Fort

Hurley, fort

In 1662, a number of colonists settled west of Wiltwijck in a hamlet that was indicated as “Nieuw Dorp” (New Village). They quickly met with enmity of the Esopus Indians who disputed their ownership of some of the land. In April 1663 the villagers asked Director General Stuyvesant for a small garrison, in anticipation of the building of defence works, an indication that these had not been erected as yet. Two months later, the village was attacked. After the conclusion of peace with the Esopus Indians in May 1664, Stuyvesant ordered three to four hundred hemlock planks for the construction of a stockade at the new village in the Esopus, but it is not clear from the documentary record whether they were actually delivered and put to use. It must be considered unlikely, as there is no mention of a village at the location until Hurley was resettled and named in 1669.

Bronnen en literatuur

Jacobs, J., Dutch Colonial Fortifications in North America 1614-1676 (2015)