What Are The Oldest Cities In The United States

North American Indians were on the North				who built an earth fort impede a Union
American continent from as early as 11,000				advance up the James River. Little further
BCE. But these early colonizers did not live				attention was paid to Jamestown until
in permanent settlements and left little in				preservation was undertaken in the twentieth
the way of permanent buildings. The Anasazi				century.
built towns such as Chetro Ketl, and the
great complex of abandoned towns in Chaco				Santa Fe, New Mexico: Santa Fe is the oldest
Canyon, in what is now New Mexico. Mesa Verde				capital city in the U.S. and also the oldest
is another ancient city that is over a				European city west of the Mississippi. Santa
thousand years old and was built by the				Fe also features the oldest public building
Pueblo Indians. However, almost all of these				in America, the Palace of the Governors.
ancient pueblos were abandoned and now stand				The first Spanish Governor-General of New
as ruins rather than vibrant cities. The one				Mexico established his capital in 1598 at San
exception being Acoma listed below. Mexico				Juan Pueblo, 25 miles north of modern day
City is probably the oldest city in North				Santa Fe. The second Governor-General moved
America, as a continuation of the Aztec				his capital south to Santa Fe in 1607 and the
capital of TenochtitlÃ¡n, founded in about				city has remained a capital ever since. The
1325. St. John's, Newfoundland, Canada was				city was the capital for the Spanish "Kingdom
settled in 1528, and claims to be the oldest				of New Mexico," and then the Mexican province
European-settled city in North America. St.				of Nuevo Mexico, the American territory of
John's earned its name when the explorer John				New Mexico (which contained modern Arizona
Cabot became the first European to sail into				and New Mexico) and since 1912 the US state
its harbor on the Feast of St. John, June 24,				of New Mexico. Santa Fe was originally
1497. It's also the easternmost city on the				occupied by Pueblo Indians from 1050 to 1607.
North American continent.				The conquistador Don Francisco Vasques de
				Coronado described the Indian settlement in
The oldest continuously occupied cities in				1540, 67 years before the founding of the
the United States:				city of Santa Fe.

Acoma, New Mexico: Forty minutes drive east				Plymouth Colony, Massachussetts. On December
of Grants, New Mexico, lies the Pueblo				21, 1620, 102 disillusioned English puritans
(village) of Acoma, built on a sandstone mesa				sailing on the Mayflower landed at Plymouth
367-feet above a valley and approximately				Rock on the eastern shore of Cape Cod Bay in
7,000 feet above sea level. The pueblo was				what is now southeast Massachusetts. By the
built on a mesa for defensive purposes,				end of that winter, half of the pilgrims were
keeping rival raiding tribes at bay. Native				dead, including their leader John Carver. The
verbal history says Acoma was first inhabited				colony continued for a number of decades
about 700 AD although modern archeological				often close to collapse. The Plymouth colony
evidence suggests it has been continuously				was eventually surpassed in population and
occupied from 1150, making it America's				wealth by the nearby Massachusetts Bay
oldest continually inhabited city. It is				Colony, centered in modern Boston, In 1691,
presently inhabited by a small population of				Plymouth was annexed by the Boston colony
Keresan-speaking Native Americans.				officially ending Plymouth as a separate
				colony. The city of Plymouth, Massachusetts
St. Augustine, Florida: Founded in 1565, St.				claims a city charter dating back to 1620.
Augustine is the oldest continuously occupied
European settlement in the United States.				Hampton, Virginia: Located at the tip of the
Twenty-one years before the first English				Virginia peninsula on Chesapeake Bay,
Settlement at Roanoke, Virginia and 42 years				Hampton, Virginia is the oldest continuously
before the foundation of Jamestown, the				settled English community in the United
Spanish established St. Augustine. Spanish				States. The Indian village of Kecoughtan, had
explorer Don Juan Ponce de Leon had landed in				been visited by English colonists before they
mainland America in 1513 and claimed the land				sailed up the James River to settle in
for Spain and named it La Florida, meaning				Jamestown. In 1610, the English returned to
"Land of Flowers". Between 1513 and 1563 the				the Indian village and began the construction
Spanish tried to settle Florida but all their				of Fort Henry and Fort Charles at the mouth
settlements failed. Finally, in 1565, the				of Hampton Creek. In 1619, the settlers chose
Spanish destroyed a French garrison on the				an English name for the community, Elizabeth
St. Johns River, Florida and defeated the				City. The settlement became known as Hampton
French fleet. Near the destroyed French fort,				in 1680, and in 1705, Hampton was recognized
San AgustÃn was founded by the Spanish				as a town.
admiral, Pedro MenÃ©ndez de AvilÃ©s, on
August 28, 1565, the feast day of St.				Newport News, Virginia: This port of entry
Augustine of Hippo. Parts of the original				city in southeastern Virginia lies on the
Spanish colonial settlement from the late				north side of Hampton Roads at the mouth of
sixteenth century remain today in St.				the James River. Along with Portsmouth,
Augustine in the layout of the town and in				Hampton, and Norfolk, it constitutes the Port
the narrow streets and balconied houses.				of Hampton Roads. The actual date of
Thirty-six buildings of colonial origin				settlement and how it got its name is
remain and another 40 that are reconstructed				disputed. It is estimated to have been
models of colonial buildings also contribute				settled as early as 1611, but official
to the atmosphere of the town.				records only begin in 1621 when 50 colonists
				arrived from Ireland. The origin of the
Jamestown, Virginia: In May 1607, English				place-name is obscure but is traditionally
explorers with the Virginia Company landed on				associated with Captain Christopher Newport,
Jamestown Island, 60 miles from the mouth of				and Sir William Newce, who arrived from
the Chesapeake Bay. Almost immediately the				Ireland in 1621.
colonists were attacked by Algonquian
natives, who would continue with their				Albany, New York: The area was visited in
attacks for years, and the newcomers were				1609 by English navigator Henry Hudson during
forced to build a wooden fort. Endemic				his exploration of the river that was later
corruption in the Virginia Company in England				named for him. The area was first settled in
convinced King James 1 that he should revoke				1614 when Fort Nassau was created by Dutch
the company's charter and the Jamestown fort				traders. Ten years later a group of Belgian
became a crown colony in 1624. The fort				Walloons built Fort Orange nearby. The
remained intact until the 1620s, but				settlement that grew around Fort Orange was
disappeared as a town sprang up around the				made independent in 1652 and renamed
old wooden battlements. Jamestown was named				Beverwyck, or "town of the beaver." Following
the capital of Virginia until the statehouse				the surrender of Fort Orange to the British
burned down in 1698 and the capital moved to				in 1664, the city's name was changed to honor
Williamsburg. The town effectively became a				the Duke of York and Albany.
ghost town with only a few occupants until a
military post was located at Jamestown during				Ten Oldest continuously occupied U.S. Cities
the American Revolution, and in 1861 the
island was occupied by Confederate soldiers				1) Acoma, New Mexico c 1150 2) St.

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What Are The Oldest Cities In The United States