"[83] Because there was limited new development in this period, much of Albany's historic architecture survived and has been newly appreciated since the late 20th century. "Grant of Exclusive Trade to New Netherland by the States-General of the United Netherlands; October 11, 1614", Articles about the Transfer of New Netherland on the 27th of August, Old Style, Anno 1664, "Journal of New Netherland 1647. [23] Albany was formally chartered as a municipality by provincial Governor Thomas Dongan on July 22, 1686. In 1609, the Dutch claimed the land for the first time. Whether you are visiting one or all of the museums, we’re sure you’ll discover something new and exciting. Intricate wrought-iron details still enhance many historic buildings in Albany. [31], During and after the Revolutionary War, there was a great increase in real estate transactions in Albany County. [39][40] The advent of the turnpike, in conjunction with canal and railroad systems, made Albany the hub of transportation for pioneers going to Buffalo and the Michigan Territory in the early and mid-19th century. [11] Commencement of the fur trade provoked hostility from the French colony in Canada and among the natives, all of whom vied to control the trade. New Amsterdam, Pavonia, and other settlements attacked by the. Shomette, Donald G. and Haslach, Robert D. Prak, Maarten. [35] (The oldest is Annapolis, Maryland.). "[16] They created a collaborative venture in the fur trade, in which each party gained something, and a measure of stability for the area. Unlike the current Barge Canal, which ends at nearby Waterford, the original Erie Canal ended at Albany; Lock 1 was located north of Colonie Street. Controversy preceded the founding of the College, with various groups competing to determine its location and religious affiliation. In 1664, at the onset of the Second Anglo-Dutch War, English forces under Richard Nicolls ousted the Dutch from control of New Netherland, and the territory became part of several different English colonies. Maryland (1633) - George and Cecil Calvert as a safe haven for Catholics. [9], Permanent European claims began when Englishman Henry Hudson, exploring for the Dutch East India Company on Halve Maen, reached the area in 1609, claiming it for the United Netherlands. The development of Simeon De Witt's gridded block system in 1794, which gave Albany its original bird and mammal street names,[Note 6] was intersected by these important arterials coming out of Albany, cutting through the city at unexpected angles. [27] Although it was never adopted by Parliament, it was an important precursor to the United States Constitution. As the state capital, Albany drew many visitors in the 1780s. [88], Much of the original highway plan was never constructed, however: Rockefeller had wanted the South Mall Arterial to pass through the Empire State Plaza. US: Past, Present, Future . The city's location at the east end of the Erie Canal gave it unparalleled access to both raw products and a captive customer base in the west. Please note that some images may have been taken prior to … Fur traders established the first European settlement in 1614; Albany was officially chartered as a city in 1686. The Mohican called it Pempotowwuthut-Muhhcanneuw, meaning "the fireplace of the Mohican nation",[6] while the Iroquois called it Sche-negh-ta-da, or "through the pine woods," referring to their trail to the city. It claimed territories along the eastern coast of North America from the Delmarva Peninsula to southwestern Cape Cod. [33], In 1797, the state capital of New York was moved permanently to Albany. The history of Albany, New York, begins with the first interaction of Europeans with the native Indian tribes who had long inhabited the area. [50] In the 1830 and 1840 censuses, Albany moved up to 9th largest urban place in the nation,[51][52] then back to 10th in 1850. Massachusetts Bay (1630) - Puritans looking for religious freedom. II), p. 775, Encyclopædia Britannica Eleventh Edition (Albany, Dukes of), A Map of the Provinces of New-York and New-Jersey, with a Part of Pennsylvania and the Province of Quebec, How a City Worked: Occupations in Colonial Albany, The Magazine of American History with Notes and Queries, Colonie History: Frequently Asked Questions, The People's Welfare: Law and Regulation in Nineteenth-Century America, Population of the 100 Largest Cities and Other Urban Places in the United States: 1790 to 1990, The Railroad Builders, A Chronicle of the Welding of the States, The Albany Lumber Trade: Its History and Extent, Laws of the State of New York, Passed at the Ninety-Third Session of the Legislature, Begun January Fourth, and Ended April Twenty-Sixth, 1870, in the City of Albany. [4] By the 1650s, the colony experienced dramatic growth and became a major port for trade in the North Atlantic. Modern Albany was founded as