Essay on Geography within New York City

In geography, it is a field that revolves around the study of environments, coasts, and spaces within the earth’s atmosphere. There are two fundamental sorts of geology that are physical geography and human geography. Physical geography focuses on the surface and the shaping of the earth. It very well may be influenced by human exercises. The types of physical geography include geomorphology, climatology, hydrology, and biogeography. Geomorphology is the study of nature, and the land and what causes the process which creates them. Climatology is the impact of the climate of the weather which includes humidity, temperature, and many more. Hydrology is the study of water within the earth’s underground before the water reaches the ocean, then evaporates into thin air. Biogeography is the investigation of life-structures from an earlier time or present and what causes the conveyance (Mayhew, S). With regards to human geology, it is the investigation of the relationship between individuals, places, and the earth. Human geography is identified with sociology which centers around various parts of human movement and any association. The many elements include cultural geography, health geography, population geography, historical geography, and political geography which are the core of geography (Castree, N., Kitchin, R., & Rogers, A). This paper mostly discusses the physical geography of New York.

Peter Minuit founded the Dutch colony called New Amsterdam in 1624 which was later called the New York Colony. The English took over the colony in 1664, which caused the Dutch colony to surrender. Charles II took the throne and gave it to his brother who is known as James Duke of York in 1664, which is how New York got its name. The settlement in New York took place in Hudson Valley, Long Island, and along the Mohawk River (New York Colony). The people who were originally settled from the Dutch colony were able to continue to live there, able to speak their own language and continue to worship any religion as they pleased. This resulted in New York to be diverse. During this colonial time, there was a twelve-foot-long wall that ran through Manhattan Island, which today is called Wall Street (Georgia Department of Education).

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There were geographical factors that influenced the growth and development of New York’s economy. The Dutch and Indian fur trade was one of the major factors of economic businesses. It mainly took place in Fort Orange which is known as Albany today. They were able to obtain fur from the American Indians, where they traded in the fur for European commodities such as tools and firearms. The Dutch traders continued to influence the fur trading following the English control in 1664. Another major factor in the growth of New York’s economy was the Dutch West India Company that was created in 1621. It was an organization that was established in the Netherlands where it was set up to trade in the East Indies. Not only did this company was set up for trade but it was used for military purposes. In regards to the relevance of New York’s geography in the military and defense sector, it plays a huge role. During the period of the mid-seventeenth, both British and Dutch perceived each other as competitors and were at war. The military was used to direct the enemies of the Dutch Republic, which would sometimes attack the Portuguese ships and attack Spanish ships all the time. This resulted in a monopoly on trade. A monopoly is a policy that they used to steady reasonably-priced law by change and manipulate. They used monopoly trade for the supply of slaves. Another way that helped New York’s economy grow was growing crops like wheat. Wheat played an important role when it came to the early life of New York. “The Northeast was a breadbasket of colonial America making wheat a highly profitable commodity crop for many notable New Yorkers…” (Heffernan, M). Commodities such as wheat and any agricultural products were shipped through the river by farmers to Europe and other colonies. Produced goods that were brought from European markets, gave an entryway to colonists through the river from the Mid-Atlantic region.

The demographics of New York’s politics have transformed throughout the centuries. Everyone can agree that New York is one of the most diverse cities in the United States. Immigrants are mainly the reason for making New York one of the most diverse cities. During the nineteenth century, many immigrants resided in the Lower East Side after they have arrived in New York. A neighborhood in the Lower East Side, called Ward 17 was a very important neighborhood in NYC, where there were over 60,000 people that were foreigners. The number of foreigners that were born outside of the United States that lived in Ward 17 was roughly about 62% of residents. It does not come up as a shock due to this area where most immigrants reside. Most immigrants that came to New York were either the Irish or German which took over the foreign population, in which case generated more than fifty percent of the general population. Generally, there were a little more than fifty percent of females than males. Throughout the twentieth century, the general population tripled in population during the baby boom era after World War II. From 1970-1980 New York encountered a population decline which was almost 700,000 people. It makes New York acquiring the greatest population decline. As of today, New York’s general population in 2016 is approximately a whopping 8.55 million residents. This makes New York the largest city in the U.S.

