New York, State of
On Aug. 1, 1776, the new provincial convention, sitting at
White Plains, appointed a committee to draw up and report a constitution for the
State.
John Jay was the chairman of this committee.
The convention was made migratory by the stirring events in the ensuing
autumn and
winter, and it sat, after leaving
White Plains, at
Fishkill and at
Kingston.
At the latter place the committee reported a draft of a constitution, written by
Mr. Jay.
It was under consideration in the convention more than a month, and was finally adopted April 20, 1777.
Under it a State government was established by an ordinance passed in May, and the first session of the legislature was held in July.
Meanwhile, elections were held in all the counties excepting New York, Kings,
Queens, and
Suffolk, then held by the
British troops.
Brig.-Gen. George Clinton was elected governor, and
Pierre Van Cortlandt, president of the Senate, became lieutenant-governor.
John Jay was made chiefjustice,
Robert R. Livingston, chancellor, and
Philip Livingston,
James Duane,
Francis Lewis, and
Gouverneur Morris, delegates to the Continental Congress.
By the provisions of the constitution, the governor was to be elected by the people for the term of three years, the legislative department, vested in a Senate and Assembly, deriving their powers from the
same source; all inferior offices to be filled by the governor and a council of four senators, one from each district; and to a council of revision, similarly constituted, was assigned the power to pass upon the validity and constitutionality of legislative acts.
In October following, a British marauding force went up the
Hudson and burned
Kingston.
The records were removed first to the interior of
Ulster county, and thence to
Poughkeepsie, where the legislators reassembled early in 1778.
That city was the
State capital until 1784, when it was removed to the
city of New York.
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In 1797
Albany was made the permanent State capital.
The State constitution was revised in 1801, 1821, 1846, and 1894.
During the
War of 1812-15 the frontiers of New York were almost continually scenes of hostilities.
New York was the
pioneer in establishing canal navigation, In 1796 the Western Inland Lock Navigation Company was incorporated, and improved the bateau-navigation of the
Mohawk River, connecting its waters with
Oneida Lake by a canal, so that boats laden with merchandise could pass from the ocean to that lake, and then by its outlet and
Oswego River to
Lake Ontario.
In 1800
Gouverneur Morris conceived a plan for connecting
Lake Erie with the ocean by means of a canal, and the great
Erie Canal that accomplished it was completed in 1825 (see
canals). In November, 1874, several amendments proposed by the legislature were ratified by a vote of the people.
These removed the property qualifications of colored voters; restricted the power of the legislature to pass private or local bills; made changes in the executive departments; prescribed an oath of office in relation to bribery; established safeguards against official corruption; and removed restrictions imposed upon the legislature in regard to selling or leasing certain of the
State canals.
During the
Civil War, the
State furnished to the
National army 455,568 troops.
Of that number the city of
New York furnished 267,551.
In 1869 the legislature ratified the Fifteenth Amendment to the national Constitution.
In 1870 this action was annulled by a resolution, and the latter was rescinded in 1872.
Slavery, which had been much restricted by the first constitution, was abolished in 1817, but a few aged persons continued in nominal slavery several years later.
The revised constitution of the
State was adopted November, 1894, materially restricting the proportionate representation of
New York and
Kings counties.
Population in 1890, 5,997,853; in 1900, 7,268,012.
See
United States, New York, in vol.
IX.
governors of New York.
English resumed.
Edmund Andros | Nov. 10, 1674 to 1683 |
Thomas Dongan | Aug. 27, 1683 1688 |
Francis Nicholson. | 1688 to 1689 |
Jacob Leisler | June 3, 1689to 1691 |
Henry Sloughter | March 19, 1691 |
Richard Ingoldsby | July 26, 1691 1692 |
Benjamin Fletcher | Aug. 30, 1692 1698 |
Richard, Earl Bellomont | 1698 1701 |
John Nanfan | 1701 to 1702 |
Lord Cornbury | May 3, 1702 to 1708 |
John, Lord Lovelace | Dec. 18, 1708 to 1709 |
Richard Ingoldsby | May 9, 1709to 1710 |
Gerardus Beekman | April 10, 1710 |
Robert Hunter | June 14, 1710 1719 |
Peter Schuyler | July 21, 1719 to 1720 |
William Burnet | Sept. 17, 1720to 1728 |
John Montgomery | April 15, 1728 to 1731 |
Rip Van Dam | 1731 to 1732 |
William Cosby | Aug. 1, 1732to 1736 |
George Clarke | 1736 1743 |
George Clinton | Sept. 2, 1743to 1753 |
Sir Sanvers Osborne | Oct. 10, 1753 |
James De Lancey | Oct. 12, 1853 to 1755 |
Sir Charles Hardy | Sept. 3, 1755to 1757 |
James De Lancey | June 3, 1757to 1760 |
Cadwallader Colden | Aug. 4, 1760to 1761 |
Robert Monckton | Oct. 26, 1761 |
Cadwallader Colden | Nov. 18, 1761 to1765 |
Sir Henry Moore | Nov. 18, 1765 to 1769 |
Cadwallader Colden | Sept. 12, 1769 to 1770 |
John Lord Dunmore | Oct. 19, 1770 to 1771 |
William Tryon | July 9, 1771 to 1777 |
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The first governors of the
State entered office on July 1 following election, but since 1823 the date has been Jan. 1.
The term of office was, up to 1823, three years; then until 1876, two years; from 1876 until 1895, three years; from 1895, two years. The governor and lieutenant-governor must be thirty years of age, a citizen of the
United States, and five years a resident of the
State.