the Dutch trading posts of Fort Nassau in 1614 and Fort Orange in 1624; the fur trade brought in a population that settled around Fort Orange and founded a village called Beverwijck. [42] By 1810, with 10,763 people, Albany was the 10th largest urban place in the nation. (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2005), 116. [77], African American migrants started arriving during World War I during the Great Migration. [1][2] The provincial capital New Amsterdam was located at the southern tip of the island of Manhattan at Upper New York Bay. With the unification of the two proprietary colonies of East Jersey and West Jersey in 1702, the provinces of New York and the neighboring colony New Jersey shared a royal governor. [46] The Canal emptied into a 32-acre (13 ha) man-made lagoon called the Albany Basin, which was Albany's main port from 1825 until the Port of Albany-Rensselaer opened in 1932. "New Amsterdam Becomes New York" in, Farnham, Mary Frances (compiler). However, all constituencies agreed to commit themselves to … On August 27, 1664, four English frigates commanded by Richard Nicolls sailed into New Amsterdam's harbor and demanded the surrender of New Netherland. [44] In 1825 the Erie Canal was completed between Albany and Lake Erie. It was Rockefeller's only viable option, and he agreed. What Corning had saved from destruction, Whalen refurbished. [53] This was the last time the city ranked as one of the top ten largest urban places in the nation. [24] Dongan created Albany as a strip of land 1 mile (1.6 km) wide and 16 miles (26 km) long. Became a British colony in 1664. [75], In 1908 Albany opened one of the first commercial airports in the world, and the first municipal airport in the United States. From statehood to this date, the Legislature had frequently moved the state capital between the city of New York, Kingston, Hurley, Poughkeepsie and Albany. Tories and prisoners of war were often jailed in the Stadt Huys alongside common criminals. [59][60], While the key to Albany's economic prosperity in the 19th century was transportation, industry and business also played a role. [91] Whalen is credited for an "unparalleled cycle of commercial investment and development" in Albany due to his "aggressive business development programs". At that time the county included all of present New York State north of Dutchess and Ulster Counties in addition to present-day Bennington County, Vermont, theoretically stretching west to the Pacific Ocean;[21][22] the city of Albany became the county seat. Beginning in 1810, Albany was one of the ten most populous cities in the nation, a distinction that it held until the 1860 census. [28][Note 5] The same year, the French and Indian War began; it was the North American front of the Seven Years' War in Europe and the fourth in a series of North American wars between the colonial powers dating back to 1689, began. [76] By 1916 Albany's northern and southern borders reached their modern courses;[75] Westerlo Island, to the south, became the second-to-last annexation, which occurred in 1926. Later John Wheelwright. In the 20th century, the city opened one of the first commercial airports in the world, the precursor of today's Albany International Airport. Previously a Dutch West India Company warehouse clerk, used family connections to the Rensselaer family to gain appointment, Lost the colony's claim of the Connecticut River valley to New England settlers, Pushed back encroaching Virginia settlers who tried to settle Delaware River valley. [19], The Dutch briefly regained Albany in August 1673 and renamed the city Willemstadt; the English took permanent possession with the Treaty of Westminster (1674). ", Kenney, Alice P. "The Transformation of the Albany Patricians, 1778–1860,", This page was last edited on 19 December 2020, at 06:18. Local organizations such as the Albany Inter-Racial Council and churches, helped them, but de facto segregation and discrimination remained well into the late 20th century. "Farnham Papers (1603–1688)" in. [39][41], In 1807, Robert Fulton initiated a steamboat line from New York City to Albany, the first successful enterprise of its kind. [71] In 1871, the northwestern portion of Albany—west from Magazine Street—was annexed to the neighboring town of Guilderland[72] after the town of Watervliet refused annexation of said territory. He was appointed as the first Secretary of the Smithsonian Institution in Washington, DC, which supported a variety of scientific, ethnographic and historic research. In 1618, a flood ruined the fort on Castle Island, but it was rebuilt in 1624 as Fort Orange. Local media began following the drama surrounding county politics (specifically that of the newly created county executive position); the loss of Corning (and eventually the political machine) led to a lack of interest in city politics. Rockefeller