New York City is known for its history as a gateway for immigration to the United States and its status as a transportation and manufacturing center.

New York was inhabited by Lenape, Algonquian and Iroquois indigenous people at the time Dutch and French settlers arrived in the 16th century. New York was forted by the Dutch at Albany in 1614 and colonized in 1624, at both Albany and Manhattan, before falling under English rule in 1664. About one third of all the military engagements of the American Revolutionary War took place in New York, after which it became the 11th state to ratify the United States Constitution in 1788.

Capital Albany

Largest city New York City

Area Ranked 27th

Total 54,520 sq m (141,205 km²)

Width 285 miles (455 km)

Length 330 miles (530 km)

% water 13.3

Latitude 40°29'40"N to 45°0'42"N

Longitude 71°47'25"W to 79°45'54"W

Population Ranked 3rd

Total (2000) 18,976,457

Density 401.92/sq mi (155.18/km² (6th))

Elevation - Highest point Mount Marcy 5,344 ft (1,629 m)

Mean 1,000 ft (305 m)

Lowest point Atlantic Ocean 0 ft (0 m)

Admission to Union July 26, 1788 (11th)

Governor Eliot Spitzer (D) U.S. Senators, Charles Schumer (D) Hillary Rodham Clinton (D)

Time zone Eastern: UTC-5/-4

Abbreviations NY US-NY Web site www.ny.gov

Location: washington square park!!

New York City comprises five boroughs: The Bronx, Brooklyn, Manhattan, Queens, and Staten Island. With over 8.2 million residents within an area of 322 square miles (830 km²), with the highest population density of any major North American city. The city's metropolitan area, with a population of 18.8 million, ranks among the largest urban areas in the world.

New York City has been a dominant global financial center since World War II and is also the birthplace of many American cultural movements, including the Harlem Renaissance in literature and visual art, abstract expressionism in painting, and hip hop in music.[5] The city's cultural vitality has been fueled by immigration since its founding by Dutch colonists in 1625. In 2005, nearly 170 languages were spoken in the city and 36 percent of its population was foreign born.

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