MANHATTAN ISLAND SOLD AT BARGAIN PRICE TO DUTCH SETTLERS NOV 5, 1626

Peter Schagen's letter from 1626 reports the Purchase of Manhattan Island by Dutch settlers. Dutch settlers purchased the island from the resident Manhattan tribal leaders in exchange for goods worth a total of sixty Dutch guilders, or the equivalent of about twenty-four dollars today. Two years earlier, Dutch settlers had begun laying the foundations for a town at the southern tip of the island, calling the settlement New Amsterdam. The decision to purchase this island hinged on the fact that it could be easily defended and was centrally located among other Dutch settlements. The colony was run by the West India Company, which gave up its trade monopoly in 1640 and allowed other Dutch merchants to invest in the town. By 1645 Dutch settlers had completely eradicated the Manhattan tribe.

The original spellings have been retained in this document

Letter Regarding the Purchase of Manhattan (1626)


Peter Schagen


From: Documents Relative to the Colonial History of the State of New York, Ed. E. B. O'Callaghan, Vol I, p. 37–38.



Mr. Peter Schagen to the States General; the Island of Manhattans purchased.

High and Mighty Lords:

Yesterday, arrived here the Ship the Arms of Amsterdam, which sailed from New Netherland, out of the River Mauritius, on the 23rd September. They report that our people are in good heart and live in peace there; the Women also have borne some children there. They have purchased the Island Manhattes from the Indians for the value of 60 guilders; 'tis 11,000 morgens in size. They had all their grain sowed by the middle of May, and reaped by the middle of August. They send thence samples of summer grain; such as wheat, rye, barley, oats, buckwheat, canary seed, beans and flax.

The cargo of the aforesaid ship is:-

7246 Beaver skins.

178 1/2 Otter skins.

675 Otter skins.

48 Minck skins.

36 Wild cat skins.

33 Mincks.

34 Rat skins.

Considerable Oak timber and Hickory.

Herewith, High and Mighty Lords, be commended to the mercy of the Almighty.

In Amsterdam, the 5th November, Ad 1626.

Received 7th November, 1626.

Your High Mightinesses' obedient,

(Signed) P. Schagen.

HISTORIC VOTING MORNING NOV 4 2008, HARLEM NEW YORK

I GOT UP 5:30 IN THE MORNING TO BEAT THE CROWDS TO VOTE... IT LOOKED LIKE EVERYONE ELSE IN HARLEM HAD THAT SAME IDEA,.. WE ALL WALKED TO THE POLLS IN THE DARK...

I STOOD ON LINE TO VOTE FOR ABOUT 90 MINUTES.... BUT IT DID NOT SEEM LIKE LONG TO ANY OF US IN LINE.



INSIDE THE VOTEING POLLS HAD AN AMAZING ENERGY..









THE IS HEADQUARTERS ON 135TH BETWEEN LENOX AND 7TH AVE.





SCHOMBERG LIBRARY, WHERE THEY WILL HAVE A ELECTION WATCH PARTY TONITE.

SORRY I CAN NOT WRITE MUCH RIGHT NOW... I HAVE TO GET BACK OUT AND BE IN THIS HISTORIC MOMENT....

TO BE CONTINUED.....

NOV 4 2008, USA, HISTORICAL PRESIDENTIAL ELECTION HARLEM & LOWER MANHATTAN

ONE OF MY ELDER NEIGHBORS ON MY BLOCK IN HARLEM GIVING ME THE THUMBS UP SIGN. HISTORICAL PRESIDENTIAL ELECTION DAY IN HARLEM 2008

CUPCAKES TELL NO LIES... THE MOST POPULAR CUPCAKE FOR THE DAY IS OBAMA... THE BAKE CRUMB SHOP IN MANHATTAN.


MY NERVES ARE TOTALLY FRAZZLED.... DORIAN WEBB E-MAIL ME TO SAY THAT SHE WAS GOING TO BE MAKING PHONE CALLS FOR OBAMA, SHE ASKED ME IF I WOULD BE INTERESTED IN MAKING SOME CALLS. I SAID YES...

THE BOWERY HOTEL IN MANHATTAN WAS THE SCENE.... I GOT MY LIST OF STATES TO CALL AND I SAT WITH ALL OF THE REST OF THE CALLERS ON THEIR CELL PHONES AND MADE MY CALLS....

MAKING THESE CALL MADE ME MORE NERVOUS....