did not want to be limited by the Legislature's power of the purse, so Corning devised a plan to have the county pay for the construction and have the state sign a lease-ownership agreement. [20] On November 1, 1683, the Province of New York was split into counties, with Albany County being the largest. Corning has been called shortsighted for his failure to use the waterfront as an attraction for the city. [97], Corning administration (1942) to present day, This name would later be adopted by the city of, James Stuart (1633–1701), brother and successor of. Thus, collisions frequently arose between them … When New Netherland was captured by the English in 1664, they changed the name Beverwijck to Albany, in honor of the Duke of Albany (later James II of England and James VII of Scotland). [10] In 1614, Hendrick Christiaensen rebuilt the French fort as Fort Nassau, the first Dutch fur trading post in present-day Albany. On January 6, 1794, the three were tried and sentenced to death. [5][6] This event sparked the Second Anglo-Dutch War, which led to the transfer of the territory to England per the Treaty of Breda. Volume I, Laws of the State of New York, Passed at the Ninety-Fourth Session of the Legislature, Begun January Third, and Ended April Twenty-first 1871, in the City of Albany. In 1624, the … The York County History Center provides unique experiences through multiple historic buildings and museums in York, PA. [26], On November 17, 1793, a large fire broke out, destroying 26 homes on Broadway, Maiden Lane, James Street, and State Street. [73][74] In return for this loss, portions of Bethlehem and Watervliet were added to Albany. Architectural Research. "[15] Evertsen returned to the Netherlands in July 1674, and was accused of disobeying his orders. The county gained $35 million in fees and the city received $13 million for lost tax revenue. New … The Boston Tea Party was a political protest staged on December 16, 1773 at Griffin’s Wharf in Boston, Massachusetts. The Dongan Charter was virtually identical in content to the charter awarded to the city of New York three months earlier. Purchased the island of Manhattan from Native Americans on May 24, 1626 for 60 Dutch guilders worth of goods. In general, for the next fifty years, the governors of New York were strongly attached to the interests of the crown, and were more solicitous to subserve their own selfish purposes, than to advance the permanent welfare of the colony. [43] The town and village known as "the Colonie"[Note 7] to the north of Albany was annexed in 1815. The project would have required an underground trumpet interchange below Washington Park, connecting to the (eventually cancelled) Mid-Crosstown Arterial. 1664–1674, "Behouden of opgeven? During the late 18th century and throughout of the 19th century, Albany was a center of transportation. More recently, the city has experienced growth in the high-tech industry, with great strides in the nanotechnology sector. Some also achieved standing in the Dutch communities, becoming important interpreters and negotiators among the differing cultures. This arrangement began with the appointment of Queen Anne's cousin, Edward Hyde, Lord Cornbury as Royal Governor of New York and New Jersey in 1702, and ended when New Jersey was granted its own royal governor in 1738. For your safety and the safety of others, our sites are currently closed but we are open 24/7 online! [89] To this day, evidence of the original plan is still visible. The area was originally inhabited by an Algonquian Indian tribe, the Mohican, as well as the Iroquois, five nations of whom the easternmost, the Mohawk, had the closest relations with traders and settlers in Albany. [85] Albany County Republican Chairman Joseph C. Frangella once quipped, "Governor Rockefeller was the best mayor Albany ever had. These colonists were largely of Dutch, Flemish, Walloon, and German stock, but the colony soon became a "melting pot." Surrendered New Netherland to the British. Under the Albany Plan a number of renovation and new building projects were undertaken in the downtown area; many state workers were moved from the Harriman State Office Campus to downtown to add to its density of workers and support city life. It ended in 1763 with French defeat by the British, resolving a situation that had been a constant threat to Albany and held back its growth. Seeking the full history of the William Bray School in a new initiative. The fire originated at a stable belonging to Leonard Gansevoort and was suspected to be arson set by disgruntled slaves. Albany was second only to Boston in the number of books produced for most of the 19th century. [2], Albany is one of the oldest surviving European settlements from the original thirteen colonies[3] and the longest continuously chartered city in the United States. The Delaware and Hudson Railway was