Mapmaker: Nicolaes Visscher The Jansson-Visscher series of maps of New Netherland and New England is an example of the practice of the replication, correction and addition...

Mapmaker: Robert Dudley Tinting (adding color) either contemporaneously or later has always been a part of map making. An exception are the 130 maps of...

This map of New Netherland and New England, based on Adrian Block’s 1614 chart, defined Manhattan and Long Island as islands and became the cornerstone of Dutch claims in the lower Northeast. Richly decorated with regional fauna, it also shows fortified Mohawk villages, canoes, and European ships reflecting growing knowledge and economic potential.

In 1664, Dutch rule ended as New Netherland passed to the English. Peace treaties promised continued trade and justice, but Native peoples now faced new colonial powers—and, eventually, war, displacement, and upheaval.

The St. Pieter, sailing out of Amsterdam in 1611, was the first ship whose mission was to engage in the fur trade, engendered by the fashion in Europe to wear hats made of felted beaver fur.

Conflict erupted in 1626 when Dutch troops joined the Mahicans against the Mohawks, sparking cycles of warfare driven by old rivalries, expanding settlements, and competition over fur-rich territory—culminating in the brutal Beaver Wars.

Wampum, from the Massachusett word wampumpeag, meaning white beads, was known to the Dutch as sewant, derived from Delaware and Munsee terms. It became central to trade, diplomacy, and cultural exchange in New Netherland.

Despite early peaceful relations, disease cast a long shadow over Dutch-Native contact. Epidemics like smallpox, typhus, and measles devastated Indigenous communities, causing staggering mortality, leadership loss, and deep disruption of cultural and kinship ties.

Beginning with the 1626 purchase of Manhattan, the Dutch acquired Native lands essential to New Netherland’s success. Land sales expanded as beaver declined, with exchanges largely fair and mutually understood by both parties.

The Hudson Valley’s natural beauty and abundance captivated all who encountered it—from Native peoples sustained by its waters and woods to Dutch traders and, later, artists drawn to its dramatic seasons and landscapes.