New Amsterdam

NEW  AMSTERDAM & NEWTOWN

 

Abraham and his father, Gysbert (see note), were among the first of the daring RYCHENS to settle in the area of Newtown, Long Island that faced Bowery Bay & Flushing Bay known as the Poor Bowery. Gysbert (Guisbert) RYCKEN is said to have come to New Amsterdam from Holland in 1630, in one of the vessels of the West India Company, and to have received extensive grants of land, the largest being at Newtown, which is said to have been a mile square and to have included the island now bearing his name (Riker's Island).

Note: Some researchers claim Gysbert RYCKEN to be the father of Abraham. Others contend that Jacob
RYCKEN of the Netherlands, son of Captain Jacob Simonsz de RYCKE, was Abraham's father. Although
Jacob never came to America, Gysbert did. Regardless of the controversy over the identity of his father, the
fact remains that Abraham was the first of 'our' line to come to America.

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The old map below [oddly oriented: the top of the page is approximately west] shows the location of Ryker's Island (X) in the portion of the East River then known as Bowerie Bay, and the Ryker Farm (circled), in the area now occupied by La Guardia Airport.

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See how the houses of New Amsterdam appeared in 1652


The following two old maps
[the first of which is again oriented so that northwest is at the top of the page] show the city of New Amsterdam [a part of New Netherlands] in 1660 and 1662, respectively.  This territory, bounded by the North (Noord or Hudson) and the East (Oost) rivers, constitutes present-day Manhattan Island.  The first map shows "the Rykers house" (circled) just below "Broadway," and the second map shows the land owned by "Abraham Rycksen" (circled) as lying between "Prince Straat" and "Styck Straat."  Note that these two locations are not precisely the same. Fort Amsterdam is seen to lie at the southern tip of Manhattan Island, just north of present-day Battery Park (the circled green area), as shown in the third (modern) map.

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[This page was last updated 10/15/02]