New York City

New York City (pop. 8,546,846), city in the southeastern region of New York state. It is divided into 5 boroughs: Manhattan, the Bronx, Brooklyn, Queens, and Richmond (on Staten Island). The long, narrow island of Manhattan, upon which New York's complex network of bridges and tunnels converges, is the city's economic and cultural heart. New York is the nation's largest port and a world leader in trade and finance. It is also a manufacturing (notably garments), communications (broadcasting, advertising, and publishing), and performing arts center. In 1626, Dutch settlers of New Netherland purchased Manhattan from the resident Native Americans (reputedly for $24 worth of goods), and it became New Amsterdam. The city was surrendered to the British in 1664 and renamed New York. After the defeat (1776) of George Washington at the Battle of Long Island, the city remained in the hands of British troops until the end of the Revolutionary War, after which it served briefly (1789–90) as the nation's capital. As early as the first census of 1790, New York was the largest city in the United States. Population doubled in the wave of immigration between 1880 and 1900. Construction of the first elevated railway (1867), the Brooklyn Bridge (1883), and the first subway system (1904) helped housing and transport. New York's political leadership, at times notoriously corrupt, has included such notable reformers as Theodore Roosevelt and Fiorello La Guardia. Among the points of interest in New York are the Empire State Building, the World Trade Center, the Statue of Liberty, Greenwich Village, and Central Park. The city also houses the Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts, the Metropolitan Museum of Art, and the Museum of Modern Art.