Albany was once one of the 10 most-populous cities in the country.

The city has long been a national center of transportation, manufacturing, banking, education and government.

The territory was originally inhabited by Algonquian Mohegan and Iroquois Indian tribes. In 1609, Henry Hudson sailed up the river that now bears his name and claimed the area for the Dutch who established a fur trade that flourished, which caused the population to explode.

Jack McEneny, a former Assemblyman and Albany historian, said what sets Albany apart from other early settlements is that it quickly became not just a community, but a crossroads.

It has a river and an estuary. A banking industry developed here funded the development of western New York. 

Learn about Albany’s military importance by watching video of Dan Levy’s story.