Whatever the explanation for the confusion regarding the use of "England" and "Britain," it’s important to understand and to make the distinction.
For family historians vital records offer the most basic and essential facts about an individual’s life. When researching recent generations we rely on birth certificates, marriage licenses, and death certificates held at local or state offices. Finding evidence to pinpoint these important life events in the seventeenth century, however, can be a considerable challenge.
Charles Fort (1874–1932) was an American writer and researcher known for collecting unexplained phenomena that science often ignored. His influential books, including The Book of the Damned, blended satire and skepticism, giving rise to the term “Fortean” for anomalous events.
In October 1657 a meeting of specially-appointed commissioners was held in New Amsterdam, likely in the City Hall. The commissioners were appointed by Director-General Peter Stuyvesant to hear a complaint by a Spanish merchant against Stuyvesant and the council of New Netherland.
New Netherland Annual ConferenceAlida Livingston’s World: Women in New Netherland and Early New York
On January 24, 1641, Manuel de Gerrit de Reus survived a failed hanging. Spectators saw it as divine intervention and successfully petitioned the Council to spare his life.
Creating a timeline of your ancestor’s records helps clarify life events, resolve conflicting evidence, and reveal patterns. Simple chronological summaries offer a clear, big-picture view when paired with proper sourcing.
NNI director Deborah Hamer talks to Russell Shorto, director of the New Amsterdam Project at The New York Historical and senior scholar at the NNI, about his book "Taking Manhattan: The Extraordinary Events Created New York and Shaped America."
Wall Street takes its name from the wooden wall the Dutch erected in the 1650s to protect New Amsterdam from potential British or Native attacks. The wall stood near today's Wall Street.
Founded in 1660 by French immigrants, Boswijck quickly grew between Breuckelen and Middleburgh. Amid war and English threats, settlers petitioned for protection—yet by 1664, Boswijck became Bushwick under English rule.
