New Netherland's History: The Dutch presence in North America began in 1609 with Henry Hudson's exploration of the river that was to bear his name. The Dutch colony, first identified as New Netherland on a map drawn by the explorer Adriaen Block in 1614, extended from the Connecticut River to Delaware Bay, including within its boundaries much of the present states of Delaware, Pennsylvania, New Jersey, New York, and western Connecticut. New Netherland was relinquished to England by treaty in 1674.
New Netherland's Legacy: New Netherland represents about two-thirds of a century of Dutch activity in the important central region of the eastern United States. Here the influence of Dutch culture has persisted throughout the nineteenth century and beyond. The region's bustling commerce, cosmopolitanism, and tradition of individual freedom are rooted in its Dutch past. Nevertheless, most histories of early colonial America either dismiss New Netherland in a few lines or rely on English sources, which portray the Dutch colony from an adversary's viewpoint. The colony's translated and published records are essential for a balanced assessment of the Dutch impact in North America.
The Dutch Colonial Records: The official records of the colony, consisting of the executive, legislative, and judicial proceedings of its council as well as documents such as legal papers, registers, and correspondence, remained for the most part in New York. Having miraculously survived adverse storage conditions, two fires, many relocations, and years of neglect, they are now preserved at the New York State Archives in Albany. Other repositories in New York hold Dutch manuscript collections such as those of the patroonship Rensselaerswijck, the municipal records of New Amsterdam and other Dutch towns within the colony, legal documents, family papers, and letters. Together, they constitute a vast historical treasure of inestimable importance, but one that was long inaccessible. Their systematic transcription and translation was not undertaken until the nineteenth century. This effort provided some access to New Netherland records, but the results were incomplete and unreliable. Early in the twentieth century, a small fraction was re-translated but not published until 1973, when it appeared in four volumes with the support of the Holland Society. The New Netherland Project is an immediate consequence of the interest generated by this publication.
The New Netherland Project: Located in the Library of the State of New York in Albany, the New Netherland Project has been transcribing, translating, and publishing the official 17th-century Dutch colonial documents since 1974. About 65% of more than 12,000 pages held by the New York State Library and the New York State Archives have been translated and 18 volumes of the New Netherland Documents Series have been published. The Project's primary objective is to place the documentary evidence in the hands of American scholars who are unable to read seventeenth-century Dutch. It is equally important, however, to make this source material accessible to the general public in order to demonstrate the impact of the Dutch in American colonial history. Through the New Netherland Institute, the work of the New Netherland Project is being disseminated to reach the widest audience possible, from secondary schools to higher education, from the interested general
public to research scholars. See related sites.
Recognition: In 1991, Congress proclaimed November 16 as "Dutch-American Heritage Day" to honor the "extraordinary contributions" of the Dutch "to the political, economic, and cultural development of the United States." The New Netherland Project significantly promotes America's awareness of this "essential role." Recognition of the Project's crucial function is evident in the support it has received over the years from the State of New York and from corporations, foundations, and societies in the United States and the Netherlands, concurrent with ongoing matching grants from the National Endowment for the Humanities. In 1994, Dr. Charles T. Gehring, Director of the Project since its inception, was appointed Officer in the Order of Orange Nassau, the highest honor the Queen can bestow on an individual without Dutch citizenship.
Who's Who at the New Netherland Project
Charles T. Gehring, Ph.D., Director, New Netherland Project; Translator; Editor [ Curriculum Vitae ]
Janny Venema, Ph.D., Associate Director
Martha D. Shattuck, Ph.D., Editor and Researcher
Marilyn Douglas, New Netherland Institute Associate, in-house volunteer position
Bonnie M. Urso, Support to the Director of the New Netherland Project as required.
H. L. Funk Consulting, Webmaster for the NNP/NNI website, a Corporate Circle donor
Westnet, Inc., host of the NNP/NNI website, a Corporate Circle donor
Contact the New Netherland Project
New Netherland Project
New York State Library
Cultural Education Center, 8th floor
Albany, NY 12230-0001
New Netherland Project: Phone 518-474-6067; Fax 518-473-0472
New Netherland Institute, Ms. Douglas: Phone 518-408-1212; Fax 518-473-0472
New Netherland Institute, Ms. Urso: 518-486-4815; Fax: 518-473-0472 |
