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Alternate use: New York, New York (song)

New York—often called New York City to distinguish it from the state of New York in which it is located—is the most populous city in the United States. Affectionately known as "The Big Apple," New York is by many measures one of the most important cities in the world. The city is probably the world's most important financial center, and one of the most important cultural centers of the Western world. The United Nations headquarters is in New York, giving some credence to the city's self-designation as "capital of the world".

New York City is among the most densely populated places in the United States. The population of the City of New York is more than eight million (2000 US Census), the land area of the city is 831 square kilometers (320 square miles); hence the density is ca. 10,000 / sq km.

New York City is part of the New York metropolitan area with a population of around 20 million. See also [1].

New York, New York
File:Us-nyc.png File:Us-nycsl.png
City flag City seal
City nickname: "The Big Apple"
File:Map of New York highlighting NYC.jpg
Location in the state of New York
CountyBronx County, New York
Kings County, New York
New York County, New York
Queens County, New York
Richmond County, New York
Area
 - Total
 - Water
1,214.4 km^2 (468.9 mi²)
428.8 km² (165.6 mi²) 35.31%
Population


 - Total (2000)


 - Density


8,008,278


10,194.2/km^2
Time zoneEastern: UTC-5

Latitude
Longitude

40°47' N
73°58' W

History of New York City

Main Article: History of New York City

New York City started out as the Dutch settlement of New Amsterdam on the southern tip of Manhattan in 1626. In 1664, English ships captured the city without struggle, and it was renamed New York, after the Duke of York.

At the start of the American Revolutionary War, the city was the scene of important early fighting at the Battle of Brooklyn, suffered a great fire in which much of it burned, and fell into British control for the remainder of the war, not to be regained by the Americans until 1783. "Evacuation Day" was long celebrated in New York.

During the 19th Century, the city population boomed by an influx of a vast number of immigrants. In 1811, the city street grid was expanded to encompass of all of Manhattan with a visionary development proposal called the Commissioner's Plan. By 1835, New York City overtook Philadelphia as the largest city in the United States.

During the Civil War, the city's strong commercial ties to the South, as well as its growing immigrant population, led to a split in sympathy between the Union and Confederacy, culminating in the Draft Riots of 1863, the worst civil unrest in American history.

After the war, the rate of immigration from Europe grew steeply, and New York became the first stop for millions seeking a new and better life in the United States.

In 1898, New York City took the political form in which it exists to this day. Prior to 1898, New York City consisted of Manhattan and the Bronx, which was annexed by the city from southern Westchester County in two separate actions: the western portion in 1874, and the remaining portion in 1895. In 1898, a new municipal government, originally called Greater New York, was created by new legislation. It was divided into five boroughs. The Boroughs of Manhattan and The Bronx covered the original city and the rest of New York County. The Borough of Brooklyn consisted of the City of Brooklyn as well as several municipalities in eastern Kings County. The Borough of Queens was established in western Queens County, and covered several small cities and towns, including Long Island City, Astoria and Flushing. The Borough of Staten Island contained all of Richmond County. All municipal governments contained within the boroughs were abolished. A year later, the area of Queens County not contained within the Borough of Queens became Nassau County. In 1914, the state legislature created Bronx County, shrinking New York County so it contained only Manhattan. The five boroughs are now considered to be generally coterminous with their respective counties. However, there are some small exceptions, some of which remain a legal mystery, such as Marble Hill.

In the first half of the 20th century, the city became a world center for industry, commerce, and communication. Interborough Rapid Transit (the first subway company) began operating in 1904. The New York skyline soared in the 1930s with the building of the some of the world's tallest skyscrapers.

In the decades after World War II, however, the city slid into gradual decline with the loss of population to the suburbs and the erosion of its industrial base. Like many US cities, New York suffered severe race riots in the 1960s, and by the 1970s, the city had gained a reputation for being a crime-ridden relic of history. In 1975, the city hit bottom and had to declare bankruptcy.

The 1980s saw a rebirth of Wall Street, and the city reclaimed its role at the center of the world-wide financial industry. In the 1990s, crime rates dropped drastically and the outflow of population turned around, as the city once again became the destination not only of immigrants from around the world, but of many U.S. citizens seeking to live a cosmopolitan lifestyle that only New York City can offer.

In the late 1990s, the dot com boom fueled a frenzy of financial speculation that sent the economy soaring. Out of all of the affected cities, New York suffered the most during the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001 on the World Trade Center.

In the aftermath of the terrorist attacks, the city has rebounded and pushed forward new plans for the destroyed areas of the World Trade Center. One building being built on the World Trade Center site is the Freedom Tower which will be the world's highest skyscraper when completed in 2008.