headquartered in Albany at what is now used as the SUNY System Administration Building. The territory which would later become the state of New York was settled by European colonists as part of the New Netherland colony (parts of present-day New York, New Jersey, Connecticut and Delaware) under the command of the Dutch West India Company in the Seventeenth Century. New York State History. [75], After Corning died in 1983, Thomas Whalen assumed the mayorship and was reelected twice. [26], In 1754, representatives of seven British North American colonies met in the Stadt Huys, Albany's city hall, for the Albany Congress; Benjamin Franklin of Pennsylvania presented the Albany Plan of Union there, which was the first formal proposal to unite the colonies. The English took over and renamed the town Albany in 1664, in honor of the then Duke of Albany, the future James II of England and James VII of Scotland. [7][Note 3] Albany's first European structure may have been a primitive fort on Castle Island built by French traders ca. [70] American Express was founded in Albany in 1850 as an express mail business. In 1960, the mayor sold the city's stake in the airport to the county, citing budget issues. [34] Albany is the second oldest state capital in the United States. [56] In 1853, Erastus Corning, a noted industrialist and Albany's mayor from 1834 to 1837, consolidated ten railroads stretching from Albany to Buffalo into the New York Central Railroad (NYCRR). The Albany Municipal Airport—jointly owned by the city and county—was moved to its current location in Colonie in 1928. On February 7, 1964, Pan Am Yankee Clipper flight 101 from London Heathrow lands at New York’s Kennedy Airport—and “Beatlemania” arrives. [25] Over the years Albany would lose much of the land to the west and annex land to the north and south. Includes: “Narratives of New Netherland” (Jameson), “History of New Netherland” (O’Callaghan), “History of New York” (Brodhead) and also includes Cadwallader Colden and four Munsell tracts, edited by O’Callaghan – Condon, Thomas J., “New York Beginnings: The Commercial Origins of New … [54], Albany also has significant history with rail transport,[55] as the location of two major regional railroad headquarters. As an indicator of that, Beverwijck was never attacked by the Mohican or Mohawk, although it was in an isolated area. Advocates of New York City met with success on the first point, while the Anglicans prevailed on the latter. The Dutch Republic in the Seventeenth Century: The Golden Age. Albany's other major exports during the 18th and 19th centuries were furs, wheat, meat and lumber;[66] by 1865, there were almost 4,000 saw mills in the Albany area[66] and the Albany Lumber District was the largest lumber market in the nation. The city was also home to a number of banks. [93] After the death of Corning and the retirement of Congressman Sam Stratton, the political climate changed in Albany. New Netherland (Dutch: Nieuw-Nederland) was the 17th-century colonial province of the Republic of the Seven United Netherlands and the Dutch West India Company. [92], Prior to the recession of the 1990s, Albany was home to two Fortune 500 companies: KeyBank and Fleet Bank; both have since moved or merged with other banks. The city's skyline changed in the 1960s with the construction of the Empire State Plaza and the uptown campus of SUNY Albany,[Note 1] mainly under the direction of Governor Nelson Rockefeller. Colonial Families of the USA, 1607-1775 Free: 119,305: New England, The Great Migration and The Great Migration Begins, 1620-1635: 62,840: New York, U.S., Hebrew Orphan Asylum Records, 1860-1934 : 38,167: New York, Jewish Holocaust Survivor Names printed in Aufbau Newspaper, 1944-1946 Free: 33,460: View all New York Stories, Memories & Histories (810) A Genealogical History. Henry Hudson first claimed this area for the Dutch in … Settled areas of New Netherland are now constitute the states of New York, New Jersey, Delaware, and Connecticut, and parts of Pennsylvania and Rhode Island. [32] Albany reported a population of 3,498 in the first national census in 1790, an increase of almost 700% since its chartering about a century before. [80] Although he was the longest-serving mayor of any city in United States history (1942 until his death in 1983), one historian describes Corning's tenure as "long on years, short on accomplishments. While Albany experienced a decline in its population due to urban sprawl, many of its historic neighborhoods were saved from destruction through the policies of Mayor Erastus Corning 2nd, the longest-serving mayor of any city in the United States. New Netherland (Dutch: Nieuw-Nederland) was the 17th-century colonial province of the Republic of the Seven United Netherlands and the Dutch West India Company.It claimed territories along the eastern coast of North America from the Delmarva