Dutch influence remained strong in New York and New Jersey material culture until the American Revolution. King William III and Queen Mary introduced Dutch early baroque styles into England, which also became popular in North America.
The Dutch helped establish Calvinism—including Huguenot, German Reformed, and Presbyterian traditions—as the dominant religious force in the Middle Colonies, shaping early American values through church governance, education, and strong community-centered faith practices.
In 1764, Dominie Archibald Laidlie’s arrival marked the beginning of a shift from Dutch to English in the Dutch Reformed Church, though Dutch services persisted in parts of New York until as late as 1835.
The Dutch West India Company established New Netherland’s legal system according to the statutes of the Dutch states of Holland and Zeeland. These laws reflected Germanic customary law, the Roman code of Justinian (corpus juris), canon law of the Roman Catholic Church, and special corporate privileges granted by various overlords.
The English conditions for New Netherland’s capitulation guaranteed the Dutch their customary rights of property, inheritance, and religious practice and confirmed established Dutch political units.
With so many possible spellings, a genealogical researcher must deal with many difficulties when seeking seventeenth-century Dutch surnames.
One need not be fluent in Dutch to glean information from Dutch-language documents. This page lists resources to help in interpreting some relevant terms.
A range of free genealogical resources is available through national and local archives. These sites offer access to historical records, surname databases, and digital collections, including photos, war documents, and church records. Some are in Dutch only, while others offer English options. Whether you're tracing one ancestor or building a full family tree, these resources are a valuable starting point for exploring your Dutch roots.
An unmatched expert in the language of New Netherland, Gehring is retiring after 50 year interpreting colonial Dutch to explain the lives of New York’s earliest European settlers.
Dutch Albany in History & Art, a joint conference with the Albany Institute of History & Art and the New York State Museum, was held...
Dutch Albany in History & Art, a joint conference with the Albany Institute of History & Art and the New York State Museum, was held on Saturday September 21, 2024.
This volume continues the legal record, capturing court proceedings and common disputes—property, debt, slander—similar to those in the Fort Orange and Beverwijck minutes, under a newly named court.
The records in this volume represent the next to the oldest surviving archival papers of the Dutch community that eventually became Albany, the capital of...
PDF – Fort Orange Records, 1656-1678 translation (published book images) The records in this volume represent the oldest surviving archival papers of the Dutch community...
Volume I: Kingston Court Records, 1661-1667 Volume II
Dutch influence remained strong in New York and New Jersey material culture until the American Revolution. King William III and Queen Mary introduced Dutch early baroque styles into England, which also became popular in North America.
The Dutch helped establish Calvinism—including Huguenot, German Reformed, and Presbyterian traditions—as the dominant religious force in the Middle Colonies, shaping early American values through church governance, education, and strong community-centered faith practices.
In 1764, Dominie Archibald Laidlie’s arrival marked the beginning of a shift from Dutch to English in the Dutch Reformed Church, though Dutch services persisted in parts of New York until as late as 1835.
The Dutch West India Company established New Netherland’s legal system according to the statutes of the Dutch states of Holland and Zeeland. These laws reflected Germanic customary law, the Roman code of Justinian (corpus juris), canon law of the Roman Catholic Church, and special corporate privileges granted by various overlords.
The English conditions for New Netherland’s capitulation guaranteed the Dutch their customary rights of property, inheritance, and religious practice and confirmed established Dutch political units.
With so many possible spellings, a genealogical researcher must deal with many difficulties when seeking seventeenth-century Dutch surnames.
One need not be fluent in Dutch to glean information from Dutch-language documents. This page lists resources to help in interpreting some relevant terms.
A range of free genealogical resources is available through national and local archives. These sites offer access to historical records, surname databases, and digital collections, including photos, war documents, and church records. Some are in Dutch only, while others offer English options. Whether you're tracing one ancestor or building a full family tree, these resources are a valuable starting point for exploring your Dutch roots.
An unmatched expert in the language of New Netherland, Gehring is retiring after 50 year interpreting colonial Dutch to explain the lives of New York’s earliest European settlers.
Dutch Albany in History & Art, a joint conference with the Albany Institute of History & Art and the New York State Museum, was held...
Dutch Albany in History & Art, a joint conference with the Albany Institute of History & Art and the New York State Museum, was held on Saturday September 21, 2024.
This volume continues the legal record, capturing court proceedings and common disputes—property, debt, slander—similar to those in the Fort Orange and Beverwijck minutes, under a newly named court.
The records in this volume represent the next to the oldest surviving archival papers of the Dutch community that eventually became Albany, the capital of...
PDF – Fort Orange Records, 1656-1678 translation (published book images) The records in this volume represent the oldest surviving archival papers of the Dutch community...
Volume I: Kingston Court Records, 1661-1667 Volume II
