Why Is New York Not the Capital of the USA?
New York is America's most famous and most populated city, so why isn't it the capital of the USA today? Here's the answer.
New York was twice the capital of the United States
- New York City stands apart in the USA. It is the most populous city in the country, home to over 8.3 million people. It is also the nation’s top tourist destination and the global center of finance, anchored by the stock exchange on Wall Street. Add to that New York’s unmatched cultural influence in film, music, museums, and the arts. Yet New York City is not the capital of the United States. That honor belongs to Washington, a city of only 700,000 people.
- To understand why, you need to look back to the late 18th century and American independence. The first Congress met in Philadelphia in 1774, making it the first capital of the young United States. Times were turbulent. The United States declared independence on July 4, 1776, but the Revolutionary War against British forces raged until 1783. The British were defeated, and a peace treaty was signed in Paris on , securing American victory.
- The system was simple: from 1774 to 1790, the capital moved to wherever Congress held its sessions. Baltimore, Princeton, Annapolis, and Philadelphia all took turns as the nation’s capital. New York served as capital from 1785 to 1788 and again from 1789 to 1790. But this arrangement would not last.
New York lost its capital status in 1790
- On July 16, 1790, representatives from the 13 states gathered to decide how the new federal government would function. The question of a permanent capital quickly came up. Several states wanted to host it, including Philadelphia, the original capital.
- Each state had its own interests to protect: Northern states wanted to hold power, while Southern states wanted the capital in a state that permitted slavery. Northern Alexander Hamilton and Southern Thomas Jefferson clashed over the issue.
- To avoid conflict and reach a compromise, the representatives created a federal territory, the District of Columbia. The Constitution specified that this territory would not be part of any state and would serve as the nation’s capital, housing the seat of the federal government. The new federal city was named Washington, honoring George Washington, the first President of the United States. New York lost its title.
