Could the universe have ever existed without a Brooklyn, NY?
Imagine a land verdant and pristine. Trees fill your vision and fade into the receding horizon as far as the eye can see. This is Brooklyn in 1609. This is what Henry Hudson sees when the first Europeans drop anchor at Gravesend Bay. It’s incredible to think that this land, almost completely covered in concrete, was a wild, untamed land. Brooklyn as we know it didn’t always exist.
It Seems Inevitable that at Some Point in Earth’s History a Brooklyn, New York Had to Come Along.
It seems inevitable that at some point in Earth’s history a Brooklyn, New York had to come along. Of course it didn’t just pop out of nowhere. When was Brooklyn born? What and who made this borough of hard-knocks, artists, musicians, wiseguys, thinkers, and poets become what it is today? It’s quite a story.
Brooklyn Was a Much Different Place in the 1600s.
Brooklyn was a much different place in the 1600s. Before the Europeans arrived it was inhabited by the Algonquin Native Americans. The Algonquins were a confederation that ruled from Canada all the way down to Long Island. The Lenape, more specifically the Canarsie branch, ruled over Western Long Island. The Lenape, spoke an Algonquin language, and were described as wearing deer skins and being civil in their relations to the Europeans.
Little is Known about his Early Life, but Henry Hudson’s Discoveries Were Momentous.
Little is known about his life, but Henry Hudson’s discoveries were momentous. He discovered the Hudson River and New York City. He also discovered Hudson Bay all the way in Canada, though that was on another expedition. Hudson had sailed for the British on two prior expeditions. He embarked on his third voyage for the Dutch aboard the Half Moon ship. They were told to find a North West passage to Asia, but they went against their directives and took a different route. One decision can have a huge impact on the course of history.
Hudson Sailed the Half Moon to where Maine Is.
Hudson sailed the Half Moon to where Maine is. They continued following the coast until they arrived at New York City. They were the first Europeans to touch land in New York in 1609 as far as we know. Hudson’s account of landing in Gravesend goes as follows “Pleasant with grass and flowers and goodly trees as ever to be seen and very sweet smells came from them.” Brooklyn’s very first review! But the Borough of Brooklyn wouldn’t come along until well after the Dutch.
Holland Chartered the Dutch West India Company in 1614 to Establish New Amsterdam as a Colony.
Holland chartered the Dutch West India Company in 1614 to establish New Amsterdam as a colony. It’s jurisdiction extended into New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania, and parts of Connecticut. Nieuw Amsterdam, current day Manhattan, was bought by Peter Minuit, the Director of the Dutch West India Company, from the Lenape for $24 worth of goods. It wouldn’t be long before Dutch settlers looked across the East River and thought of expanding their horizons.
When the Dutch Crossed the East River they Found the Soil More Arable.
When the Dutch crossed the East River they found the soil more arable. The marshiness reminded them of their homeland. Breukelen is an ancient city in Amsterdam, which the Dutch clearly had in mind when choosing that name. The Dutch West India Company would produce advertisements about Breukelen to send back to Holland saying “Best clymate in the whole world with marvelous plenty in all kinds of food and where furs of all sorts may be had of the natives very reasonable.”
New York City Is a Glorious Confluence of the Hudson and the East Rivers.
New York City is a glorious confluence of the Hudson and the East Rivers. The access it provides to so many other parts of New England makes it strategically a great place to have a major city. You have access to New Jersey. The Hudson River grants access to a large portion of Upper New York. You can sail right to Connecticut via the East River. No other place along the East Coast grants nearly the access to the rest of the East Coast that New York City does.
Water Was an Invaluable Resource to all Cities with Major Ports at the Time.
Water was an invaluable resource to all cities with major ports at the time. It might seem odd to us, but boat was the superior form of travel until fairly recently. The wheel revolutionized the movement of people and goods with its invention 5000 years ago somewhere in Eurasia. Cart travel still was inferior to water transport until the construction of the transcontinental railway in the 1800s. Roads are difficult to maintain even today. Traveling along them then could be a slow, laborious, and treacherous ordeal. Not only did you have to worry about if the road was sufficiently maintained, but also bandits, attacks from Indians, and wear-and-tear on the wagon and its wheels.
Water Travel Was Dangerous too, but Much More Dependable since Water Doesn’t Need Maintenance.
Water travel was dangerous too, but much more dependable since water doesn’t need maintenance. New York City’s layout being what it is, Nieuw Amsterdam was sitting pretty with all of the water it was surrounded by. Global temperatures were colder at that time and it could get pretty cold at the height of winter, but it is mostly temperate for the rest of the year. It is not so bad, especially if you are Dutch in the 1600s.
The Lenape Were Amiable to the Dutch.
The Lenape were amiable to the Dutch. Perhaps it was out of ignorance of the value of money and how it worked. They soon realized, however, that they were sitting on prime real estate and couldn’t give up Brooklyn as easily or cheaply as they had Manhattan. From now on the Lenape would be selling smaller chunks of land for 200 times Manhattan’s price in separate deals. The first land sales of Breukelen commenced in 1636 where the Flatlands are today.
There Is Some Debate about what the Original Meaning of Breukelen Was.
