All About New York City

Written and Illustrated by Julia Colangelo

At the very bottom of New York is the biggest city in the United States of America - New York City. It was founded in 1624 by Dutch colonists. A colonist is someone who moves to a newly found land to start a new life with their family.

When it was discovered, Dutch colonists first called New York City "New Amsterdam". Its name was later changed to New York City to honor the Duke of York.

New York City is divided into five boroughs: The Bronx, Brooklyn, Manhattan, Queens, and Staten Island. A borough is a town that has its own government. Each borough has unique features that make it a special part of New York City.

New York City is home to over 8,500,000 people. Since so many people live here, there are over 3,000,000 apartments and 1,700 public schools. This is to make sure everyone has a home and a place to learn.

One reason why New York City is so big is immigration. Immigration occurs when people move from their home country to a new country. In New York City, there is an immigration station called Ellis Island which welcomed many groups of immigrants in the late 1800s and early 1900s.

People arriving to Ellis Island usually came from Eastern and Southern Europe. Countries from here include Poland, Hungary, Italy, and Spain. Once they arrived, immigrants would stand in long lines and be checked by doctors to make sure they were healthy to enter the country.

Many immigrants who move to New York City from the same countries create communities. A community is a group of people living in the same area with similar characteristics. In these communities, people build shops to buy and sell goods from their home countries. An example of this is Little Italy.

Shops within communities do more than just sell goods. They also teach people about different cultures. For example, Chinatown holds an annual celebration for the Lunar New Year. They have parades, festivals, and even set off fireworks. People from all over come to celebrate these festivities.

Since New York City is very big, people need different ways to get around. One way to go through the busy streets is by a classic yellow taxi. To call a taxi, most people hold out their hand and wave it high until one stops.

Another way to get around New York City is by subway. A subway is an underground electric railroad. There are over 400 different subway stations located throughout the boroughs of Manhattan, Brooklyn, Queens, and the Bronx.