The largest of the northeastern states, New York stretches from the Great Lakes to the Atlantic. The glitter and glamour of New York City—from the skyscrapers in Midtown to the beaches of Coney Island— makes the city, America’s most populous, a world capital. But New York state has much more to offer than just Gotham. There are Niagara Falls, the Genesee gorge, the Finger Lakes, the Thousand Islands of the St. Lawrence, the Catskills, where Rip Van Winkle is said to have slept for 20 years, the white sand beaches of the Hamptons, the lakes and forested peaks of the Adirondacks and the stately bluffs along the Hudson. These are a few of the features that attract millions of tourists every year.

When Giovanni da Verrazano entered New York Harbor in 1524, the Native Americans who lived there were at constant war with one another. Around 1570, under Dekanawidah and Hiawatha, they formed the Iroquois Confederacy (the first League of Nations) and began to live in peace. They were known as the Five Nations and called themselves the “Men of Men.”

In 1609, Samuel de Champlain explored the valley of the lake that now has his name, and Henry Hudson sailed up the river that bears his name. New Amsterdam (later called New York City) was founded in 1625. Wars with the American Indians and French kept the area in turmoil until after 1763. During the Revolution, New York’s eastern part was a seesaw of military action and occupation. After the war, George Washington was inaugurated as president in 1789 in the new seat of federal government, New York City.

Governor DeWitt Clinton envisioned a canal extending from the Hudson River at Albany to Buffalo to develop the state and give aid to its western farmers. Started in 1817 and finished in 1825, the Erie Canal became the gateway to the West and was the greatest engineering feat of its time, reducing the cost of freight between Buffalo and New York City from $100 to $5 a ton. Enlarged and rerouted, it is now part of the New York State Canal system, 527 miles used mainly for recreational boating.

Industry grew in New York because water power was available; trade and farming grew because of the Erie Canal and its many branches. The state has given the nation four native-born presidents (Van Buren, Fillmore, and both Roosevelts) and two who built their careers here (Cleveland and Arthur).

From the Big Apple to Niagara Falls, from the rolling hills near the Canada border to the picturesque stretch of Long Island, New York has something for every traveler.