Buffalo is the second-largest city in the U.S. state of New York and the 81st-most populous city in the United States. As of July 2016, the population was 256,902, a slight decrease from the 2010 census. It is the principal municipality of the Buffalo–Niagara Falls metropolitan area, a region with 1,134,210 residents in the MSA and 1,213,668 in the CSA. The city serves as the county seat of Erie County. The city also is a major gateway for commerce and travel at the Canada–United States border, forming part of the bi-national Buffalo Niagara Region.The Buffalo area was inhabited before the 17th century by the Native American Iroquois tribe and later by French settlers. The city grew significantly in the 19th and 20th century as a result of immigration, the construction of the Erie Canal, the building of railroads, and its close proximity to Lake Erie.