There is some debate about what the original meaning of Breukelen was. Some say it meant ‘Broken Land’ while others insist that it meant ‘Land of Marshes’. In either case, Brooklyn had many more marshes and brooks when the Dutch first came along, which would be to their advantage. Why were the Dutch coming over to the New World? They were escaping religious persecution, and trying to make some money. The Dutch Reformed Church was their official religion.
The Old Dutch Credo Was Be Shrewd and Practical.
The old Dutch credo was be shrewd and practical. Their main concern was with being productive and they cared little for worldly vanities. They made a living trading furs, grew tobacco for export, and cotton for homemaking. One thing the Dutch were if they were nothing else were hardworking. Slavery had its place in Dutch culture, but there wasn’t a severe division of classes since there was no set notion of aristocracy. Slaves in Nieuw Amsterdam had relative mobility compared to slaves in many other parts of the world.
Sometimes the Lenape Would Retain Living and Hunting Rights.
Sometimes the Lenape would retain living and hunting rights. Their fiscal strategies and shrewdness wouldn’t be enough to stop the surge that had come their way though. Breukelen was European controlled well before the end of the 17th Century. Lenape culture would face multiple blows: encroachment by Europeans into their hunting grounds, disease they had no immunity to, and competition for resources. The Lenape began to head west, and today their descendants are scattered across the United States.
A Major Hub of Development in Breukelen Was the Ferry District.
A major hub of development in Breukelen was the Ferry District. It was located around where Brooklyn Heights is. It was named after the ferry service that ran between Fulton Street and Peck Slip, across the East River, beginning in 1642. A tavern was built on the Breukelen side, offering shelter and food to weather-weary sailors. A community coalesced and began to thrive here. About a mile away a community would develop adjacent to that where the current landmark Borough Hall is.
This Was Essentially the Extent of Breukelen.
This was essentially the extent of Breukelen. Other Dutch strongholds included Nieuw Amersfoort (the Flatlands), Midwout, which was also referred to as Vlak Bos (Flatbush), Nieuw Utrecht (New Utrecht), and Boswijck (Bushwick). Gravesend was granted to Lady Deborah Moody by the New Amsterdam governor in the 1640s. She was the first woman to be granted land in the history of the New World, and it’s understandable because hers is an interesting story.
Deborah Moody Was a Woman who Immigrated from England to Massachusetts Bay Colony in 1639.
Deborah Moody was a woman who immigrated from England to Massachusetts Bay Colony in 1639. She was a practicing Anabaptist and sought after religious and civil liberties, but found Puritan Massachusetts too rigid and stifling. She participated in organized protests and was put on trial by the Puritan court. Given the ultimatum of abandon her beliefs or be excommunicated, she and her fellow Anabaptists chose the latter.
In 1643 the Dutch West India Company Was Searching for People to Colonize New Amsterdam.
In 1643 the Dutch West India Company was searching for people to colonize New Amsterdam. Naturally they found Lady Moody appealing since she had money and influence. They granted Gravesend to her, which was named after where her ancestors were from. It was guaranteed the right to freely worship and had a town hall style of governance. It’s little things like this which planted the seeds for the Revolutionary War over a century later.
The Settling of Breukelen Was Impressive, but the Dutch Wouldn’t Reign Supreme too Long.
The settling of Breukelen was impressive, but the Dutch wouldn’t reign supreme for long. The British came along very suddenly and forcefully in the mid 1600s. King Charles the II casually granted Nieuw Amsterdam to his brother, the Duke of York. The Dutch protested this, but the British would send a fleet in 1664 to enforce their claim. Nieuw Amsterdam became New York, but power would seesaw between the Dutch and the English for the next decade.
By 1674 the British Won the Power Struggle.
By 1674 the British won the power struggle. The Dutch never appreciated the English, but they had more of a go along to get along approach than an urge to fight them. The Dutch would tolerate their new rulers if they didn’t impede their ability to plant their crops and make a decent living. By 1683 the boundaries of Kings County were established and Breukelen’s name was anglicized to Brooklyn.
Brooklyn Was a Land of Placid Settlements Surrounded by Farmland.
Brooklyn was a land of placid settlements surrounded by farmland. Though the British ruled, the Dutch influence was still strong. The remaining Europeans, African slaves, and Indians predominately spoke Dutch. Life would remain mostly pastoral and serene for a while. The Dutch philosophy was one of pragmatism and financial prosperity. They didn’t like the British, but they also didn’t want anything that would disturb their way of life.
Murmurings of a Coming Revolutionary War Against the British Made the Dutch Uneasy.
Murmurings of a coming revolutionary against the British made the Dutch uneasy. On one hand they saw a potential opportunity to reclaim what they saw as rightfully theirs. On the other was the uncertainty of war and the havoc it could wreak. The Dutch ruled for a mere 50 years before ceding power to the British. The impact of their arrival to the New World would reverberate through history to the present day. Apart from the Gravesend Cemetery little remains of the original Brooklynites.
Sources:
Brooklyn: People and Places, Past and Present by Grace Glueck and Paul Gardner
https://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/new-amsterdam-becomes-new-york
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Deborah_Moody
https://www.albany.edu/dept/sisp/jjpowers/WebCollabS05/explorers/html/hudson.htm