In the 1640s, Dutch settlers avoided a heavily wooded area on Long Island. By 1652, they founded Midwout—later called Flatbush, from the Dutch “vlackebos,” meaning wooded plain.
John Watts de Peyster (1821–1907) was an American military historian, philanthropist, and New York militia officer who was later breveted major general. Though not a battlefield commander, he influenced Civil War tactics through his writings and supported many historical and educational institutions.
In 1642, English minister Francis Doughty founded Maspeth in Queens under Dutch rule. Expelled from Massachusetts for radical preaching, he accepted Willem Kieft’s offer of land and religious freedom.
David H. Petraeus (b. 1952) is a retired four-star U.S. Army general and former Director of the CIA. He commanded coalition forces in Iraq and Afghanistan and is known for shaping modern counterinsurgency strategy during the Iraq War.
In 1643, English families from Connecticut settled a fertile Long Island plain. Granted permission by the Dutch, they swore allegiance and gained autonomy in church, law enforcement, and local governance.
William Penn (1644–1718) was an English Quaker leader and colonial proprietor who founded the Province of Pennsylvania and the city of Philadelphia. His colony became known for religious freedom, democratic governance, and peaceful relations with Native Americans.
In 1643, Lady Deborah Moody, fleeing religious intolerance, founded a settlement in New Netherland. As an Anabaptist and noblewoman, she became the first woman to establish a colony in America.
William Kaiser Van Pelt (1905–1996) was an American businessman and Republican politician who represented Wisconsin in the U.S. House of Representatives from 1951 to 1965. Before his congressional career, he owned and operated the City Fuel Company in Fond du Lac, Wisconsin.
In 1640, English settlers from Massachusetts attempted to settle western Long Island but were expelled by the Dutch. They moved east, founding Southold—the first English settlement in present-day Suffolk County.
C. Carl Pegels was a Dutch-born American academic and writer focused on Dutch American heritage
