DC US History CH 3.2, 17th-Century North American Colonies: New Netherland & New France

Dutch fur-trading outpost centered on Manhattan; expanded to Long Island and the Hudson River Valley; Fort Amsterdam defended New Amsterdam; enslaved Africans built a protective wall on the city’s northeastern border, giving Wall Street its name.
Population and labor: by 1664, about 9000 residents; labor shortages led to imports of about 450 enslaved Africans between 1626 and 1664. Non-D Dutch arrivals included Protestants from Germany, Sweden, Denmark, and England; Jewish immigrants admitted starting in the 1650s; up to 18 languages heard on the streets.
Governing and landholding: Dutch West India Company controlled commerce; patroonships granted large tracts of land with the right to govern tenants; flagship patroon: Kiliaen van Rensselaer, covering much of present-day Albany and Rensselaer Counties. This created a wealth gap between tenants and patroons.
Trade network: beaver pelts and other furs flowed from Beverwijck (present-day Albany) down the Hudson to New Amsterdam, then to Amsterdam; heavy involvement in the slave trade evidenced by the importation of enslaved labor and the regional use of enslaved labor for in-city tasks.
Geography and maps: expansion north and west as settlers arrived (see map references, e.g., the 1660 Castello Plan for New Amsterdam and the 1684 map showing extent).
Relations with Native peoples: beaver trade drove Native–European interactions; Dutch and Native groups intersected along preexisting native trade networks.

Initial French approach: Jacques Cartier’s exploration preceded, but permanent settlement began with Samuel de Champlain’s Quebec fur-trading post; by 1640, fewer than 400 settlers lived in New France.
Native relations and warfare: Algonquian were crucial partners for the French, supplying beaver pelts and aiding in warfare against the Iroquois; Iroquois received weapons from Dutch traders, fueling the Beaver Wars in the Great Lakes region.
Missionary activity: Jesuit missionaries of the Society of Jesus sought to convert Algonquian and Iroquois to Catholicism; first Jesuits arrived in the 1620s; Jesuit Relations (annual reports) document their observations and progress.
Notable convert: Kateri Tekakwitha, Mohawk convert whose potential sainthood was pursued by Jesuits; canonized in 2012.
Health and documentation: the Jesuit Relations provide detailed accounts of Native life, including disease and healing practices; Jean de Brébeuf’s 1636 edition discusses disease impacts and responses.
Indigenous healing and lacrosse: Native remedies described, including a disease remedy involving a game of crosse (lacrosse); games were used as healing practices and social activities that engaged communities.

How healing was described: disease diagnosed through traditional signs and dreams; remedies included communal activities and culturally rooted practices.
Why lacrosse was prescribed: viewed as a cooling remedy and a means to mobilize the whole community in healing efforts.
Potential benefits of the games: social cohesion, collective involvement, physical activity, and psychological/ritual support that complemented medical explanations.

Wall Street: name derived from the protective wall built by enslaved Africans (in New Amsterdam).
Beverwijck: trading post at present-day Albany where Native Americans exchanged furs for goods.
Beavers and fur trade: central to beaver pelts driving European demand and interregional competition.
Patroonships: large land grants by the Dutch West India Company to wealthier investors who funded passage and tenant settlement; created social and economic stratification.
Castello Plan (1660): the only extant map of New Amsterdam; illustrates city plan and fortifications.
Jesuit Relations: detailed annual reports by Jesuit missionaries documenting Native life and conversions.
Kateri Tekakwitha: Mohawk Catholic convert; canonized in 2012.