New York City Government

Main Article: Government of New York City

New York City is governed pursuant to the New York City Charter, as amended. The charter is enacted and amended by the New York State legislature, and occasionaly through referendum. Though subservient to the State of New York, the city enjoys a high degree of legislative and executive autonomy. Like most governmental entities in the United States, the city government is divided into executive and legislative and Judicial branches.

The Five Boroughs

The City of New York is composed of five boroughs, each a county of New York State:

(Population figures from July 1, 2002 Census estimates see http://www.census.gov/ for more information).

The boroughs are coterminous with their respective counties, but the counties do not have actual county governments. Each borough elects a Borough President, but under the current city charter, the Borough President's powers are limited—he or she has a small discretionary budget to spend on projects within the borough. (The last significant power of the borough presidents—to appoint a member of the Board of Education —was abolished, with the board, on June 30, 2002.) Currently, borough presidents serve as ex officio members of various boards and committees.

Residents of the city often refer to the city itself as "the Five Boroughs", reserving the phrase "the City" to refer to Manhattan.

Executive

The executive branch of New York City is headed by the Mayor, who is elected by direct popular vote. The mayor has executive authority over five divisions of city government as well as several independent government offices. The divisions, each comprising several city agencies and headed by an appointed Deputy Mayor, are:

  • Operations
  • Economic Development and Rebuilding
  • Policy
  • Administration
  • Legal Affairs

The mayor has broad emergency powers which can be excercised in cases of emergency weather conditions, natural disaster, riots, civil unrest, invasion or other emergency. Most recently, Mayor Michael Bloomberg declared a state of emergency during the 2003 blackout.

Legislative

Legislative power in New York City is vested in a unicameral City Council, which contains 51 members, each representing a district of approximately 157,000 people. Councilmembers are elected every four years, and the leader of the majority party is called the Speaker. The current Speaker of the City Council is Gifford Miller, a Democrat. Like most legislative bodies, the City Council is divided into committees which have oversight of various functions of the city government. Bills passed by a simple majority are sent to the mayor, who may sign it into law. If the mayor vetoes the bill, the Council has 30 days to override the veto by a two-thirds majority vote.

Crime

See also: Timeline of New York City crimes

New York has had a reputation as a crime-ridden city, partly due to the hundreds of TV and movie crime dramas set in it. However, in recent years it has been ranked in the top ten safest large cities in the United States by City Crime Rankings (9th edition, 2003). In addition, New York has been growing safer for most of the last decade—FBI data indicate that the murder rate in 2000 was the lowest since 1967.

There have been some notorious crime sprees, however. For example, on July 29, 1976 the "Son of Sam" pulled a gun from a paper bag killing one person and seriously wounding another in the first of a series of attacks that terrorized the city for the next year.

As soon as the Sicilian Mafia moved to New York in the 1920s, they became infamous with their hits on businesses that did not pay money to them. They had also set up smuggling rings and fixed boxing matches. The Mafia flourished due to a distrust of the police in the Italian-American communities in New York. The five largest crime families in New York were the Bonnanos, the Colombos, the Gambinos, the Genovese, and the Luchese. The assimilation of the Italian-American population is choking the Mafia in New York, although they still operate.



Geography and climate

New York City comprises Manhattan Island, Staten Island, the western part of Long Island, part of the North American mainland (the Bronx), and several small islands in New York Harbor.

New York has a humid continental climate. The city is adjacent to water, so temperature changes are not as drastic as those inland. Every winter, it snows in New York due to its latitude. Because of its key position, New York had been king in the shipping passenger trade between Europe and the Americas for quite some time, until the airplane came into wider use across the Atlantic.

Staten Island is hilly, and is the least populated borough of the boroughs in New York City. Space is sparse on Manhattan, therefore tall buildings are preferred.

The city will be threatened if the current patterns of global warming continue to rise the sea level.

According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 1,214.4 km² (468.9 mi²). 785.6 km² (303.3 mi²) of it is land and 428.8 km² (165.6 mi²) of it is water. The total area is 35.31% water.

Demographics

The median income for a household in the city is $38,293, and the median income for a family is $41,887. Males have a median income of $37,435 versus $32,949 for females. The per capita income for the city is $22,402. 21.2% of the population and 18.5% of families are below the poverty line. Out of the total people living in poverty, 30.0% are under the age of 18 and 17.8% are 65 or older.

