On May 6, 1626, the Dutch purchased the island of Manhattan from a local Native American tribe for $24. Or did they? There are dozens of articles online about the purchase of Manhattan, yet few paint a coherent narrative about what actually took place or properly acknowledge the limit to which we will ever be certain of…
While Henry Hudson is often credited as the first European to explore the New York area, and Juan Rodriguez has recently gotten recognition as New York’s first resident of European descent, it was Giovanni da Verrazzano who first set caucasian eyes on the New York harbor, on April 17, 1524. Verrazzano was born in Florence…
By the early 1640s, New Amsterdam had found its identity as a cosmopolitan trade capital, but it was almost wiped out after launching a foolhardy war against neighboring Algonquin tribes. On February 25, 1643, Governor-Director Willem Kieft led a raiding party against helpless Lenape Algonquins seeking refuge from rival Iroquois invaders. The mass killing was called the “Pavonia massacre,” and…
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