Joanne Reitano - New York State: Peoples, Places, and Priorities: a Concise History with Sources

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New York State

The state of New York is virtually a nation unto itself. Long one of the most populous states and home of the countrys most dynamic city, New York is geographically strategic, economically prominent, socially diverse, culturally innovative and politically influential. These characteristics have made New York distinctive in our nations history.

In New York State: Peoples, Places and Priorities, Joanne Reitano brings the history of this great state alive for readers. Clear and accessible, the book features:

• primary documents and illustrations in each chapter, encouraging engagement with historical sources and issues
• timelines for every chapter, along with lists of recommended reading and websites
• themes of labor, liberty, lifestyles, land and leadership running throughout the text
• coverage from the colonial period up through the present day, including the Great Recession and Andrew Cuomos governorship

Highly readable and up-to-date, New York State: Peoples, Places and Priorities is a vital resource for anyone studying, teaching or just interested in the history of the Empire State.

Joanne Reitano is Professor of History at La Guardia Community College, City University of New York. She is the author of The Restless City: A Short History of New York from Colonial Times to the Present, The Restless City Reader and The Tariff Question in the Gilded Age: The Great Debate of 1888.

New York State

Peoples, Places and Priorities

A Concise History with Sources

Joanne Reitano

First published 2016

by Routledge

711 Third Avenue, New York, NY 10017

And by Routledge

2 Park Square, Milton Park, Abingdon, Oxon OX14 4RN

Routledge is an imprint of the Taylor & Francis Group, an informa business

2016 Taylor & Francis

The right of Joanne Reitano to be identified as author of this work has been asserted by her in accordance with sections 77 and 78 of the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988.

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reprinted or reproduced or utilised in any form or by any electronic, mechanical, or other means, now known or hereafter invented, including photocopying and recording, or in any information storage or retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publishers.

Trademark notice: Product or corporate names may be trademarks or registered trademarks, and are used only for identification and explanation without intent to infringe.

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Reitano, Joanne R.
New York State : peoples, places, and priorities : a concise history with sources / Joanne Reitano.
pages cm
Includes bibliographical references and index.
1.New York (State)History.I.Title.
F119.R35 2015
974.7dc23
2015005161

ISBN: 978-0-415-81997-8 (hbk)

ISBN: 978-0-415-81998-5 (pbk)

ISBN: 978-0-203-57328-0 (ebk)

Typeset in ITC Galliard

by Apex CoVantage, LLC

For
Adam, Bobbi Jo and Elliot
Paul and Karlie

Contents

This book is based on the preposterous notion that any single person could write the history of a state as complex as New York. It was a humbling experience. Fortunately, I have once again benefitted from the wisdom and professionalism of Kimberly Guinta, Senior Editor for History at Routledge. By now, she knows how to deflect my anxieties and offset my compulsiveness with good-natured common sense.

Faculty from several New York State colleges critiqued various chapters and offered needed corrections mixed with constructive suggestions. In addition to two anonymous reviewers, I am indebted to Thomas N. Baker, Vernon Benjamin, Barbara Blumberg, David Kinkela and Walter Sharrow. Unfortunately, it was impossible to implement all of their recommendations because they often conflicted and because I was determined to write as concise a book as possible. Nonetheless, their passionate commitments to New York State history provided both insight and inspiration. Of course, all remaining errors and omissions are my own.

At Routledge in New York, Genevieve Aoki skillfully obtained the permissions and graciously handled my concerns. The attractive cover was designed by Jayne Varney. In Oxford, Reanna Young served as project manager. She skillfully coordinated Joanna Green, the copy editor, Hamish Ironside, the proofreader, and T. Bringha, the typesetter. Their thoroughness and efficiency greatly enhanced the manuscript.

Acknowledging my dependence on libraries, I thank the ever helpful staff at the Irma and Paul Milstein Division of United States History at the New York Public Library as well as librarians at New York University, La Guardia Community College and the Brooklyn Public Library.

As my teaching career draws to a close, I fully appreciate having been able to serve the students at La Guardia, one of the many undervalued community colleges that provide life-changing opportunities for half of Americas undergraduates. Another fellowship leave and scholar incentive award plus reassigned time from the La Guardia and Wagner Archives facilitated research and writing. President Gail Mellow has been consistently supportive. Larry Rushing offered solid advice and help with the statistics. My sons, daughters-in-law and grandchild provided joy.

Only New York State borders on both the Great Lakes and the Atlantic Ocean. On the one hand, this is just a physical description. On the other hand, it holds the key to the states history and explains why the area was so important to Native Americans, the Dutch, the French, the British and the colonists. Later, geography enabled New York to become a bridge to the west, an immigrant gateway, an escape route to Canada, a leader in agriculture, commerce and industry as well as the center of American and world capitalism. It was geographically strategic, economically prominent, socially diverse, culturally innovative and politically powerful.

Of course, a state is not just a function of geography. Its Dutch origins, experience with the Iroquois, quasi-feudal land system, avid materialism and fractious politics distinguished New York from other colonies. Moreover, from the start, the area developed a pluralistic society that differed from the more uniform colonies of Massachusetts and Virginia, but better anticipated Americas future. As early as 1644, observers noted the then shocking multiplicity of ethnicities, languages and religions that peopled New York. On the one hand, this heterogeneity necessitated a tolerance of difference and bred a spirit of individualism. On the other hand, it could promote conflict. By virtue of this complexity, the history of New York is not some deviant from the national norm but rather a mirror of the national past.1

Much of New Yorks history is captured by its nickname, the Empire State. The origin of the term remains obscure, but is often attributed to George Washington who called the state the seat of Empire in 1785.2 Well preceding Washington, the Native Americans considered it their own Iroquoia. In the Colonial period, the Dutch named it New Netherland and envisioned it as part of a commercial empire, as did the English who renamed it New York in 1664. Because of its location, the most important battles over empire were fought in New York during the French and Indian War, the American Revolution and the War of 1812. In 1825, the Erie Canal forged the Bond of Empire by facilitating economic development of the West through Buffalo across to Albany and down to the port of New York. Later, railroads and the thruway followed that same route, which was originally a Native American path and along which 90 percent of New Yorkers live today.

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