Changes

== History ==

== History ==

The first Dutch settlers arrived on Manhattan in 1624, naming the town New Amsterdam.  Indian claims were bought out for the equivalent of $24.  The Dutch sent settlers up the Hudson River (which is easily navigable by sailing vessels) to Albany. The Dutch colony, named New Amsterdam, was run in autocratic fashion by Governor Peter Stuyvesant.  It soon had a cosmopolitan flavor, with freedom of religion and numerous ethnic and religious groups; the Dutch brought slaves as house servants.<ref>Slavery was finally abolished in 1799.</ref> The city was captured in war by the British in 1664; they renamed both the city and the colony for the duke of York (who later became King [[James II]]).  

The first Dutch settlers arrived on Manhattan in 1624, naming the town New Amsterdam.  Indian claims were bought out for the equivalent of $24.  The Dutch sent settlers up the Hudson River (which is easily navigable by sailing vessels) to Albany. The Dutch colony, named New Amsterdam, was run in autocratic fashion by Governor Peter Stuyvesant.  It soon had a cosmopolitan flavor, with freedom of religion and numerous ethnic and religious groups; the Dutch brought slaves as house servants.<ref>Slavery was finally abolished in 1799.</ref> The city was captured in war by the British in 1664; they renamed both the city and the colony for the Duke of York (who later became King [[James II]]).  

[[File:Nyc2.jpg|thumb|450px|Manhattan neighborhoods]]

[[File:Nyc2.jpg|thumb|450px|Manhattan neighborhoods]]

The use of [[Ellis Island]] as the checkpoint for millions of European immigrants in the late 1800s caused New York City's population to swell, as many settled in nearby areas.

The use of [[Ellis Island]] as the checkpoint for millions of European immigrants in the late 19th Century caused New York City's population to swell, as many settled in the city.

[[Image:800px-Times Square Panorama1.jpg|thumb|800px|center|Times Square.]]

[[Image:800px-Times Square Panorama1.jpg|thumb|800px|center|Times Square.]]