New York was the capital of the United States between 1785 and 1790.
George Washington was sworn in as the first president there in 1789.
In 1790 Congress agreed, as part of a compromise between northern and southern leaders, to locate a permanent capital along the banks of the Potomac River.
In the meantime, the temporary capital was moved to Philadelphia in 1790, part of another political compromise.
The Mid-Atlantic states have traditionally been centers of business and government, but their importance as manufacturing states has declined.
