Read about New York City’s history and its rich life today.
©Jupiter Images, 2009
The New York City skyline at dusk.
In 1592, the explorer Verrazano first caught a glimpse of New York Harbor. Since that time, New York has evolved into a fascinating place with a rich history. Take a look at some interesting facts about New York:
- In 1609, Henry Hudson claimed New York for the Dutch people. The colony was originally known as New Netherland, and New York City was called New Amsterdam. The city and state were both later renamed in honor of the British Duke of York, but New York’s Dutch heritage can still be found in town names, including Brooklyn, Kinderhook and Block Island.
- The New York borough known as the Bronx began as a 500-acre plot of land purchased in 1639 by Jonas Bronck. The river that flowed through the land became known as the Bronx River, and eventually, the land itself came to be referred to as the Bronx.
- The Statue of Liberty has a 35-foot waistline and weighs 450,000 pounds.
- New York City is sometimes referred to as “Gotham.” Gotham was the name of an English city whose residents gained a reputation for being crazy — or for skillfully pretending to be crazy — to trick others into helping them achieve their goals. The term was first used in reference to New York City by early 19th century writer Washington Irving.
- Completed in 1825, the Erie Canal connected New York directly with the Great Lakes and helped make New York a leader in trade. The modern New York canal system contains 524 miles of waterways.
- New York’s state muffin is the apple muffin. Some other New York symbols include the apple (state fruit), ladybug (state insect), garnet (state gem), eurypterus (state fossil), sugar maple (state tree), lilac (state bush) and milk (state beverage).
- New York shares a border with five other states: Connecticut, Massachusetts, New Jersey, Pennsylvania and Vermont.
- New York’s Finger Lakes area is the largest wine-producing region in the country, outside of California. In addition, the Finger Lakes town of Naples sells an estimated 70,000 grape pies per year.
- On a clear day, the Empire State Building offers 80 miles of visibility, which encompasses parts of New York, Connecticut, Massachusetts, New Jersey and Pennsylvania.
Think You Know New York?
Did you know that in New York City, more than 26,000 people live in each square mile? Or that the island of Manhattan was purchased from Native Americans for about $24? In fact, New York City is not only the largest city in the United States, but is made up of five separate boroughs: Brooklyn, the Bronx, Queens, Staten Island, and Manhattan. If you think you know everything about the Big Apple, think again. Here are 20 Interesting Facts About New York City:
1. Dutch explorer Peter Minuit purchased the island of Manhattan (really its southern tip) from the Algonquin tribe for trinkets and tools worth about $24. The first public brewery in America was established by Peter Minuit at the Market (Marckvelt) field in lower Manhattan.
2. The first known name for Manhattan was New Amsterdam, which referred to the southern tip of Manhattan, a Dutch trading port.
3. New York City was the first U.S. capital from 1789 to 1790. In 1789 George Washington took his oath as president on the balcony at Federal Hall.
4. New Yorkers travel an average of 40 minutes to work each day.
5. New York was the first state to require license plates on cars (in 1901). The fee to get a license plate at that time was $1
6. New York’s Central Park is larger than the principality of Monaco.
7. New York established the first state park in the country at Niagara Falls in 1885.
8. According to The Real Deal, the average sale price of an apartment in Manhattan during the 1st quarter of 2013 was a staggering $1.35 million.
9. New York’s Yellow Cabs are yellow because John Hertz, the company’s founder, learned from a study that yellow was the easiest color for the eye to spot. He was right.
10. The Federal Reserve Bank on New York’s Wall Street contains vaults that are located 80 feet beneath the bank and hold about 25 percent of the world’s gold bullion.
11. In 2012, 52.7 million international and domestic visitors came to New York City. They spent approximately $36.9 billion while there.
12. The average daily room rate in New York hotels in 2012 (the most recent year surveyed) was $281.
13. More than 250 feature films are shot on location in New York City each year.
14. Four U.S. presidents have hailed from the great state of New York: Martin Van Buren of Kinderhook, Millard Fillmore of Summerville, Theodore Roosevelt of New York City and Franklin Roosevelt of Hyde Park.
15. An average of 5.3 million people ride the New York City subway each weekday.
16. The New York City subway system runs 22 routes with 6,282 subway cars that stop at 468 different subway stations.
17. More than 13,270 licensed medallion taxis work the streets of New York City.
18. More than 18,600 restaurants and eating establishments do business in New York City, and the average cost of a dinner in 2012, according to the Zagat Survey, was $43.46. That includes a drink, tax and the tip.
19. NYC is home to the first pizzeria establishment in the United States, opened by Gennaro Lombardi, in 1895.
20. As of the 2010 Census, 8,224,910 people live in New York City.
With its mountainous natural beauty, diverse urban culture and fascinating history, New York truly has something for everyone. To learn more about New York, visit the state’s official Web site.
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