"Capital of the Empire State" a Albany Travel Page by mrclay2000

Though New York State is presently our third most populous state, its modest capital city (some few hours north of America's largest at New York City) contains barely over 100,000, and thus is almost squeezed off the list of America's 100 most populous cities. Apart from this, Albany has a lot of history since its founding in the mid-17th century, making it one of the nation's oldest. History records that the Dutch sailed up the Hudson after buying Manhattan, and by 1800 many of Albany's residents still spoke Dutch as their first language.

In recent years, Albany had begun to decay, its inner city falling into disrepair, making the entire town almost a poor shroud for its majestic historical buildings. In the last quarter century, a new complex of state buildings and the central city mall (Empire State Plaza) help to make Albany almost futuristic, the "model" for urban planning (except for the notable absence of greenery and living things along the plaza). Even so, first-timers to Albany will have much to marvel over.