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New York Counties

There are 62 counties in the State of New York. The first twelve counties in New York were created immediately after the British annexation of the Dutch colony of New Amsterdam, although two of these counties have since been abolished. The most recent county formation in New York was in 1912, when Bronx County was created from the portions of New York City that had been annexed from Westchester County. New York's counties are named for a variety of Native American words, British provinces, cities, and royalty, early American statesmen and generals, and state politicians.

New York County, New York

New York County History, Geography, Demographics, Cities and Towns, and Education

County Seat: New York City
Year Organized: 1683
Square Miles: 309

Court House:

One Centre Street
Municipal Building
New York, NY 10007-1602

Etymology - Origin of County Name

in honor of the Duke of York

Demographics:

County QuickFacts: Census Bureau Quick Facts

History

The county and city of New York are of the same extent, comprising the whole of New York, or Manhattan Island, about 14 1/2 miles long, varying from half a mile to two miles in width; area 21 3/4 square miles, or 13,920 acres. It is bounded on the north and east by Haerlem and East rivers, south and west by the Hudson, or by New York bay and the state of New Jersey. The legal subdivisions of the county and city are wards, 19 in number, of various extent, according to local convenience. Agreeably to the charter of New York, its jurisdiction extends to the lands under the adjoining waters as far as to low water mark on the opposite sides. The compact part of the city is at the southern part of the island, and covers about one-sixth part of its surface. Its latitude and longitude, reckoned from the City Hall, were determined in 1817, by order of the corporation, as follows: N. lat. 40 degrees, 42' 43"; W. long. from Greenwich, England, 73 Degrees, 59' 46", and E. long, from the city of Washington 3 Degrees 1' 13". (Historical Collections of the State of New York, Past and Present, Barber, John, Warner, Clark Albien & Co. 1851)

In 1524 the first European, an Italian named Di Verrazzano, explored the New York Harbor. Although Di Verrazzano was the first explorer to visit New York City, it is Dutch explorer Henry Hudson who is credited with bringing Europe to the “Big Apple.” Hudson received funding from the Dutch East India Company to explore the world in 1609. Within the next 20 years, many Dutch settled in New York City and called it New Amsterdam. Many immigrants to the new world saw New York City as a place for religious freedom.

Geography

Central Park is visible in the center of this satellite image. Manhattan is bounded by the Hudson River to the west, the Harlem River to the north, and East River to the east. Manhattan Island is bounded by the Hudson River to the west and the East River to the east. To the north, the Harlem River divides Manhattan from The Bronx and the mainland United States. Several small islands are also part of the borough of Manhattan, including Randall's Island, Ward's Island, and Roosevelt Island in the East River, and Governors Island and Liberty Island to the south in New York Harbor. Manhattan Island is 22.7 square miles (58.8 km²) in area, 13.4 miles (21.6 km) long and 2.3 miles (3.7 km) wide, at its widest (near 14th Street). New York County as a whole covers a total area of 33.77 square miles (87.46 km²), of which 22.96 square miles (59.47 km²) are land and 10.81 square miles (28.00 km²) are water

Neighboring Counties:

Bergen County, New Jersey—west/northwest
Hudson County, New Jersey—west/southwest
Bronx County, New York (the Bronx)—northeast
Queens County, New York (Queens)—east/southeast
Kings County, New York (Brooklyn)—southeast
Richmond County, New York (Staten Island)—southwest

Cities and Towns:

- Bellerose	village	Incorporated Area
- Floral Park	village	Incorporated Area
- New York City (County Seat)	city
- Winston-Salem	city

County Resources:

Enter County Resources and Information Here

County Resource Guide

Counties: US Map

The history of our nation can be seen as a prolonged struggle to define the relative roles and powers of our governments: federal, state, and local. And the names we've given our counties, our most locally based jurisdictions, reflects the "characteristic features of our country!"

But age, size and colorful names of our counties isn't the only reason to explore counties' role in American history, or the history of county government itself. In fact, the story of county government reflects the larger meanings of American history.

Today's counties are the most flexible, locally responsive and creative governments in the US. They are the most diverse, varying in size, population, geography, and governmental structure. In their politics and policies, they express a 1990's political slogan "Think globally, act locally."

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