As of 2000, there are 8,008,278 people, 3,021,588 households, and 1,852,233 families residing in the city. The population density is 10,194.2/km² (26,402.9/mi²). There are 3,200,912 housing units at an average density of 4,074.6/km² (10,553.2/mi²). The racial makeup of the city is 44.66% White, 26.59% African American, 0.52% Native American, 9.83% Asian, 0.07% Pacific Islander, 13.42% from other races, and 4.92% from two or more races. 26.98% of the population are Hispanic or Latino of any race.

There are 3,021,588 households out of which 29.7% have children under the age of 18 living with them, 37.2% are married couples living together, 19.1% have a female householder with no husband present, and 38.7% are non-families. 31.9% of all households are made up of individuals and 9.9% have someone living alone who is 65 years of age or older. The average household size is 2.59 and the average family size is 3.32.

In the city the population is spread out with 24.2% under the age of 18, 10.0% from 18 to 24, 32.9% from 25 to 44, 21.2% from 45 to 64, and 11.7% who are 65 years of age or older. The median age is 34 years. For every 100 females there are 90.0 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there are 85.9 males.

Economy

New York is a center of many industries in the United States. It was the early center of the American film industry, until it moved to Los Angeles, and still has some movie and television production. New York is also a financial center for the country, containing the New York Stock Exchange, NASDAQ, American Stock Exchange, New York Mercantile Exchange, and New York Board of Trade. The New York financial industry is based in Wall Street, lower Manhattan. New York is also the center of the clothing industry in the United States. Many fashions come out of New York from different designers. New York also has a lot of book publishers, which often have New York as the very first city in publishing. New York also has a large tourism industry. See below for more details about the tourism industry.

Times Square

Major Corporations based in New York

Altria was based here under its former name Phillip Morris. Altria moved its headquarters to Richmond, Virginia. Texaco was based here until it merged with Chevron into San Ramon, California based ChevronTexaco.

People of New York

A resident of New York City is a New Yorker. Residents of Brooklyn sometimes call themselves Brooklynites and residents of Staten Island, Staten Islanders. Residents generally refer to New York City (or just Manhattan) as "New York" or "the city". Ambiguity is resolved by writing "NYS" for the state and "NYC" for the city.

New York has been more of an international city than an "American" city, due to the large influx of immigrants. Only Los Angeles receives more immigrants. Hundreds of languages are spoken in New York City. Irish, Italian and Jewish areas of the city still exist. New York has a higher Jewish population than Jerusalem, Israel does. New York has also received a lot of Puerto Ricans whom migrated from their commonwealth to New York City.

Before September 11, 2001, New Yorkers were often considered rude and brusque. Since the World Trade Center destruction, increased empathy with New Yorkers has lessened this stereotype.

The common stereotype of the "New Yorker" is held by many. The city has a large population and is fast-paced, so New Yorkers are often seen as having an attitude of superiority and New Yorkers were not meant to have any time to spare for anyone else (not even other New Yorkers). In the stereotype, they will not hold the door for anyone, and will scoff the tourist who does. There is tourist mocking, (including tourist jokes) due to the high levels of entertainment they receive from such abuse and tourists' unfamiliarity with the habits of city life. New Yorkers are jaded and things that others would consider drawbacks to life in The City (crime, prostitution, pollution, noise...) are instead marks of pride, and the very lures that keep them from ever leaving. One former New York couple, who had left for Los Angeles in 1926, returned on a visit some decades later, and summarized it thus: We forgot how to be mean.

While for the rest of the East Coast the debate is Red Sox vs. Yankees, for New Yorkers it is definitely Yankees vs. Mets.

After September 11th, the attitudes of New Yorkers have both changed and stayed the same. Pride in the city and their way of life have increased for many, though others show signs of paranoia. "Mets Suck!" was still graffitied on a scaffold near "Ground Zero." Cabbies still drive recklessly, though some civilian drivers are more polite than previously.

New York has an intense rivalry with the city of Boston, Massachusetts. This is perhaps the most infamous city rivalry in the United States, especially in the minds of Bostonians.

See also: List of people from New York

Tourism

Tourism is a very large business, with hundreds of famous buildings, sites, and monuments in New York City. Many people visit the Radio City Music Hall, the Statue of Liberty, the Empire State Building, the Brooklyn Bridge, Ellis Island, and several other famous New York City landmarks. The World Trade Center was a famous tourist destination before September 11, 2001, and since that day, Ground Zero has become a very important place for visitors to see. The most famous FAO Schwarz is located in Manhattan. It is so popular that long lines to enter are seen as one approaches the building.

Coney Island, in the south of Brooklyn, has New York's roller coasters and amusement parks.

The first Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade was held in New York on November 27, 1924. Since then this has been a annual event drawing tens of thousands of spectators and in later years millions of television viewers.

