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About New York State's People and it's History
Home to America’s largest city and a vibrant, diverse state with the nation’s third-highest population, New York has done much to merit its moniker as “The Empire State.”
New York was the domain of the Lenape, Algonquian and Iroquois tribes of Native Americans before Dutch and French settlers arrived in the early 16th Century. The Dutch built a fort at Albany in 1614, chartered the “Dutch West Indies Company” in 1622 and colonized in 1624, both at Albany and Manhattan.
In 1663, the Duke of York purchased the grant of Long Island and other New England coastal islands that had been made in 1635 to the Earl of Stirling, and in 1664 an armed expedition led by the duke took possession of New Amsterdam, hereafter known as New York in his name. The conquest was confirmed by the Treaty of Breda in July 1667, but in July 1673 the Dutch returned with a fleet to recapture New York, and held it until restored to English rule by the Treaty of Westminster in February 1674.
The colony of New York was chartered on April 20, 1777, when its constitution was adopted in the town of Kingston. (The conventioneers originally convened in White Plains on July 10, but adjourned and changed venues several times before reaching an agreement.) New York’s colonial charter permitted westward expansion despite the presence of Native American settlements in the state’s interior.
During the American War of Revolution, Indian tribes split their allegiances. Most of the Iroquois tribes sided with the British, but the Oneida fought alongside Gen. George Washington’s colonial rebels. Much of the conflict was fought in the region – about 33 percent of all Revolutionary War battles took place on New York soil. After the war, Washington signed the Treaty of Canandaigua with the Oneida, promising them a strip of land from Pennsylvania, through New York all the way to Canada, in perpetuity. The state of New York violated the treaty in the mid-1800s, leading to a number of court battles and land claims by native descendants in the years since.
New York’s present-day population of more than 19.3 million people is a diverse group. About 62 percent are white and non-Hispanic, and about 18 percent of New Yorkers are black. Some 13 percent of New York residents are Hispanic and a solid 7 percent are of Asian descent.
New York’s gross state product is third nationally behind the states of California and Texas, which also are the only states to lead New York in population. New York City is a global financial center, home to the New York Stock Exchange and a vital city for the banking and investment industries. The state’s manufacturing sector ranges from printing and publishing to the production of transportation necessities like railroad equipment and buses. Albany and the Hudson Valley are key to the nanotechnology and microchip industries, while Rochester is a noted location for photographic equipment production and imaging technology.
Agriculture remains a vital component of the New York economy, as well. New York farmers produce cattle and other livestock, various vegetables, nursery stock and fruits like apples, cherries and pears. New York’s southern Finger Lakes hillsides are ripe with grapes and the state is the nation’s second-largest wine producer by volume.
The state and of course New York City are major tourist attractions. New York City draws visitors to shopping in Times Square, sightseeing throughout the city (particularly Ellis Island and the Statue of Liberty) and the mecca of U.S. theater production, Broadway.
Sports are vital to both the entertainment interests of New York residents and to the tourism economy. New York City is the home of numerous professional sports franchises, including: the Jets and Giants of the National Football League (though they play at The Meadowlands across the state line in New Jersey); the Yankees of the American League and Mets of the National League in baseball; the Islanders and Rangers of the National Hockey League; and the New York Knickerbockers (“Knicks”) of the National Basketball Association, who have a league rival in the New Jersey Nets just across the border.
But the pro sports franchises don’t end with New York City. Buffalo on Lake Erie in the state’s northwest corner is home to football’s Bills of the NFL and hockey’s Sabres of the NHL.
Horse racing is a vital and historic part of the state’s sports economy. The final jewel of the American Triple Crown is the 12-furlong Belmont Stakes, run in July at Belmont Park in Elmont, N.Y., on Long Island. Saratoga Race Course in Saratoga Springs, near Albany, opened on Aug. 3, 1863, and its traditional summer meeting is considered by many to be richest American racing experience for the fan. Aqueduct Racetrack is in the New York City borough of Queens and keeps the state’s racing industry alive during winter months, including a key Kentucky Derby prep race, the Grade 1 Wood Memorial. Racing also takes place in western New York at Finger Lakes Gaming and Racetrack, a “racino” in Farmington, near Rochester.
New York has a number of state emblems and symbols, including: the beaver (state animal); eastern bluebird (bird); lady bug (insect); brook trout and striped bass (fresh water and marine or salt-water fish); common snapping turtle (reptile); lilac (bush); rose (flower); and garnet (gem).
A state-approved breakfast might consist of milk, fresh apple slices and an apple muffin, the official New York beverage, fruit and muffin.
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