Transcript
Along this western passage of Governors Island, there is a circular old fort named Castle Williams that was built between 1810 and 1811. It is worth taking a moment to read about Castle Williams and noticing the history of this site that makes no direct mention of the enslavement of Black people during the pre and post-colonial era. Toward the northern center of Governors Island is Fort Jay completed in 1798 and refurbished in 1809, named after the former Governor of New York who also co-authored the Gradual Emancipation Act in 1799 that ended the institution of slavery in this state in 1827. Both forts were ready for the war of 1812 with the British but were not called into use, however, they did serve as makeshift prisons for Confederate soldiers during the American Civil War in the 1860s.
Human beings can be cold. To be specific, people from cold climates have ventured to these territories and put a shiver into the story of this part of the world. Wall Street is not far from where we are walking and may have been spotted on your way to Governors Island. Pier 11 is the dock directly at Wall Street, two docks up from the Battery Maritime Building directly after the Helicopter Flight Services going north. Wall Street is one of the world’s most famous streets, named after a wall built in 1653 as a means of protection for the Dutch who settled in the unceded territories of the Lenape people, Lenapehoking. This famous street will symbolize the tensions during the colonial exploits of the Dutch and English periods and signify the fault lines of the United States of America.
[chorus] that’s cold
It makes sense that Wall Street is synonymous with capitalism because private ownership as we know it, started with the Dutch in Holland. It was a means to make money and incentivize warfare with their Iberian enemies – the Spanish and Portuguese. The Dutch settled in this region as part of a war effort so they constructed a fort at the southern tip of Manhattan by 1626 for protection from their Iberian enemies. The war was commingled with capitalism from the early days of the conflict that started in 1568. There were two principal Dutch companies that waged wartime capitalism against the Iberians – the East India Company and the West India Company. After the conclusion of that war in 1648, there was a wall built in 1653 to protect them from the English who might approach from the North River which we now call the Hudson River. The area the Dutch were protecting was known as New Amsterdam. It stretched from river to river on Wall Street down to the southern tip of Manhattan comprising what we would call the lion’s share of today’s Financial District.
The first place the Dutch settled in this area is where you are walking now, known to the Lenape as “Paggank” meaning nut island. After arriving on this island in 1624, the Dutch crossed the East River and settled their capital New Amsterdam on Manhattan’s southern tip. They claimed the entire region as New Netherland which included parts of New Jersey, New York State, and Delaware. The Dutch agreed to share the land and rivers with the Lenape but those promises were broken. Before the end of the conflict with the Iberians in 1648, the Dutch were at war with the Indigenous People of Lenapehoking and enslaving Africans.
The royal brothers of England will follow the Dutch in three ways. One, they will become capitalists and start the Company of Royal Adventurers Trading to Africa in 1660. Two, they will become enslavers and traders of Africans. Three, they will set their sights on these unceded territories of Lenapehoking to establish a base for their new company. In 1664, Richard Nicchols sailed into New York Harbor with an armed royal fleet and demanded the town, which the Dutch reluctantly handed over but quickly got back to business under a treaty that allowed the people of New Netherland to maintain all of their possessions. The city, state, and capitol will bear the name of the royal brother who was co-owner of the slave trading enterprise – James Stuart Duke of York and Albany. Although these are no longer English territories, the principal of this slave trading enterprise, James Stuart Duke of York, is still the namesake of our city, state, and capitol – putting a deep scar into the character of these lands.
[chorus] that’s cold
On November 30th 1711, the Common Council of New York decided to create a market for the sale and renting of enslaved Africans. In less than six months, enslaved Africans set fire to an orchard then killed and wounded European colonists. Their recorded reason was to protest “hard usage”. It is worth noting that after the creation of Wall Street as a market to sell African people, there was another uprising known as Occupy Wall Street that also assailed wealth inequality. These two protests separated by 300 years share a common origin and location.
There was another rebellion against the British led by enslaved Africans in 1741. Within a generation, these rebellious acts will be appropriated by a group of entrepreneurs and politicians that will lead the 13 English Colonies of North America to a war for independence from the British. After nearly a decade of struggle, these colonies will constitute a new nation that will follow the pattern. One- capitalism is the foundation of the new republic. Two – this new nation will make owning and enslaving Africans its financial foundation. Three – these unceded territories of Lenapehoking will be the first capital of this new republic.
In public places like Governors Island, the telling of history is often frozen, telling you about relevant times but stopping the flow of other information. In the retelling of these histories and places named after men, the waters were there. Without these rivers, there is no place to receive ships carrying enslaved people or commodities. Human history is not possible without water and it is worth wondering, does the water that ebbs and flows hold memories as our bodies do? As we continue our journey, begin to consider all that these waters have seen, not just what society wants you to see.
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