Albany served as an important meeting place for colonial officials and Native American leaders before the American Revolution. Many treaties were written in the city. During the French and Indian War, in Albany, many key battles were fought with the British to keep their military from moving west to attack the French. In 1754 the Albany Congress held a meeting and Albany got the nickname, "Cradle of the Union ". During the meeting, Benjamin Franklin presented his Plan of Union, which was a proposal to unite the colonies against England. During the Revolutionary War, Albany suffered many damages from the British. However, the city was never captured by the British.
In
1797, the New York State capital was moved from New York City to Albany.
Over the next thirty years, Albany's trade grew due to the opening of
the Erie and Champlain Canals. From 1820 to 1830, the city's population
doubled. In the 1900s, Albany's economy declined, and in the 1960s, it
was improved because of many government-building projects. These projects
gave many people jobs.