Peninsula to southwestern Cape Cod.Settled areas of New Netherland are now constitute the states of New York, New Jersey, Delaware, and Connecticut, and … New York State’s history begins with the arrival of the first people in the region about 10,000 BC. It was known from then on as Albany County Airport until a massive upgrade and modernization project between 1996 and 1998, when it was rechristened Albany International Airport. A 1712 slave rebellion in New York City resulted in the deaths of nine white … [61] Later in the century, much lumber was harvested and processed in the Midwest, particularly Detroit and Chicago. [94] Gerald Jennings surprised many by his victory in the mayoral election in 1994, and his tenure since then. Upstate New York began to prosper as migrants from Vermont and Connecticut began flowing in, noting the advantages of living on the Hudson and trading at Albany, while being only a few days' sail from New York City. [7][8], In 1673, during the Third Anglo-Dutch War, the Dutch were able to recapture New Amsterdam (renamed "New York" by the British) under Admiral Cornelis Evertsen the Youngest and Captain Anthony Colve. [3], New Netherland was conceived as a private business venture to exploit the North American fur trade. Albany has won the All-America City Award in both 1991 and 2009. Dutch Era of New Netherland (1624–1664; 1673–1674), Under British control (1664–1673; 1674–1783), Versteer, Dingman (editor). [90] In addition, the Mayor's Office of Special Events was created in an effort to increase the number of festivals and artistic events in the city, including a year-long Dongan Charter tricentennial celebration in 1986. Now Open — Bigger and Better than Ever! The Plan of Union's original intention was to unite the colonies in defense against aggressions of the French from the north; it was not an attempt to become independent of the British crown. New York served as the major base of operations for the British for most of the war. Beverwyck Brewery, originally known as Quinn and Nolan (Nolan being mayor of Albany 1878–1883),[62] operated from that period to 1972, when it was the last remaining brewer from that time. Bringing the Past to Life. Connecticut (1636) - Thomas Hooker after he was told to leave Massachusetts. Unpopular with the colonists, he was quickly replaced. It succeeded Poughkeepsie as the capital of New York in 1797. Due to the clout Corning gained from the situation, he gained agreement for construction of the State Museum, a convention center, and a restaurant, as part of these plans; these were projects which Rockefeller had originally vetoed. It may be added, that the civil history of New York, from this period to the French War, presents few events of special interest. It is the oldest institution of higher learning in the state of New York and the fifth oldest in the United States. [63] Albany was known for its publishing houses, and to some extent, still is. After Horatio Gates' win over John Burgoyne at Saratoga in 1777, the upper Hudson Valley was generally at peace as the war raged on elsewhere. "The Colonie" made up the current area of Arbor Hill and was the more urban part of the, Grondahl summarizes it as, "This hard-line position of isolationism on the part of the, The Empire State Plaza was originally known as the South Mall; the. The history of Albany, New York, begins with the first interaction of Europeans with the native Indian tribes who had long inhabited the area. Volume II, Thomas M. Whalen III, 68, Three-Term Mayor of Albany, Historical and Statistical Gazetteer of New York State, Bi-centennial History of Albany: History of the County of Albany, N.Y. from 1609 to 1886 (Volume I), Bi-centennial History of Albany: History of the County of Albany, N.Y. from 1609 to 1886 (Volume II), Proceedings of the Conference for Good City Government and the Annual Meeting of the National Municipal League (Volume 5), Albany Chronicles: A History of the City Arranged Chronologically, From the Earliest Settlement to the Present Time, National Register of Historic Places listings, List of school districts in New York's Capital District, Albany College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences, List of colleges and universities in New York's Capital District, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=History_of_Albany,_New_York&oldid=995100339, Articles containing explicitly cited English-language text, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License, Kenney, Alice P. "Dutch Patricians in Colonial Albany. They found crowded living conditions and limited employment opportunities, but also higher wages and better schools and social services. The iron industry waned by the 1890s, falling victim to the costs associated with a newly unionized workforce and competition from the opening of mines in the Mesabi Range in Minnesota.[65].