You’ll Be Surprised to Learn Which U.S. City Is the Oldest
Before the U.S. became a nation, before the Founding Fathers debated independence or drew state lines, cities were already rising. Some were even mapped and inhabited. This list isn’t just about which city came first. It’s about how places we now consider modern grew out of centuries of conflict and survived.
Each city here reveals a different chapter in the messy, fascinating story of what eventually became the United States.
Savannah, Georgia (1733)
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Planned from the beginning, Savannah’s grid layout and public squares were revolutionary for their time. Its founder, James Oglethorpe, laid out leafy public squares and organized streets in tidy grids. That deliberate design helped it grow into Georgia’s colonial capital and a thriving port.
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania (1682)
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Philadelphia, launched as a haven for Quakers, became the birthplace of American independence, hosting the signing of both the Declaration and Constitution. Its surviving colonial layout and architecture now act as a living museum, where historic ideas still echo along its original cobblestone streets.
Charleston, South Carolina (1670)
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Charleston’s early economy was powered by rice, indigo, and a harbor that didn’t quit. It was built by English settlers and shaped by wealth and preservation. Today, layers of past stories are still visible in its buildings.
Newport, Rhode Island (1639)
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Newport’s founding story is all about exile. It was built by religious outcasts who turned it into a booming seaport with unexpected staying power. It also housed one of America’s oldest synagogues and profited from the slave trade. Later came Gilded Age mansions, but their oldest stories go deeper.
Boston, Massachusetts (1630)
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Puritan settlers founded Boston on a narrow peninsula, and it quickly grew into the political and intellectual center of New England. Events like the Boston Tea Party helped ignite the Revolutionary War. Today, sites like the Freedom Trail and Boston Common trace their pivotal role in shaping American identity.
Weymouth, Massachusetts (1622)
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The first version of Weymouth, back when it was called Wessagusset, fell apart fast. Starvation and confusion led to a total collapse until a second group tried again in 1623. That one stuck. Eventually absorbed by the Massachusetts Bay Colony, Weymouth quietly remains one of the first English attempts to build a lasting settlement.
Plymouth, Massachusetts (1620)
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The Mayflower anchored near a rocky shore, and the Pilgrims stepped into an unfamiliar land. Plymouth marks the beginning of permanent English settlement in New England. Its early years were fragile, shaped by cooperation and conflict with Indigenous peoples. The colony held on, staying independent until it merged with Massachusetts Bay in 1691.
Jersey City, New Jersey (1617)
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Long before it was packed with PATH trains and skyscrapers, Jersey City was a Dutch outpost known as Paulus Hook. Though the city wasn’t officially incorporated until 1838, Dutch settlers were doing business here over 200 years earlier. Its waterfront beginnings often get overlooked, but the date still holds weight.
Albany, New York (1614)
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Albany began as a Dutch fur trading post called Fort Nassau. Its strategic location along the Hudson River made it an important economic and military site. After English takeover, Albany became the New York State capital in 1797. Its history remains visible in its architecture and city layout.
Hampton, Virginia (1610)
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Initially known as Point Comfort, Hampton served as a key defensive outpost for English settlers. It maintained its military relevance through the Civil War and remains home to active military installations today. As one of the longest continuously occupied English-speaking settlements, it holds a vital place in early U.S. history.
Santa Fe, New Mexico (1607)
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People had been living in the Santa Fe area long before 1607, but that’s when Spanish colonists started laying formal foundations. It officially became the capital in 1610 and has never looked back. Its streets and buildings reflect Pueblo and Spanish roots, with the adobe structures still shaped by that fusion.
Jamestown, Virginia (1607)
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Jamestown started with starvation, disease, and serious conflict, but somehow, it held on. Backed by the Virginia Company, it became the first permanent English settlement in North America. Though abandoned in time, Jamestown set the tone for English colonization and left behind a site rich in artifacts.
New York City, New York (1624)
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Before the skyscrapers and yellow taxis, New York was Dutch and called New Amsterdam. Built as a trading post, it passed into British hands in 1664 and eventually grew into the nation’s biggest city. The angled streets of Lower Manhattan still betray its Dutch design, hiding centuries of growth in their geometry.
New Orleans, Louisiana (1718)
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Founded by the French and shaped by the Spanish, New Orleans has always been more than one thing. Its early growth centered on the Mississippi River and its ability to move goods fast. Creole culture and deep musical roots started here, in a city never afraid of reinvention.
St. Augustine, Florida (1565)
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The Spanish got here first and stayed. St. Augustine, founded by Pedro Menéndez de Avilés, is the oldest continuously occupied European-established city in the continental U.S. It has lived many lives: Spanish colony, military post, refuge for free Black settlers, and tourist site. Forts and missions still stand where it all began.