Many people characterize the tourist-filled Manhattan as "New York". New York is actually more diverse than that, since Staten Island and Queens have shorter buildings than Manhattan does.

A common saying about con artists is to say that they are selling "pieces of the Brooklyn Bridge."

Sports teams and stadiums

Unlike most major cities, New York has two teams for most types of sports, one for each division.

The New York Islanders reside in the Nassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum of Uniondale, New York. This arena is also home to the New York Dragons of the Arena Football League. The rest of New York's teams reside in the Meadowlands Sports Complex in East Rutherford, New Jersey. The New York Giants (National Football League), the New York Jets (NFL), and the MetroStars (Major League Soccer) play in Giants Stadium. The New Jersey Nets (NBA) and the New Jersey Devils (NHL) are based in the Continental Airlines Arena.

Ebbetts Field is the former home of the Brooklyn Dodgers until 1958 (Now known as the Los Angeles Dodgers)

In 2004, the New Jersey Nets was sold to Bruce Ratner, who announced plans to move it to Brooklyn and build a new state of the art stadium. The New York Jets also plan to move to Manhattan and build a retractable roof football stadium in 2008 once their lease on Giants Stadium expires.

New York City is home to two minor league baseball teams. Both play in the short-season Class A New York-Penn League, and each is an affiliate of one of the city's major-league teams. The Brooklyn Cyclones are a Mets affiliate, and the Staten Island Yankees are (obviously) affiliated with the Yankees.

New York City is also making a bid to host the 2012 Summer Olympics with plans to build many new sporting venues if chosen.

Museums

Transportation

Unlike most of America's car-oriented urban areas, public transportation is the common mode of travel for the majority of New York City residents. High parking fees, alternate side of the street parking rules and traffic jams discourage driving, and the New York Subway—fast, efficient, but not always clean—provides the best alternative. People living in the suburbs in eastern Long Island, New Jersey, Connecticut, Pennsylvania, and upstate New York either drive or use the city's far-reaching commuter railroad system to travel to the city.

High tollway fees on bridges and underground tunnels help raise revenue and discourage too many commuters from using the crossings. New Yorkers who live in the city tend to take taxis, buses, subways (the underground in British English), and elevated trains. Ferries are also taken between Manhattan and New Jersey, as well as other parts of New York City.

Mass Transit

New York City boasts the most extensive network of public transportation in the United States. Responsibility for providing public transportation falls to a variety of government agencies and private corporations.

  • Amtrak provides long-distance commuter rail connections via Penn Station to New England, upstate New York, Washington, DC and the midwest. For trips of less than 500 miles, Amtrak is often cheaper and easier than air travel, though not as fast.
  • Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA). The MTA is a New York State public benefit corporation tasked with providing mass transit in the New York City metropolitan area through its various subsidiary agencies.
    • MTA New York City Transit provides extensive fixed-fare subway and bus service throughout the five boroughs of New York City. The subway system is one of the largest in the world, with over 720 miles of track and more than 400 stations.

Airports

The three local airports are JFK International Airport in Jamaica, Newark Liberty International in Newark, New Jersey, and La Guardia Airport in Flushing. Most New Yorkers fly domestic flights out of La Guardia, while many flying domestically into Newark and JFK are not from the New York area. Although Newark was the first airport in the area, and the closest to Manhattan, it is in New Jersey.


North: White Plains, Newburgh
West: Paterson, Newark, Newark Liberty International Airport New York City, JFK International Airport, La Guardia Airport East: Islip


Ferries

Many private ferries are run by NY Waterway, which provides several lines accross the Hudson River, New York Water Taxi, with lines connecting Brooklyn and Manhattan, and other operators. There is also the free Staten Island Ferry between Manhattan and Staten Island, operated by the New York City Department of Transportation.

Taxis

Taxicabs are operated by private companies and licensed by the New York City Taxi & Limousine Commission. There are two kinds of taxis: "medallion taxis," which are the familiar yellow taxis, and "car services," which may only be radio- or computer-dispatched to pick up customers who have called for a taxi. Yellow cabs patrol Manhattan (south of 96th Street) and may be hailed with a raised hand and taken anywhere within the five boroughs. For destinations outside of the city, a car service must be used.

Events

Plays and Musicals set in New York

Television shows set in New York

See: List of television shows set in New York City

Movies set in New York

See: List of movies set in New York City

Further reading

  • Gotham: A History of New York City to 1898, Edwin G. Burrows and Mike Wallace, Oxford University Press, 1998, hardcover, 1416 pages, ISBN 0195116348, trade paperback, 2000, 1424 pages, ISBN 0195140494

Sources

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