Peter Stuyvesant Research Articles

Speaking Scripture: The Flushing Remonstrance of 1657

Speaking Scripture: The Flushing Remonstrance of 1657 R. Ward Harrington* And after I had declared the Truth to them some hours and the meeting was done, the chiefconstable and some otherprofessors fell a-reasoning with me in the steeple house yard; and I took a Bible and showed and opened to them the Scriptures, and showed them chapter and verse and dealt with them as one would deal with a child in swaddling clothes. They that were in the light ofChrist and spirit ofGod did know when I spoke Scripture, though I didnot mention chapter and verse after the priest's form unto them. George Fox, Journal (1652); Nickall ed. 1 1 1 -1 12 Introduction In addition to its importance as a defense of religious liberty, The Flushing Remonstrance is an early American example of "Speaking Scripture." This rhetorical form links the residents ofFlushing, New York to dissenters andIndependents, including Quakers, in seventeenth-century England and displays a characteristic which is also to be seen in the ministry and writings of George Fox. The Historical Context In August 1657 the ship Woodhouse arrived at Manhattan Island in the Colony ofNewNetherlands after a trip from England. It brought ministers ofthe Quaker movement, and five ofthese Quakers debarked at Manhattan . The Woodhouse did not linger long atNewNetherlands because it was known that Peter Stuyvesant, the Dutch Governor, who had his headquarters in Manhattan, was a vigorous enforcer ofthe ban inNewNetherlands on all forms of religious activity other than that of the Dutch Reformed Church. As the Woodhouse left forRhode Island, the five Quakerministers made their way to the vicinity ofFlushing, on Long Island, about ten miles east ofManhattan. Flushing, it appears, was a fertile ground for the ministry, because in December, three months after their arrival, a Town Meeting of Flushing residents approved a "Remonstrance" protesting the ban on worship of Presbyterians, Independents, Baptists and Quakers. In the Remonstrance, they pointed to the fact that the Town Charter, which had been obtained from the authorities in Holland, assured the residents of religious liberty, and by reference to this, they declared their intention to receive into their town and theirhouses, any Christians who came amongst *R. Ward Harrington, Professor-Emeritus in Philosophy from City University of New York, is actively involved in New York Yearly Meeting. Speaking Scripture: The Flushing Remonstrance of 1657105 them. The Remonstrance was prepared by the Town Clerk and signed by him,the Sheriff, twoMagistratesandabout30residents oftheTown. There is no indication at this time that these citizens had, as yet, embraced Quakerism. Governor Stuyvesant arrested and imprisoned the Town Clerk, the Sheriffand the Magistrates, and by threats offines and imprisonment forced them to renounce the declarations in the Remonstrance. The Quaker meetings in Flushing continued secretly, however, until four years later, when John Bowne invited Quakers to meet for worship in his newly constructed home. John Bowne was arrested, and when he persisted in refusing to accept the ban on Quaker worship, was banished from the Colony by being placed on a ship bound for Europe. By 1663, however, he was back, bearing a letter from the authorities in Holland, directing Gov. Stuyvesant to permit the Quakers to worship without hindrance. Quakers continued their meetings for worship at John Bowne's house, and from this area, spread the Quaker message eastward on Long Island. The fruitfulness oftheir work is evident from the fact that within a decade, Quakers on Long Island would hold a six day "General Meeting" at Oyster Bay, about 40 miles east ofFlushing. George Fox, in his American travels in 1672,visitedFlushing, spoketoalarge gatheringinthe streetbeforeJohn Bowne's home, and then attended the General Meeting at Oyster Bay, before travelling into New England. Quakermeetings inFlushingcontinued atthe home ofJohn Bowne until 1694, when the Flushing Meeting House was built. In 1696 New York Yearly Meeting was established by a minute of New England Yearly Meeting, with the direction that correspondence for the new Yearly Meetingbe senttoJohnBowne atFlushing. NewYorkYearlyMeetingmet annually at Flushing throughout the 18th century, until British forces took possession of the Meeting House during the War for Independence. The Yearly Meeting sessions were then shifted to the Westbury Meeting, about 25 miles to the east. The Bible...

