New York City was the first U.S. capital under the Constitution, connecting it to America250’s national story.
The new federal government began operating in New York City in 1789 after the Constitution took effect. George Washington was inaugurated there as the first president on April 30, 1789, at Federal Hall on Wall Street. Congress and the Supreme Court also began their constitutional-era work in the city.
New York City served as the capital only briefly. The federal government moved to Philadelphia in 1790, where it remained for a decade. Washington, D.C., became the permanent capital in 1800. This sequence is why Philadelphia is strongly associated with the Declaration and founding debates, while New York City is the first capital of the government created by the Constitution.
The distinction between revolutionary and constitutional capitals is a common source of confusion. Several cities hosted Congress during the Revolutionary War and Confederation periods, but New York City was the first capital of the new constitutional United States.