Albany, New York became the capital of New York in 1797 following formation of the United States. Albany is one of the oldest surviving settlements of the original British thirteen colonies, and is the longest continuously chartered city in the United States. During the late 18th century and throughout most of the 19th, Albany was a center of trade and transportation. The city lies toward the north end of the navigable Hudson River, was the original eastern terminus of the Erie Canal connecting to the Great Lakes, and was home to some of the earliest railroad systems in the world. In the 1920s,
Aire and Calder Navigation Narrow Canals, and the Rochdale Canal. The Selby Canal connects to the Ouse, from where boats can travel upstream to reach York, Boroughbridge and Ripon, or downstream to the River Derwent. Beyond Goole are the Humber and hence Hull, Immingham, and the North Sea. The Sheffield and South Yorkshire Navigation, which can be reached via the New Junction Canal, forms a link with Doncaster, Rotherham and Sheffield to the south west, and the tidal River Trent at Keadby to the east. In the early 1600s, the River Aire was navigable to Knottingley, and boats carrying up to 30 tons traded