Throughout the centuries, geography has affected the growth and development in New York’s cities and towns. The continuous growth of the population in New York City resulted in the development of numerous cities and towns. While New York is located near a large body of water, it is much easier to transport commodities and also the cheapest way. Although water helped transport commodities it was also a gateway for immigrants to get into New York through Ellis Island. In total, there were around twelve million immigrants that were processed at Ellis Island from 1892 to 1954. “New York’s growth in the early nineteenth century was driven by the rise of manufacturing in the city, which itself depended on New York’s primacy as a port” (Glaeser, E). The diversity of immigrants created many great ideas. Although it may seem like shipping immigrants into New York affected the growth of cities and towns, there were other commodities that were coming in and out of the ports. New York became famously known as a manufacturing metropolis. The ports in New York were surrounded by industries like sugar, publishing, and the garment trade. With the help of New York’s weather, the ports were seemed indestructible helping commodities along the Erie Canal.

As previously mentioned, New York ports are the main source of transportation. The Erie Canal is a water passage that is over three hundred miles long which was opened from 1821 through 1825. During this period, it made a growth for delivering commodities using the canal which connected New York to Albany to Buffalo. Doing so, led to New York advancing and becoming the most active port in the U.S. This led New York to become the central location for the transport system.

New York affected the growth and development of Queens, New York. Within all the five boroughs of New York City, Queens is the most diverse county. You have people from over one hundred and twenty countries and that they can speak over one hundred and thirty-five languages. Within the Queens borough, there are many unique neighborhoods that makes Queens what it is today. The neighborhoods that we have are Long Island City, Flushing, Corona, and Jamaica. In Long Island City, there are fast growing urban district which includes parks, shopping centers, restaurants, and lavish apartments. Since the 1600’s Flushing has been one of the most historical districts in the country. Flushing continues to be very historical and has the largest Asian businesses and residency. Located in Corona we have our Flushing Meadows-Corona Park where the U.S. Open is located. Corona is the home to Citi Field or also known as the Mets Stadium. Located in Jamaica, New York, there are recreational entertainment like the Jamaica Center for Arts & Learning, places to shop and multicultural crossroads (‘It's in Queens! A guide to the World's Most Diverse County’).

When it comes to New York State, tourism is at its all-time high. Tourism has a huge impact when it comes to New York’s economy. According to Governor Andrew, “...a record 239 million visitors traveled to New York State, generating an economic impact of $104.8 billion – exceeding $100 billion for the third straight year”. Inside the New York State, there are numerous extraordinary excursions that influenced the travel industry enterprises. Examples of some great New York State landmarks are: Niagara Falls which borders both New York State and Canada, the Adirondack Mountains, state parks, and many more. In New York State people are able to do many activities involving the outdoors such as skiing, hiking, fishing, boating, and enjoying nature.

Touching on New York’s geography there are underlying issues involving the environment. One of the issues that New York has to deal with is their water qualities. This year’s state budget for the Clean Water Infrastructure Act was funded $2.5 billion. This would help enhance clean drinking water and the water infrastructure. In order to correctly repair and improve aging water infrastructure it may value for around forty billion dollars. Algal blooms destroy fishes and turtles that live in the bays or in the Finger Lakes area. According to the New York League of Conservation Voters food waste is an issue in New York due to solid waste streams filled with food waste. Approximately every year the state produces about 3.9 billion tons of food waste and about three percent of the waste gets transferred from the landfills. Governor Cuomo proposed an act named the Food Recovery and Recycling Act but it did not pass. The Clean Energy Standard that Governor Cuomo created, assigned half of the state’s energy to come from renewable resources in 2016. This will help with the climate changes by 2030. “In the state Legislature, the Climate and Community Protection Act would require the New York Power Authority, the Long Island Power Authority and any entities regulated by the Public Service Commission to produce 50 percent of their power from renewable sources by 2030” (Lewis, R). Congestion is another issue that New Yorkers have to deal with in everyday life. They proposed a way to fund New York City traffic and subway systems. They want to encourage more people to take public transportation due to congestion pricing.

Overall, learning about New York’s geography is quite fascinating. Both physical geography and human geography are important to everyday lives. The different types of physical geography: geomorphology, climatology, hydrology, and biogeography all play a different role in physical geography. There are many things that influenced the growth and development in New York like the fur trade, the Dutch West India Company, the monopoly trade, and etc. New York is one of the most diverse cities in the United States due to vast numbers of immigrants coming from Ellis Island. Queens is one of the most diverse boroughs in the city. Having a transport system, New York became the central location for it due to the canal.

Citations

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