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York City |
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New
York City: Immerse
yourself in New York City for ten
minutes, and you’ll see why it’s
like no other place on earth. Only
here will you find all of America’s
attributes–the style, the diversity,
the culture - intensified in such
an intriguing way. |
And only here will you experience those
sublime moments that New York City is
famous- see
for yourself the Empire State and
Chrysler
buildings, the Rockefeller
Center, Statue
of Liberty,
Times Square, Staten Island Ferry, Brooklyn
Bridge , the Bronx Zoo and all our other
world-famous attractions. If you've been
here before, there's always another neighborhood
to explore, another restaurant to try,
another Broadway show and museum blockbuster
to see, another don't-miss cultural performance
or sporting event.
To
help you plan your time in our great
city, NYC & Company, the city's
official tourism marketing organization,
provides information and assistance
at Official NYC Visitor Information
Centers and Kiosks throughout the city.
A
brief history of New York City by time:
In the early 1800s, New York City was
thriving due to economic power; the state
soon acquired the nickname, “The Empire
State.” The
New York Stock Exchange opened with great
success on Wall Street a few years before
the new century. The Erie Canal was completed
in 1825 providing boats a gateway to the
Atlantic Ocean to the Great Lakes. The
economic impact of the Erie Canal to the
state of New York was tremedous. Businessmen
were able to ship goods and services in
and out of New York City through this
man-made river. New York City's ports
were some of the busiest in the world.
Just before New Yorkers celebrated Christmas
and New Year's Eve in 1834, a devestating
fire engulfed many of the stores and churches
near Canal Street. Many store owners lost
thousands of dollars.
The
mid-1800s were plagued by disease, intense
immigration, political corruption, and
a weak economy. Director Martin Scorsese
portrayed the problems of such gangs in
a 2002 film called “The Gangs of New York.”
William Marcy Tweed, also known as “Boss
Tweed,” is the most famous political boss
in New York City's history. Behind closed
doors at Tammany Hall, Boss Tweed made
illegal deals with gangs and crooked politicians
from Brooklyn, Queens, and Manhattan in
the 1860s and 70s. He was eventually exposed
when one of his former associates ratted
him out to the New York Times because
the illegal funds he gave the man were
not sufficient. The Civil War did not
further help matters in New York City.
The city was the focal point of the Draft
Riots of 1963, in which young men were
drafted into the military by President
Abraham Linocln. There were several days
of riots in protest of the draft and the
increasing black political, econimic and
social power. According to many publications,
the riots claimed the lives of more than
100 people and cost more than a million
dollars to remedy.
Immigration
into New York City is a major theme
of the 1800s. Immigrants from all over
the world, especially Europe, filed
into Ellis Island to become new citizens.
In spite of taking jobs from many Americans,
immigrants contibuted in many different
ways to the history of New York City.
On the way to Ellis Island, many foriegners
were greeted by the Statue of Liberty,
which was built by the French and given
as a gift for America in 1886. Despite
corruption at Tammany Hall, the construction
of many bridges, museums, and parks
gave New York City a personality unlike
any other. The city's wealth continued
to grow into the 20th century.
New York City in the 1900s: Just before
the new century the five boroughs, Queens,
Staten Island, Brooklyn, Manhattan,
and the Bronx, were concieved. The 1900s
in the city are mostly remembered as
a time of prosperity, skyscrapers, and
war. Tragedy did strike in the early
20th century with the 1911 Triangle
Factory Fire in which more than 140
women workers died, also a boating accident
seven years earlier claimed many lives.
The first subway was built in 1904 giving
New Yorkers an alternate and quicker
route to where they were going. Seven
years late Grand Central Terminal opened
and became the world's largest train
station. Citizens and visitors of New
York were going places fast.
The
early part of the century saw Broadway
flourish for the first time. The New
York Times newspaper moved its offices
in 1904 to an area near 42nd Street,
which was renamed Times Square in honor
of the publication. Each year thousands
gather to watch a ball drop from a building
to signal the beginning of a new year.
Architecture also flourished during
this period. The Chrysler Building,
standing more than 1,000 feet tall,
was built in 1929. At the time it was
the world's largest skyscraper. The
notoriety did not last long. Within
a year the Empire State Building standing
102-stories 1,250 feet high was constructed.
In
October of 1929 Wall Street suffered
one of its worst days ever despite a
previous great summer for investors.
The collapse of the stock market in
1929 sparked an American Era known as
the “Great Depression.” It took many
decades and a World War for the economy
to get back into shape.
Sports
became a part of every day life for
most Americans with the baseball teams
the New York Yankees, Giants, and Brooklyn
Dodgers capturing the imagination of
fans during the early part of the century.
The Yankees won numerous World Series
titles, while the Giants and Dodgers
both took home some titles, but not
as many as those “Damn Yankees.” Both
the Giants and Dodgers left New York
in the 1950s for California and were
replaced with the Mets in 1962.
The
1970s was a tough decade for New York
City. The country was in a recession
and crime was high. Residents were moving
out of New York City at staggering rates.
The 1980s were not much better crime
wise, but Wall Street was in better
condition.
The
World Trade Center's Twin Towers were
bombed in December of 1993 killing six
people and injuring more than 1,000.
The bomb did not cause much structural
damage to the buildings but did obviously
force them to close for a couple of
days. Six Islam extremists were given
240 years in jail in connection to the
garage bombing. The buildings were built
as part of seven part building project
in 1943.
New
York City cleaned up its act in the
1900s doing away with many strip clubs
and crime. The decade became a prosperous
time for the city thanks to a strong
economy.
The
world changed in September 11, 2001
when terrorists flew two planes into
the Twin Towers knocking them down and
killing more 2,800 people including
many firefighters and police officers.
An Islam group named Al-Queda claimed
responsibility for the attack. Plans
are in the works to rebuild on the World
Trade Center site and bring an empty
part of the skyline back.
Today
New York City is as political as it
gets being the home of the United Nations
and some of the most powerful people
in the world. The city's next major
project is building a home for the football
team the New York Jets in Manhattan.
Despite opposition, plans are underway
for a billion dollar stadium.
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