History of New York City (1784–1854) as the financial and mercantile capital of the western hemisphere. The Great New York City Fire of 1845 destroyed 345 wooden buildings in the Financial District. The Hudson River Railroad (which grew into the New York Central) opened October 3, 1851; it extended the Mohawk and Hudson Railroad, the first railroad built in the state, south to New York City. The city and its nearby suburbs grew rapidly for several reasons. The natural harbor at the base of Manhattan, Brooklyn, and the New Jersey ports at Newark and Elizabeth provided almost unlimited capacity for trading ships and protection from storms.
Gloucester City, New Jersey Gloucester City, New Jersey Gloucester City is a city in Camden County, New Jersey, United States. As of the 2010 United States Census, the city's population was 11,456, reflecting a decline of 28 (-0.2%) from the 11,484 counted in the 2000 Census, which had in turn declined by 1,165 (-9.2%) from the 12,649 counted in the 1990 Census. It is located directly across the Delaware River from Philadelphia and the Port of Philadelphia. Gloucester City was incorporated by an act of the New Jersey Legislature on February 25, 1868, from the remaining portions of Union Township, which was then dissolved.