New Netherlands: Dutch Colonial New York

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“New Netherlands: Dutch Colonial New York” is an excerpt from a speech delivered by jurist and legal scholar James Kent on December 6, 1828. This speech was given to the New York Historical Society, at the Hall of Columbia College, Columbia University in Manhattan, on the subject of the history of New York State.

Kent was a New York State native, and president of the Historical Society. In this excerpt he describes the history of New York as a Dutch colony, up to the Netherlands ceding control to England.

The Dutch were the first Europeans to colonize what is now New York State. They called their colony, which was centered around the Hudson River, New Netherlands. What is now New York City was founded as New Amsterdam by the Dutch settlers. The many Dutch place names in New York City and New York State are a legacy of the Dutch colonial era.

New Netherlands was administered by the Dutch West India Company, which engaged in fur-trading with local indigenous groups. In the 17th century the English, French, and Dutch competed for control of the colonies and the fur trade of the northeastern seaboard. The French were based in the St. Lawrence River Valley of modern-day Quebec. The English established colonies along the east coast, from New England to Virginia. The Dutch, of course, were based in New York. The English colonists significantly outnumbered their Dutch and French counterparts, and eventually won control over their rivals’ colonies. The English won control of the Dutch colony in the 17th century, and took control of French-ruled Canada about 100 years later.

The last, and best known, governor of New Netherlands was Peter Stuyvesant, who government the colony from 1647 to 1664. In 1664, New Netherlands was taken over by the English, who renamed it New York. The Dutch settlers, however, were allowed to stay in the colony, and were granted all the rights of English citizens.

Over time the descendants of the Dutch colonists adopted the English language, and intermarried with the English colonists. A number of prominent Americans were descended from Dutch colonists who arrived in what is now New York in the Dutch colonial period. Philip Schuyler was a Patriot general during the American Revolutionary War, and went on to become a federal senator for New York. His son, Philip Jeremiah Schuyler was New York congressman. His daughter, Elizabeth , married American founding father Alexander Hamilton .

The Van Cortlandts were another prominent New York family descended from 17th century Dutch colonists. Stephanus Van Cortlandt served as mayor of New York in the 1670s and 1680s. Stephanus’ brother Jacobus , a wealthy merchant, served as mayor of the city in the 18th century. Pierre Van Cortlandt was the first Lieutenant Governor of New York State. His sons Pierre Jr. & Philip were both politicians. Singer David Crosby is a descendant of the Van Cortlandt family .

The Roosevelt family is probably the best known of New York’s old Dutch families. Descended from Dutch settlers who arrived in the 1630s or 1640s, the Roosevelts intermarried with other prominent early Dutch families, and many Roosevelts became prominent businesspeople, socialites, & politicians. The most famous Roosevelts were US presidents Theodore “Teddy” Roosevelt , & Franklin Delano Roosevelt . Franklin D. Roosevelt married a Roosevelt relative, First Lady Eleanor Roosevelt .