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.
Government of New York City in the city but run largely in the suburban counties of New York State and Connecticut. Other regional transportation is managed by the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, including the bridges and tunnels between New York City and New Jersey, and all airports and seaports within the city. The Port Authority is jointly controlled by the Governor of New Jersey and Governor of New York. The seal of New York City, adopted in an earlier form in 1686, bears the legend , which means simply "The Seal of the City of New York". "Eboracum" was the Roman