New York City was the first United States capital under the Constitution, a milestone relevant to America250.
The new federal government began operating in New York City in 1789. Federal Hall on Wall Street hosted George Washington’s inauguration as the first president on April 30 of that year. Congress and the first Supreme Court also worked there during the government’s initial period under the Constitution.
The capital moved to Philadelphia in 1790 under a compromise connected to the federal assumption of state debts. Philadelphia served as the temporary capital for a decade. The government then moved to Washington, D.C., in 1800, after the new federal district was developed along the Potomac River.
New York City had also been an important wartime and Confederation-era center, but “first capital” can be misleading unless the constitutional period is specified. The Continental Congress and the government under the Articles of Confederation used several locations before the Constitution created the federal system remembered today.