Ever wondered about the deeper history of Manhattan? While it is difficult to consider it anything else than highrise buildings, Times Square, Broadway, the Statue of Liberty, and Wall Street it had not been always that way (where will the name “Wall Street” come from anyway?).
Here may be the history of the center of what is now the financial world as much as when it became “New York.” Today you will find tours in NYC that delve into a brief history of Dutch Ny (New Amsterdam). There's also numerous surviving buildings in and around NYC that date in the Dutch colonial period.
The Geologic History of Manhattan Island
250 million years back this region of North America was a area of the supercontinent of Pangea and would have been next to what is now Morrocco. Coming much closer over time, 2 million years ago was the start of the ice age when ice sheets covered a lot of North America in glaciers.
The peak from the ice age occurred about 19,000 years ago using the massive Laurentide Ice Sheet of North America at its greatest extent. Within this time, it might have been some 2,000 feet thick at its maximum – that's thicker compared to World Trade Center One is high.
- Ice Sheet Thickness: 2,000 Feet
- World Trade Center One Height: 2,000 Feet
As the world warmed, the ice melted and the ice retreated. That which was left in the wake would have been marshlands, streams, and forests teeming with wildlife and fish.
Arrival Of Humans To The Region
The first humans to arrive in the area could have been around 9,000 years back but it was later abandoned. Later the Algonquians were among the first known tribes to stay within the Hudson Valley. These were a group of nomadic tribes inhabiting a lot of The united states.
- First Humans: Around 9,000 Years back (Abonanded Later on)
- One of The First Known Tribes: The Algonquians Who Had become the Lenni Lenape
They eventually established agriculture in the area and planted crops. This transformed their nomadic culture into more established tribes and communities. Their diet program was typical for many from the native Americans including mostly corn, squash, and beans – even though they were also skilled hunters and loved deer, moose, and small game. They cultivated using slash and burn tactics.
- Farmers: The Lenape Cultivated Corn, Squash, and Beans
A number of Algonquians that settled in the Northeastern Woodlands eventually came into existence known as the Lenni Lenape. They became extremely gifted in farming, weavers, and hunting.
Around 3,000 years back a second wave of inhabitants found the location – around 8,000 encampments with lots of of the artifacts have been discovered including advanced hunting implements such as bows and arrows. Chances are the location has remained permanently inhabited since that time.
- Native Population: There Were Perhaps 15,000 Lenape The NYC Area
- Settlements: Around 80 Settlement Sites
At time of European settlement, it is estimated there is around 15,000 Lenape total in approximately 80 settlement sites around a lot of the New York City area, alone. The very first European explorer was Giovanni da Verrazzano in 1524.
The Dutch Age – New Amsterdam
The Dutch started settling in the 1620s and founded the things they called New Amsterdam – a modern European village. They purchased the Island of Mannahatta in 1626 for 60 guilders price of trade.
- Dutch: Began Settling Within the 1620s
- Purchase: The Dutch Purchased Manhattan Island
- New Amsterdam: The Name For The Dutch Settlement Here In The higher New Netherlands Colony
Soon the Dutch were in conflict with the native population using the Massacre of Hoboken Natives happening in 1643 where 120 natives were killed. The following year in 1644 they struct a peace treaty with the Indigenous peoples to lessen violence and open up trade.
The Dutch built a fort around 1650 and named it Fort Amsterdam. Around this time they also built a wooden palisade or wall to defend their settlement. The wall was built to defend against the encroaching English, this wall ran around the northern boundary of recent Amsterdam. They called it “de Waalstraat” – or Wall Street.
The wall was built of dirt and 15-foot (4.6 m) wooden planks, measuring 2,340 feet (710 m) long and 9 feet (2.7 m) tall.
- Wall Street: Named For any Wooden Palisade Built In 1653
- Size: The Wall Was 2,340 Feet Long and 9 Feet Tall
Even before the American Civil War, Wall Street was viewed as the financial capital of the united states. Wall Street was a slave-trading marketplace and a securities trading site in the 17th century.
The Dutch era came to a close when Director-General Peter Stuyvesant and the Dutch soldiers left New Amsterdam after ceding it towards the English. The English renamed it, New York, after their king.
- 1664: The British Conquered New Amsterdam
