state product.
Manufacturing
Until the 1970s, when it dropped behind California, New York was the leading
U.S. industrial state. It remains a leader in manufacturing. Buffalo specializes
in heavy industry (although a great deal of steel capacity was closed
down in the 1980s), and Rochester is the national leader in the manufacture
of photographic and optical equipment. Syracuse produces primary metals,
machinery, and paper; Utica-Rome, machinery and transportation equipment;
Albany-Troy-Schenectady, paper; and Binghamton, computers and business
machines. New York City is noted for its garment and publishing industries
as well as for food processing. Leading industries statewide include making
women's outerwear, publishing and printing, producing electronic components
and computers and office machines, and manufacturing communications equipment.
Agriculture
New York ranks in the mid-range of U.S. states in the value of its agricultural
production. The amount of land occupied by farms has declined, attributable
in large measure to urbanization, and the number of people employed in
agriculture has dropped, too. Production has not diminished proportionately,
however, because of larger farms, greater technology, and more capital
investment. Dairy products account for the bulk of all farm income. Important
crops include apples, hay and corn for silage, and vegetables from truck
farms.
Mining
Much of the value of New York's mineral production comes from nonmetallic
minerals, including cement, stone, clays, sand and gravel, gypsum, garnets,
salt, talc, and petroleum. New York is virtually the only U.S. producer
of wollastonite (a paper and paint filler) and of emery. Metals include
lead, zinc, iron, and silver.
Energy
Hydroelectric sources account for about 20% of New York's generated electric
power. The two largest hydroelectric projects are the Niagara Power Project
and the St. Lawrence Power Project, both jointly developed by the state
of New York and the province of Ontario. Among other power sources, about
10% comes from oil-fired plants and most of the rest is about evenly divided
among coal-fired plants, gas-fired units, and nuclear power plants. Some
power is imported.
Forestry and Fishing
New York's lumber production is centered in the Adirondacks and consists
chiefly of softwoods. Elsewhere in the state hardwood is cut for specialized
uses. New York also produces limited quantities of wood pulp, partially
supplying its paper industries.
Commercial fishing yields a small revenue, with marine fisheries around
Long Island producing a variety of fish and shellfish. Overfishing and
pollution have reduced the catch in recent years. Lakes Erie and Ontario,
as well as the Hudson and Niagara rivers, support minor freshwater fishing,
but pollutants have nearly eliminated these sources.
Tourism
Tourism and recreation contribute much to the state's economy. Multitudes
visit New York City, but many millions of tourists are attracted annually
by the numerous state parks, campgrounds, and historical sites elsewhere
in the state. Privately operated recreation centers, both summer and winter,
draw many more.
Transportation
New York has an extensive network of highways and roads, including the
world's longest toll superhighway, the Gov. Thomas E. Dewey Thruway, with
a length of 899 km (558 mi). A pioneering railroad state, New York has
several thousand miles of railroad track traversing it.
The New York State Barge Canal system, completed in 1918, is a state-operated
waterway totaling 845 km (525 mi) in length. Other major navigable waterways
are the Hudson River, the St. Lawrence River (via the Seaway), and Lakes
Erie and Ontario. The port of New York is one of the world's biggest and
busiest. Buffalo is a leading Great Lakes port.
With nearly 500 airports, New York can handle seaplanes and helicopters
as well as long-distance aircraft. Besides the 3 New York City airports--Kennedy,
La Guardia, and Newark (N.J.)--other large airports are Greater Buffalo
International, Rochester-Monroe County, Syracuse Hancock International,
and Albany County.
GOVERNMENT
The present state government is organized under the constitution adopted
in 1894, with subsequent amendments. The executive branch of government
consists of the governor, elected to a 4-year term, assisted by 3 other
elected officials--the lieutenant governor, the comptroller, and the attorney
general. Under the governor are 20 administrative departments; the governor
appoints the heads of 15 of these departments, 13 of them with senate
approval.
The legislature consists of two houses, the senate and assembly. The 61
senators and 150 assemblymen are elected to two-year terms in even-numbered
years. There are regular annual sessions of each house of the legislature,
although the governor may call special sessions.
New York is organized into 12 judicial districts; voters in each district
elect varying numbers of justices to 14-year terms. These justices--more
than 300 in all--form the supreme court; they sit individually. The appellate
division of the supreme court is organized into 4 judicial departments
with justices chosen by the governor. The court of appeals is the highest
state court. It consists of a chief judge and 6 associates elected for
14-year terms.
