| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
New York City(newyorkcity,newyork city,new yorkcity)"New York, New York" redirects here. For alternate meanings, see
New York, New York(disambiguation)
.
New York — officially named City of New York and often called New YorkCity to distinguish it from the state of New York , in which it is located— is the most populous city in the United States , and the secondmost populous in North America after Mexico City . New York City is known affectionately as the " BigApple " and recognized as one of several " world cities ". Giving somecredence to the city's self-designation as "capital of the world", the United Nations headquarters is located in New York. New York City is among the most densely populated places in the UnitedStates . Its population is more than eight million ( 2000 U.S. Census ), and its land area is 831 km2 (320square miles ); hence the density is ca. 10,000/km². New York City is part of the New Yorkmetropolitan area with a population of around 20 million. See also [1] .
History of New York City
New York City started out as the Dutch settlement of New Amsterdam (Nieuw Amsterdam) on the southern tip of Manhattan in 1626 . In 1664 , English ships captured the city without struggle, and it was renamedNew York, after the Duke of York . At the end of the Second Anglo-Dutch War in 1667 , in the Treaty of Breda the Dutch formally signed NewYork over to the English and received the colony of Suriname in return. At the start of the American RevolutionaryWar , 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 Americansuntil 1783 . "Evacuation Day" was long celebrated in New York. During the 19th century , the city population boomed by an influx of avast number of immigrants. In 1811 , the city street grid was expanded to encompass all ofManhattan 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 tothe South , as well as its growing immigrant population, led to a splitin sympathy between the Union and Confederacy , culminating in the Draft Riots of 1863 , the worst civil unrest in Americanhistory. 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 UnitedStates. In 1898 , New York City took the political form in which it exists to this day. Prior to1898, 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, anew municipal government, originally called Greater New York , wascreated 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 ofStaten Island contained all of Richmond County .All municipal governments contained within the boroughs were abolished. A year later, the area of Queens County not containedwithin 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 consideredto be generally coterminous with their respective counties. In the first half of the 20th century , the city became a world centerfor industry, commerce, and communication. Interborough Rapid Transit (the first subway company) began operating in 1904 . The New York skyline soared in the 1930s with thebuilding of some of the world's tallest skyscrapers. In the decades after World War II , however, the city slid into gradualdecline with the loss of population to the suburbs and the erosion of its industrial base. Like many US cities, New York sufferedsevere 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 , thecity hit bottom and had to declare bankruptcy. The 1980s saw a rebirth of WallStreet , 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 againbecame the destination not only of immigrants from around the world, but of many U.S. citizens seeking to live a cosmopolitanlifestyle that only New York City can offer. In the late 1990s , the dot com boom fueled another frenzy of financial speculation that sent the economysoaring. The terrorist attacks of September 11,2001 also struck at Washington, D.C. , but New York was thecity most affected, because of the attack on the World TradeCenter . In the aftermath of the terrorist attacks, the city has rebounded and pushed forward new plans for the destroyedareas of the World Trade Center. The Freedom Tower , to be built on thesite, is intended to be the world's highest skyscraper after its scheduledcompletion in 2008 . New York City government
New York City is governed pursuant to the New York City Charter , as amended. Thecharter is enacted and amended by the New York State legislature, and occasionally through referendum . Though subservient to the State of New York, the city enjoys a high degree of legislative andexecutive autonomy. Like most governmental entities in the United States, the city government is divided into executive , legislative and judicial branches. The Five BoroughsThe City of New York is composed of five boroughs , each a county of New YorkState:
(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. Eachborough elects a Borough President, but under the current city charter, the Borough President's powers are limited—he orshe has a small discretionary budget to spend on projects within the borough. (The last significant power of the boroughpresidents—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 FiveBoroughs ," reserving the phrase "the City" to refer to Manhattan. Those less familiar with the city often (incorrectly) thinkManhattan is synonymous with New York City. The boroughs other than Manhattan are also referred to as "the Outer Boroughs." ExecutiveThe 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 divisionsof city government as well as several independent government offices. The divisions, each comprising several city agencies andheaded by an appointed Deputy Mayor, are:
The mayor has broad emergency powers which can be exercised in cases of emergency weather conditions, natural disaster, riots,civil unrest, invasion or other emergency. Most recently, Mayor Michael Bloomberg declared a state ofemergency during the 2003 North Americablackout . LegislativeLegislative 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. Council members are elected every fouryears, 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 whichhave oversight of various functions of the city government. Bills passed by a simple majority are sent to the mayor, who may signit into law. If the mayor vetoes the bill, the Council has 30 days to override the veto by a two-thirds majority vote. JudicialUnlike the rest of New York State, New York City does not have typical county courts. Instead, there is a single Civil Court,with a presence in each borough and city-wide jurisdiction, and a Criminal Court for each New York City county which handleslesser criminal offenses and domestic violence cases, aresponsibility shared with the Family Court. Unlike other counties in New York, judges for Family Courts in New York City areappointed for ten year terms by the mayor, instead of being elected. Criminal cases are handled on indictment by the Supreme Court in each NewYork City county. The Supreme Court also handles larger civil cases, and grandjuries sit in each county. Thus, unlike other states and the Federal Government , in New York, the Supreme Court is not the highest court. Appeals arehandled by the Appellate Division of the Supreme Court. The highest court in the state is the Court of Appeals. Crime
