1 New York is the third most populous city in the United States. It is home to over 19 million people and falls just behind California and Texas in population. It is only the 27th largest state, however.
2 New York City is the second largest city in the world behind only Tokyo, Japan.
3 New York City is incredibly diverse, especially linguistically. More than 800 languages are spoken there, and almost half of all households speak a language other than English.
4 New York is home to the longest running newspaper in the country- the New York Post was founded in 1803 by Alexander Hamilton.
5 New York City served as capital of the United States from 1785-1790 and was the first U.S. capital under the Constitution.
6 In 1901, New York became the first state to require license plates for automobiles. The plates weren't issued, however. Car owners had to make their own.
7 New York created the first state park in the U.S. in 1885. It consisted of the property around Niagara Falls and was called the Niagara Reservation.
8 New York's state bird is the Bluebird while its state flower is the Rose.
9 Adirondack Park, located in the northeast corner of the state, consists of 6.1 million acres making it larger than Glacier, Everglades, Yellowstone, and Grand Canyon National Parks combined.
10 The Statue of Liberty was erected in New York Harbor in 1886 as a symbol of alliance between the United States and France during the American Revolution. It also stands as a welcome symbol to United States immigrants.
11 The famous music festival Woodstock actually took place in Bethel, NY after the towns of Woodstock and Wallkill turned down the opportunity to host the event.
12 New York's major industries include finance, trade, communications, fashion, publishing, tourism, and farming.
13 Numerous notable people have been born in the Empire State including Tom Cruise, Jimmy Fallon, President Franklin D. Roosevelt, Sojourner Truth, Art Garfunkel and Denzel Washington.
14 The first railroad in the United States ran from Albany, NY to Schenectady, NY.
15 Broadway in New York City houses more than 40 professional theatres.
16 The Dutch originally gave New York the name "New Amsterdam." It wasn't until 1664 that the English took the area from the Dutch and named it "New York" after the Duke of York.
17 New York is the 11th state of the union, and it officially joined on July 26, 1788.
18 It's estimated that 1 in every 37 people living in the U.S. resides in New York City.
19 New York is home to more ski mountains than any other state in the U.S.
20 New York was the first state in the U.S. to recognize and preserve a national historic site. It was Washington's Headquarters in Newburgh.