The History of New York State

New York State’s fascinating history begins with English explorer for the Dutch, Henry Hudson, who claimed the area of land which would be called New Amsterdam. When the Dutch settled the Hudson River in 1613, they claimed the land between the Delaware and Connecticut rivers and they named it "New Netherlands.” This land was ruled by the Dutch West India Company from 1622 to 1649. It was during time that they were petitioned by settlers who resided in the land who asked that the land be ruled by the Dutch Government instead of the company. This brought a backlash against them and the company claimed that anyone who further pushed the issue would be severely punished.

The Duke of York purchased numerous islands of the North American Coastline in 1663 and among them was New York’s Long Island. This was followed the next year, by an army led by the Duke who took possession of New Amsterdam and renamed it New York, after himself. The Dutch would reclaim the land in 1673 and it remained under their rule until 1674 when the treaty of Westminster restored it to the English. On July 10 1776, a convention was held in White Plains, New York which framed the state’s constitution. It was officially adopted April 20, 1777.

This land had originally been settled by the 6 nations of Iroquois, a large population of which still resided in the area. Most of them were against American occupation and had fought alongside the British during the Revolutionary war. The Sullivan expedition, led by Major General John Sullivan, was sent to remove them from the land. Their expedition was extremely successful and many of the men were rewarded with land grants. In the period that followed New York State became a brewing pot for religious and alternative thinking. Sects such as the Seventh Day Adventists and the Church of Jesus Christ of the Latter-day Saints were formed as well as experiments in communal living such as Oneida and Skaneateles.

In the Civil War period, New York’s infrastructure was improved upon with railroads which brought a large number of immigrants forming what was known as the ‘urban sprawl.’ Throughout the periods that would follow, the Progressive era, the Boom economy of the 1920s, the Great Depression, and World War II, New York remained the center for commerce and the arts as well as an epicenter for immigration.