The Administration of a Public Health Agency: a Case Study of the New York City Department of Health

Peter Stuyvesant, first Dutch governor of New York, promulgated an ordinance in 1657 prohibiting people from throwing garbage and refuse into the streets. The present mayor of New York City is confronted with the same problem. The intervening 327 years comprehend the epic of the New York City Department of Health. These years have seen a vast increase in the responsibility assumed by what has been one of America's outstanding city health departments.James Imperato, Health commissioner from January 1977 until March 1978, discusses the vicissitudes of the agency through the centuries, while concentrating upon the last few decades, notably the 1960s and 1970s. These particular decades occasioned vast political, social and economic changes throughout the nation, and certainly in New York City.The volume demonstrates the impact and importance of the political process upon public health decisions and public health administration.

Colonial New York: A History

Today, New York stands as the stronghold of American culture, business, and idealism. Its size, influence, and multicultural design mark it as the corner-stone of our country. The rich and varied history of early New York would seem to present a fertile topic for investigation to those interested colonial America. Yet, there has never been a modern history of old New York, until this lively and detailed account by Michael Kammen. Elegantly written and comprehensive in scope, Colonial New York includes all of the political, social, economic, cultural, and religious aspects of New York's formative centuries. Social and ethnic diversity have always been characteristic of New York, and this was never so evident as in its early years. This period provides the contemporary reader with a backward glance at what the United States would become in the twentieth century. Colonial New York stood as a precursor of American society and culture as a whole: a broad model of the American experience we enjoy today. Kammen's history is enlivened by a look at some of the larger-than-life personalities who had tremendous impact on the many social and political adjustments necessary to the colony's continued growth. Here we meet Peter Stuyvesant, director of New Amsterdam and an executive of the West India Company: a man facing the innumerable difficulties of governing a large, sprawling town divided by Dutch, English, and Indian settlements. Ultimately, history would view him as a failure, but his strong, Calvinist approach left such an indelible stamp on the burgeoning colony that readers will be tempted to do a little revisionist thinking of his tenure. Looking at a later governor, Lord Cornbury, gives us the exact opposite example of a man despised by his contemporaries as the most venal of all the colonial governors (he was an occasional public cross-dresser, wearing the clothes of his distant cousin, Queen Anne), but who successfully guided the colony through a transition to Anglican rule. The book culminates in chapters that investigate New York's strategic role in the bloody French and Indian War, and the key part it played in the economic protests and political conflict that finally led to American independence. The intricate and tangled web of alliances, loyalties, and shifting political ground that underlies much of colonial New York's past has clearly daunted many historians from taking on the task of writing an understandable account. Michael Kammen has excepted this challenge and gives us much more than a mere chronicle. Rather, he paints a compelling portrait of colonial life as it truly was. Although this important book is thorough and informed by primary sources, Colonial New York's clear and vivid prose offer a delightful narrative that will entertain both general readers and serious scholars alike. It pays special attention to localities and contains numerous illustrations that are attentive to the decorative and the material culture of early New York. Surprising and enlightening, Colonial New York is a delight to read and provides new perspectives on our nation's beginnings. The book traces significant changes in twentieth-century American culture through the career of Gilbert Seldes. It was Seldes' book The Seven Lively Arts that produced a wide debate among intellectuals about the so-called popular arts (film, broadcasting, cartoons) and their importance to American culture.

Peter Stuyvesant and His New York

Peter Stuyvesant and His New York

Peter Stuyvesant and His New York: A Biography of a Man and a City

Peter Stuyvesant and His New York: A Biography of a Man and a City

Peter Stuyvesant

Peter Stuyvesant Get access J. J. L. J. J. L. 1New York, U.S. Search for other works by this author on: Oxford Academic Google Scholar Notes and Queries, Volume s7-X, Issue 239, 26 July 1890, Page 77, https://doi.org/10.1093/nq/s7-X.239.77g Published: 26 July 1890

Peter Stuyvesant

Peter Stuyvesant Get access A. Estoclet A. Estoclet 1New York Search for other works by this author on: Oxford Academic Google Scholar Notes and Queries, Volume s7-IX, Issue 232, 7 June 1890, Page 455, https://doi.org/10.1093/nq/s7-IX.232.455a Published: 07 June 1890