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. The fight against crime hasbeen aided by COMPSTAT , implemented in 1994 by the New York Police Department tomap crimes, analyze problems and devise solutions. In the past decade, violent crime has dropped by two-thirds (see NewYork Crime Statistics ) and FBI data indicate that the murder rate in 2000 was the lowest since 1967 . New York City's crime rates vary by neighborhood and borough. StatenIsland is the safest borough in the city, Queens and Manhattan are in the middle range, while Brooklyn and The Bronx have the highest crime rates. There have been some notorious crime sprees. For example, on July 29 , 1976 the " Son of Sam ", pulling a gun from a paperbag, killed one person and seriously wounded another, in the first of a series of attacks that terrorized the city for the nextyear. As soon as the Sicilian Mafia moved to NewYork in the 1920s, they became infamous with their hits on businesses that did not pay money to them. They had also set upsmuggling 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, theColombos, the Gambinos, the Genovese, and the Luchese. The assimilation of the Italian-American population is choking the Mafiain New York, although they still operate. Geography and climateNew 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 humidcontinental 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 tradebetween Europe and the Americas for quite some time, until the airplane came into wider use across the Atlantic. New York winters are typically cold, with threatening snowstorms that can paralyze the city with several inches of snow.Springs are mild, averaging in the 50s (10-15 degrees celsius) in late May to lower 80s (25-30 degrees celsius) in early June.Summers in New York are hot and humid. It is common for temperatures to exceed 90 degrees fahrenheit (32 degrees celsius) butoften stay below 100 degrees fahrenheit (40 degrees celsius). Autumns are comfortable in New York. 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 raise the sea level. According to the United States CensusBureau , 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 iswater. The total area is 35.31% water. DemographicsThe median income for a household in the city is $38,293, and the median income for a family is $41,887. Males have a medianincome 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% offamilies 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 orolder. As of 2000 , there are 8,008,278 people, 3,021,588 households, and 1,852,233 familiesresiding 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 thecity 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 marriedcouples living together, 19.1% have a female householder with no husband present, and 38.7% are non-families. 31.9% of allhouseholds are made up of individuals and 9.9% have someone living alone who is 65 years of age or older. The average householdsize 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% from45 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. Forevery 100 females age 18 and over, there are 85.9 males. EconomyNew York is a center of many industries in the United States. It was the early center of the American film industry, until itmoved to Los Angeles , and still has some movie andtelevision 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 isbased in Wall Street, lower Manhattan. New York is also the center of the clothing industry in the United States. Many fashionscome out of New York from different designers. New York also has a lot of book publishers, which often have New York as the veryfirst city in publishing. New York also has a large tourism industry. See below for more details about the tourism industry. Major corporations based in New York
Communications and mediaNewspapers and magazines
Neighborhoods of New YorkMany big-city neighborhoods have a definable history and character of their own. (In New York, some avenues and even buildingshave their own entry.)
See also: List of New York Cityparks , Geography of New York Harbor People of New YorkA 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 thecity. To some observers, New York has seemed more of an international city than an "American" city, due to the large influx ofimmigrants. Only Los Angeles receives more immigrants. Hundreds of languages are spoken in New York City. In many major cities inthe world, immigrants tend to cluster into enclaves where they can talk and shop and work with people from their country oforigin. In the United States, this is most pronounced in New York City. Immigrants of Irish , Italian , Chinese , Korean , PuertoRican , African and Jewish origin allhave enclaves within the city. New York has a higher Jewish population than Jerusalem does. Before September 11, 2001, New Yorkers were often stereotyped as rude and brusque. Since the World Trade Center destruction,increased empathy with New Yorkers has lessened this perception. The common stereotype of the "New Yorker" is held by many. The city has a large population and is fast-paced, so New Yorkersare often seen as having an attitude of superiority and New Yorkers were not meant to have any time to spare for anyone else (noteven other New Yorkers). In the stereotype, they will not hold the door for anyone, and will scoff the tourist who does. There istourist mocking (including touristjokes ), due to the high levels of entertainment they receive from such abuse and tourists' unfamiliarity with the habits ofcity 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 formerNew 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 bemean." Whereas in the much of the rest of the United States, football has surpassed baseball as the most popular professional sport, in New York baseballarguably still stirs the most passion and interest. A World Series championship by either the New York Yankees or the New York Mets is considered to be worthy of the highest celebration, including a ticker-tape parade for the victorious team. While for the restof the East Coast the rivalry depicted as being the most intense is the onebetween the Yankees and the Boston Red Sox , for New Yorkers the rivalrythat stirs deep passions is between the Yankees and the Mets. Outsiders are frequently unaware that few baseball fans in New Yorkare fans of both teams at once. After September 11th , the attitudes of New Yorkers have bothchanged and stayed the same. Pride in the city and their way of life have increased for many, though others show signs ofparanoia. "Mets Suck!" was still graffitied on a scaffold near " Ground Zero ." Cabbies still drive recklessly, though some civilian drivers are morepolite 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 ofBostonians. See also: List of people from NewYork Tourism and recreationTourism 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 BrooklynBridge , 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 thatday, 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 thebuilding. Coney Island , in the south of Brooklyn, has New York's roller coastersand amusement parks. South Street Seaport, on the south east tip of Manhattan, has naval museums, shopping and Argentine Tango dancing every Sunday in the summer. On the west side, NYC has the Intrepid Museum, an air-craft carrier converted to a sea and air museum. The first Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade was held in New York on November 27 , 1924 . Since then this has been an annual event drawing tensof 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, includingBronx, Brooklyn Staten Island and Queens boroughs even if they have shorter buildings than Manhattan does. A common saying about con artists is to say that they are selling "pieces of the Brooklyn Bridge." See also New York City Department of Parks and Recreation , List of New York City parks , New York City cuisine . Sports teams and stadiumsUnlike most major cities, the New York City metropolitan area has two teams in most major league sports.
