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{bmc 3nic_nyp.shg} Nickname
{bmc 3pop_nyp.shg} Population
{bmc 3brd_nyp.shg} State Bird
{bmc 3flw_nyp.shg} State Flower
{bmc 3tre_nyp.shg} State Tree

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State Capital
Albany.

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Population
Pop. (1986 est.) 17,772,000, a 1.2% increase over 1980 pop.

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Highest Point
Mt. Marcy, 5,344 ft (1,630 m).

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Lowest Point
Sea level.

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Nickname
{ewl MVDIB12, MVDIB12, !NY_NICKP.BMP}Empire State

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State Bird
{ewl MVDIB12, MVDIB12, !NY_BIRDP.BMP}Eastern Bluebird

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State Flower
{ewl MVDIB12, MVDIB12, !NY_FLOWP.BMP}Wild Rose

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State Tree
{ewl MVDIB12, MVDIB12, !NY_TREEP.BMP}Sugar Maple

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{ewr MVDIB12, MVDIB12, !NY_HISTP.BMP}Present-day New York was inhabited by Indian tribes, including the Mohegan and the Iroquois, whose six tribes united (c.1570) in the Iroquois Confederacy. Early explorers included Giovanni da Verrazano (1524) and Henry Hudson (1609). The Dutch founded New Amsterdam on the lower tip of Manhattan Island in 1624. The British took the region in the Second Dutch War (1664-67) and held New York, with its busy shipping and fishing fleets and expanding farms, until the colony declared (1776) its independence. About one-third of the engagements of the American Revolution took place in the state, including the key defeat of the British in the Saratoga Campaign (1777). From the 1780s commerce increased, aided by the opening (1825) of the Erie Canal. Industries, beginning with textiles, also expanded. This commercial and economic growth marked the turn away from the old, primarily agricultural economy. New York was a center of numerous 19th-century reform movements, including abolitionism and woman suffrage. The 1840s marked the beginning of the huge waves of European immigration that continued throughout the century, with many immigrants settling in New York City. The state's governorship has been a fertile proving ground for many 20th-century leaders of national prominence, including Alfred E. Smith, Franklin D. Roosevelt, Thomas E. Dewey, and Nelson A. Rockefeller. New York's post-World War II shift in population from the cities to the suburbs was accompanied by the departure of many businesses to outlying areas, a trend that continued into the 1980s.

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New York, mid-Atlantic state of the U.S.; bordered by Vermont, Massachusetts, Connecticut, and the Atlantic Ocean (E), New Jersey and Pennsylvania (S), Lakes Erie and Ontario and the Canadian province of Ontario (NW), and the province of Quebec (N).

Area, 49,576 sq mi (128,402 sq km).

A great valley, formed by Lakes Champlain and George and the Hudson River, traverses the state north to south. To the west of the lakes are the wild and rugged Adirondack Mountains. Most of the southern part of the state is part of the Allegheny plateau, which rises in the southwest to the Catskill Mountains. Winters may vary from cold, with heavy snow, along Lakes Erie and Ontario, to mild or moderate in the southeastern coastal area; summers are generally hot, except in the Adirondacks. Nearly 90% of the population lives in metropolitan areas. New York City is the largest city in the U.S. and is the nation's leading financial and cultural center. Other major cities are Buffalo, Rochester, Syracuse, and Albany. New York, which ranks second only to California in population, in 1984 was 82% white, 18% black and others.

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{ewr MVDIB12, MVDIB12, !NY_ECONP.BMP}New York follows first-ranked California in value of industrial output. The leading industries are printing and publishing, and the production of instruments, nonelectrical machinery, processed foods, apparel, and electrical equipment. New York is a fertile agricultural state: it ranks second in the country in output of apples; is among the largest producers of dairy cows and products; and grows grapes (for its wine industry), greenhouse products, hay, corn, potatoes, and many other crops. Mineral resources include emery, garnet, salt, talc, and silver. Year-round tourism is a major industry, with New York City, the Adirondacks and Catskills, and Niagara Falls popular tourist destinations.

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The constitution (adopted 1894) provides for a governor serving a four-year term. The legislature consists of a 60-seat senate and 150-seat legislature, with members of both bodies serving two-year terms. New York is represented in the U.S. Congress by 2 senators and 34 representatives and has 36 electoral votes.

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{bmc 3nic_ndp.shg} Nickname
{bmc 3pop_ndp.shg} Population
{bmc 3brd_ndp.shg} State Bird
{bmc 3flw_ndp.shg} State Flower
{bmc 3tre_ndp.shg} State Tree

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Population
Pop. (1986 est.) 679,000, a 4.1% increase over 1980 pop.

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State Capital
Bismarck.

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Highest Point
White Butte, 3,506 ft (1,069 m).

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Lowest Point
Red River, 750 ft (229 m).

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Nicknames
{ewl MVDIB12, MVDIB12, !ND_NICKP.BMP}Sioux State; Flickertail State

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State Bird
{ewl MVDIB12, MVDIB12, !ND_BIRDP.BMP}Western Meadowlark

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State Flower
{ewl MVDIB12, MVDIB12, !ND_FLOWP.BMP}Wild Rose

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State Tree
{ewl MVDIB12, MVDIB12, !ND_TREEP.BMP}American Elm

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The French explorer Pierre de la Vérendrye visited the area in 1738, and he was followed by the Lewis and Clark Expedition (1804-05). The U.S. obtained the northwestern portion of the state by the Louisiana Purchase (1803) and the southeastern half from the British (1818). The first Europeans arrived (1812) as part of the short-lived Red River settlement, but the first permanent farming community was not established until 1851. The Dakota Territory was organized in 1861, although settlement was hampered until the Indians had been subdued militarily during the 1860s. Thousands of European immigrants subsequently arrived in the 1870s and 1880s. Growing agrarian discontent resulted in the growth of the Populist party, and statewide reforms were enacted (1919). Oil was discovered in the northwest in 1951, and the national energy crisis of the 1970s spurred further exploitation of the state's energy resources.

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North Dakota, state in the N central U.S.; bordered by Minnesota (E), South Dakota (S), Montana (W), and the Canadian provinces of Saskatchewan and Manitoba (N).

Area, 70,665 sq mi (183,022 sq km). 

{ewr MVDIB12, MVDIB12, !ND_LANDP.BMP}Low-lying plains in the east give way to the rolling hills of the drift prairie. In the west, across the Missouri River, lies an irregular plateau. In its southwestern portion, wind and rain erosion have shaped the terrain into the unusual clay and sand formations of the Badlands, part of Theodore Roosevelt National Park. The west is semiarid, but the east has an average annual rainfall of 22 in. (55 cm) which falls mostly in the crop-growing months. North Dakota is one of the most sparsely populated states; the largest city is Fargo, with 68,020 residents (1986 est.). In 1984 the population was almost 96% white.

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North Dakota's rich chernozem soils and fertile grasslands make agriculture the leading source of income. The most profitable farm product is wheat, followed by cattle; barley, flax, rye, and oats are also important. North Dakota possesses abundant mineral resources, especially oil, which is refined in the state; natural gas; and the country's largest reserves of lignite. Most industries are based on the processing of the state's agricultural and mineral commodities.

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{ewr MVDIB12, MVDIB12, !ND_GOVTP.BMP}The constitution of 1889 provides for a governor elected to a four-year term. The legislature consists of 50 senators elected to four-year terms and 100 representatives serving two-year terms. The state has two U.S. senators and one representative, and it casts three electoral votes.