Local government exists in counties, cities, towns, villages, and special
districts, the largest of which is the Port of New York Authority. Most
cities and villages are governed by a mayor and a council; only a few
cities, such as Rochester, have a city manager.
HISTORY
Two Indian groups occupied what is now New York State when Europeans began
exploration and settlement. Algonquins, composed of several tribes, occupied
much of the Hudson Valley, Manhattan, and Long Island, while the Iroquois
controlled most of the rest of the state area. About 1570 the Iroquois
formed the Iroquois League, consisting of the Cayuga, Mohawk, Oneida,
Onondaga, and Seneca tribes. The league dominated or conquered many other
tribes in the region. In 1722 the Tuscarora were added to the confederation.
The Colonial Period
This era began with the exploration of the Hudson River; Giovanni da Verrazano
is believed to have sailed into New York Bay in 1524. In 1609, Henry Hudson
sailed as far as present-day Albany in the service of the Dutch. The first
settlement was Fort Nassau (1614-18) at present-day Albany. In 1621 the
Dutch West India Company was chartered and empowered to establish the
colony of New Netherland. Between 1624 and 1626 a series of Dutch forts
were established along the Hudson, from Fort Amsterdam on Manhattan to
Fort Orange (replacing Fort Nassau) at Albany. Dutch settlement was slow,
however, in part because of the land-granting system of patroonships (see
patroons). Originating in 1629, patroonships were land grants of approximately
25 km (16 mi) along one side of the Hudson River or about 13 km (8 mi)
on both banks and reaching an unspecified distance away from the river.
The system was fraught with difficulties because it relied on tenant farming
rather than outright land grants to settlers.
In 1664 the British sent a fleet to New York Harbor, and Peter Stuyvesant,
the Dutch governor, surrendered the colony to the British, who renamed
it New York after the duke of York. The colony saw important territorial
changes under British rule. In 1664, New Jersey was separated from the
rest of the colony. The boundary between New York and Connecticut was
established basically as it exists today in 1665.
In 1688, New York and New Jersey were combined with the New England colonies
in the Dominion of New England under Sir Edmund Andros. News of the Glorious
Revolution in England and the overthrow of Andros in Boston encouraged
a rebellion in New York led by Jacob Leisler. He won control and ruled
the colony for 2 years (1689-91) before royal authority was restored.
In the aftermath of the rebellion the crown established (1691) a legislative
assembly, which assumed increasing responsibility in the following decades.
New York was a pivotal colony during the French and Indian Wars. Its location
near Canada exposed the colony to French attack, and British armies launched
attacks on Montreal and Quebec from Albany. A series of wars with intermittent
periods of peace culminated in the final defeat of the French in 1761,
establishing British control over what is now New York State. Settlers
from New England then began to drift into New York, and the population
began to rise.
New York also occupied a strategic position during the American Revolution.
About a third of the major battles were fought in the state. To thwart
the British drive for control of New York City, Gen. George Washington
tried unsuccessfully in August 1776 to defend it against superior British
forces led by Sir William Howe. A series of battles lasted 3 months, and
then the conflict shifted to New Jersey and Pennsylvania. The British
drive along the Mohawk was thwarted by their defeat at the Battle of Oriskany,
near Fort Stanwix (present-day Rome), in August 1777. In July 1777 the
British general John Burgoyne captured Crown Point, Ticonderoga, and Fort
Edward. In October the Americans and British met in a decisive battle
at Bemis Heights near Saratoga, where Burgoyne was forced to surrender
(see Saratoga, Battles of).
Statehood and Economic Growth
During the Revolution a constitution was adopted in April 1777, creating
New York State with its temporary capital at Kingston. In 1797, Albany
became the capital. Alexander Hamilton and John Jay, leaders of the New
York delegation to the Constitutional Convention, were supporters of adoption
of the federal Constitution. A bitter contest developed within the state
on this issue, but eventually New York became the 11th of the 13 original
states to ratify the new constitution on July 26, 1788.
By the end of the first quarter of the 19th century New York had much
land cleared and was exporting agricultural goods; manufacturing flourished;
and New York City had become a leading trade and industrial center. Part
of this growth resulted from the expansion of transportation facilities.