The New Jersey Nets (NBA) and the New Jersey Devils (NHL) are based in the Continental Airlines Arena at the Meadowlands Sports Complex . Ebbets Field (torn down in 1960 )was the home of the Brooklyn Dodgers (now the Los Angeles Dodgers ) from 1913 until 1957 . The Polo Grounds in northern Harlem (torn down in 1964 ) was the home of the New York Giants of Major League Baseball (now the SanFrancisco Giants ) from 1911 to 1957 . It was thefirst home of the New York Mets, in 1962 and 1963 . Itstood just across the river from the Bronx's Yankee Stadium . In 2004 , the New Jersey Nets was sold to Bruce Ratner , who announced plans to moveit to Brooklyn and build a new state of the art arena. The New York Jets also hope to move to the West Side of Manhattan andbuild a retractable roof football stadium in 2008 once their lease at Giants Stadiumexpires. Both of these construction proposals have stirred considerable opposition. New York City is home to two minor league baseball teams. Both play in the short-season Class A New York-PennLeague , 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 a finalist to host the 2012 SummerOlympics , with plans to build many new sporting venues if chosen. The proposed Jets stadium on the West Side would also beused for the Olympic track and field events, but the uncertainty as to whether that stadium will be built is a weakness in theNew York City bid. Museums and cultural institutions
TransportationUnlike most of America's car-oriented urban areas, publictransportation is the common mode of travel for the majority of New York City residents. High parking fees, alternate side ofthe street parking rules and traffic jams discourage driving, and the NewYork Subway —fast, efficient, but not always clean—provides the best alternative. People living in the suburbs ineastern Long Island, New Jersey, Connecticut, Pennsylvania, and upstate New York either drive or use the city's far-reachingcommuter 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 thecrossings. 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 betweenManhattan and New Jersey, as well as other parts of New York City. Mass transitNew York City boasts the most extensive network of public transportation in the United States. Responsibility for providingpublic transportation falls to a variety of government agencies and private corporations.
AirportsThe three local airports are JFK International Airport in Jamaica , Newark LibertyInternational in Newark, New Jersey , and La Guardia Airport in Flushing . Most New Yorkers fly domestic flights out of La Guardia, while many flying domestically intoNewark 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 .
FerriesMany private ferries are run by NY Waterway , which provides several linesacross the Hudson River , New York Water Taxi , withlines 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 ofTransportation. TaxisTaxicabs 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 topick up customers who have called for a taxi. Yellow cabs patrol most of Manhattan and may be hailed with a raised hand andtaken--depending on the driver--anywhere within the five boroughs and parts of New Jersey. As of May 2004 , fares begin at $2.50 ($3.00 after 8 pm, and $3.50 during peak, weekday hours). Prices go upbased on time elapsed and distance traveled. Events
Famous New Yorkers
Plays and musicals set in New York
Television shows set in New YorkSee: List of television shows set in New York City Movies set in New YorkSee: List of movies set inNew York City Colleges and universities in New York
Further reading
Related articles
External links
Sources
nwe york city, county, new yokr city, jersey, newy ork city, population, new yorkc ity, brooklyn, new york ciyt, provides, new yor kcity, staten, new york cty, boroughs, enw york city, american, nw york city, states, newyork city, league, ew york city, borough, ne wyork city, state, new york ity, yorkers, new york ctiy, people, ne york city, long, , newark, new ork city, court, new york ciy, hoboken, new yrok city, center, new oyrk city, nyc, new york citi, two, new yorkcity, mayor, new yok city, stadium, new yrk city, industry, new york cit, time, new yor city, mi, new york icty, age This article is completely or partly from Wikipedia - The Free Online Encyclopedia. Original Article. The text on this site is made available under the terms of the GNU Free Documentation Licence. We take no responsibility for the content, accuracy and use of this article. Anoca.org Encyclopedia 0.04s |
|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||