Buffalo

Buffalo is the second most populous city in the state of New York, behind New York City. Located in Western New York on the eastern shores of Lake Erie and at the head of the Niagara River across from Fort Erie, Ontario, Buffalo is the principal city of the Buffalo-Niagara Falls metropolitan area and the seat of Erie County. The city itself has a population of 292,648 (2000 Census), and the Buffalo–Niagara–Cattaraugus Combined Statistical Area is home to 1,254,066 residents.

Originating around 1789 as a small trading community near the eponymous Buffalo Creek, Buffalo grew quickly after the opening of the Erie Canal in 1825, with the city as its western terminus. By 1900, Buffalo was the 8th largest city in the country, and went on to become a major railroad hub, the largest grain-milling center in the country, and the home of the largest steel-making operation in the world. The latter part of the 20th Century saw a reversal of fortunes: Great Lakes shipping was rerouted by the opening of the St. Lawrence Seaway, and steel mills and other heavy industry relocated to places like China. With the start of Amtrak in the 1970s, Buffalo Central Terminal was also abandoned, and trains were rerouted to nearby Depew, New York (Buffalo-Depew) and Exchange Street Station. By 1990 the city had fallen back below its 1900 population levels.

Today, the region's largest economic sector is health and education, and these continue to grow despite the lagging worldwide economy. This growth should continue due to major expansions of the Buffalo Niagara Medical Campus and the University at Buffalo, the retail sector is strong thanks to Canadian shoppers taking advantage of lower taxes and a weak American Dollar, and Buffalo's unemployment rate is lower than both the New York State and national averages. In 2010 Forbes rated Buffalo the 10th best place to raise a family.