In addition to the natural waterways, a system of turnpikes spread across
the state. The Erie Canal, linking the Hudson River with Lake Erie, was
completed in 1825. The first railway opened (1831) between Albany and
Schenectady, and within another 25 years most parts of the state were
linked by rail. Robert Fulton's first successful steamboat appeared on
the Hudson River in 1807. By 1820, New York led all other states in population,
and by 1850 it was the leading manufacturing state.
A democratization of New York society took place during the 1830s and
'40s; suffrage was extended, and after the bitter Antirent War, tenant
farmers were given the opportunity to own the land they farmed. Slavery
was abolished, and women's rights, temperance, and educational and prison
reform were pursued. Many of the nation's leaders arose in New York at
this time, among them De Witt Clinton (see Clinton family), Martin Van
Buren, and William H. Seward. Horace Greeley, another notable New Yorker,
was among the leaders of the antislavery movement as the country moved
toward the Civil War. During the war 500,000 New Yorkers fought, and 50,000
of them were killed.
After the war, economic development in New York proceeded at a rapid pace;
corporations grew larger and giant trusts appeared. Urbanization was also
rapid, with huge numbers of immigrants from Europe pouring into the state.
Along with these developments came such social ills as corporate malpractice,
political corruption, unjust labor conditions, and inadequate social services.
Into this situation stepped the political institution known as Tammany
Hall. In the 1780s a largely middle-class group was formed to combat the
aristocratic Revolutionary leaders. By the mid-19th century the group
was firmly in the hands of Irish politicians who dominated New York City
politics, culminating in the control of the Democratic machine after 1868
by William Marcy Tweed. Republican control of upstate politics intensified
the conflict, and such nationally prominent New Yorkers as Samuel J. Tilden,
Grover Cleveland, Theodore Roosevelt, Franklin D. Roosevelt, and Charles
Evans Hughes fought for reform of this machine. Investigations, such as
the Seabury Commission (1931-32), and the mayoral administration of Fiorello
H. La Guardia (1934-45) in New York City saw the eventual curtailment
of Tammany Hall power.
The Modern Era
Since World War II the gap between New York City and the upstate region
has not closed. The city, with a gross economic product larger than most
nations, remains the focus of much of the economic, financial, and cultural
life of the nation. Like many U.S. cities, however, it has been affected
by an eroding tax base and a great need for social services. In spite
of the desirability of closer links, the traditionally liberal Democratic
city and the traditionally conservative Republican upstate will probably
remain in conflict in many areas.
Concern for the environment intensified during the 1960s as two Pure Waters
Bond Acts were approved. Later, other programs made possible the acquisition
of more forest wetlands, urban parks, and other ecologically or recreationally
valuable areas and provided funding for the cleaning up of hazardous waste
sites.
Despite a decreased pace of population and industrial growth, the state
has continued to produce some leaders of national stature. Former Gov.
Nelson Rockefeller, who earlier sought the Republican nomination for the
presidency, was appointed vice-president in 1974. In 1984, Geraldine Ferraro,
a U.S. representative from Queens, was the Democratic vice-presidential
candidate, and during the 1980s, Gov. Mario Cuomo was a leading Democratic-party
spokesman. Although he was often considered as a possible presidential
contender, Cuomo never sought the office. Instead, seeking a fourth gubernatorial
term in 1994, he was unseated by Republican George Pataki.
Howard H. Flierl
Bibliography:
General: Gergel, T., The Encyclopedia of New York (1983); Federal Writers'
Project, New York: A Guide to the Empire State (1940; repr. 1989); Wade,
R. C., ed., Regional Survey of New York and Its Environs, 10 vols. (1974).
Archaeology and Geography: DeLorme Mapping Co. Staff, New York State Atlas
and Gazetteer (1993); Parker, A. C., Archaeological History of New York,
2 vols. (1922; repr. 1993).
History: Alexander, D. S., Political History of the State of New York,
3 vols. (1906; repr. 1993); Ellis, D. M., New York: City and State (1979);
Flick, A. C., History of the State of New York, 10 vols. (1933; repr.
1993); Homberger, E., History Atlas of New York (1994); Irving, W., Diedrich
Knickerbocker's A History of New York (1854; repr. 1981); Kammen, M.,
Colonial New York (1975).
Politics and Government: Colby, P. W., and White, J. K., eds., New York
State Today, 2d ed. (1989); Stonecash, J. M., et al., Governing New York,
3d ed. (1994).
(c) 1996 Grolier, Inc.
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