New York City and Region

• New York City and Region

Top Facts
New York State Geography The total length of the New York State boundary is 1,430 miles:
* Canadian line / 445 miles
* Vermont line / 171 miles
* Massachusetts line / 50 miles
* Connecticut line to Long Island Sound / 81 miles
* Along the ocean around Long Island to the New Jersey shore / 246 miles
* New Jersey line / 93 miles
* Pennsylvania line / 344 miles to the beginning of the Canadian line in the middle of Lake Erie.
The boundaries are fixed by accepted agreements and are marked by natural watercourses or monuments.
The first railroad in America ran between Albany and Schenectady, a distance of 11 miles.
The Catskills are the home of the legend of Rip Van Winkle, brown trout and flycasting.
"Uncle Sam" was a meatpacker from Troy, New York. During the War of 1812, Sam Wilson stamped "U.S. Beef" on his products and soldiers interpreted that as Uncle Sam. His caricature later came to personify the United States. His gravesite is located in Oakwood Cemetery in Troy.
New York was the first state to (1) preserve an historic site (Washington's Headquarters at Newburgh); (2) establish a state park (Niagara Reservation); and (3) declare land "forever wild" (the Adirondack and Catskill forest preserves) in the State Constitution.
The term "The Big Apple" was coined by touring jazz musicians of the 1930s who used the slang expression "apple" for any town or city. Therefore, to play New York City is to play the big time - The Big Apple.