IT LOOKED LIKE A STUDY HALL IN THE LOBBY OF THE BOWERY HOTEL... TO BE CONTINUED.... STAY TUNED IN....

KERRY JAMES MARSHALL'S ARTIST TALK: THE ZABAR ARTIST TALK LECTURE SERIES @ AT HUNTER COLLEGE NYC, OCT 28, 2008

TUESDAY AFTERNOON I HAD PLANNED ON GOING DOWN TO MY FRIEND SANA MUSASAMA'S JOB TO HELP HER AND HER STUDENTS OUT WITH A ONLINE PROJECT THEY WERE WORKING ON.... I CALLED SANA TO FIND OUT WHAT WOULD BE A GOOD TIME TO COME,... SHE TOLD ME THAT HER PLANS HAD CHANGED,.... THAT SHE AND HER STUDENTS WERE GOING TO HEAR THE ARTIST KERRY JAMES MARSHALL SPEAK AT HUNTER COLLEGE, WHERE SHE TEACHES CERAMICS.... I TOLD HER I WANTED TO GO AND THAT I WOULD MEET HER AT THE SCHOOL.

THIS WAS THE MOST ARTIST CAREER BASED ENPOWERING LECTURE THAT I HAVE EVER HEARD FROM AN ARTIST THAT SPOKE DIRECTLY RO MY MISSION AS A ARTIST.

THIS LECTURE SERIES IS SPONSORED BY THE ZABAR FAMILY OF ZABAR'S DELI & GOURMET FOODS IN NEW YORK CITY.

MR. ZABAR IS IN THE PHOTO BELOW, THE MAN ON THE FAR LEFT TAKING THE PHOTOGRAPH OF THE LECTURE.... I WAS EXTREMELY EMPRESSED TO SEE MR & MRS. ZABAR THERE AND ACTIVELY INVOLVED IN THE EVENING.

KERRY JAMES MARSHALL IN THE BLUE SHIRT, SANA MUSASAMA PINK SCARF AND BRAID, AND A GUEST AND STUDENTS ASKING KERRY JAMES MARSHALL QUESTIONS, AFTER HIS SCHORLARLY AND THE BUSINESS OF ART TALK.

THIS TALK LASTED 3 HOURS,... NOT ONE PERSON LEFT THE ROOM DURING THIS TIME.


BLACK ARTIST IN THE DARK,.... TALKING ABOUT BLACK ART TO STUDENTS,.... THEY TURNED THE LIGHTS OUT IN THE AUDITORIUM TO MAKE EVERYONE LEAVE,... BUT THE STUDENTS STAYED AND KERRY KEPT TALKING IN THE DARK.... IT LOOKED LIKE ONE OF KERRY'S LIVE WORKS OF ART IF YOU ASK ME.

THE ARTIST KERRY JAMES MARSHALL AND ONE OF HIS WORKS OF ART.

KERRY JAMES MARSHALL HAD DEFINATELY CREATED A PLACE IN INTERNATIONAL ART HISTORY FOR HIS WORKS OF ART,.. THE STYLE HE CREATED WITH HIS AFRICAN-AMERICAN SENSIBILITY, AESTHETIC AND HISTORICAL NARRATIVE,... THE INTELLECTUAL CONTENT,... THE QUESTIONING & EXPLORATION OF CONDITIONS,.... THE SIZE, HOW HIS ART WORK RELATES TO OTHER CONTEMPORARY ART. KERRY JAMES MARSHALL HAS MASTERED SEVERAL LEVELS.

MY ADVISE TO ANY ARTIST OF WHAT EVER COLOR IS, IF YOU HEAR OR SEE THAT KERRY JAMES MARSHALL IS GOING TO BE SPEAKING IN YOUR AREA, MAKE PLANS TO BE THERE, IF HE IS NOT SCHEDULED TO SPEAK AT A COLLEGE OR CULTURAL INSITITUTION IN YOUR AREA. PLEASE MAKE ARRANGEMENT FOR HIM TO ENLIGHTEN YOU WITH HIS WISDOM AND EXPERIENCE..



THIS WAS A MASTERFUL EVENING... WE ALL SHOULD HAVE BEEN PRESENTED A MARSHALL DEGREES AS WE LEFT THE AUDITORIUM.... TOTALLY EMPOWERING.

THANK YOU KERRY JAMES MARSHALL,... YOU GOT A NEW FAN.!!!!

RAW SOUL FOOD 145TH 8TH AVE. IN HARLEM: WHOLE LIFE PROGRAM HANDS-ON FOOD PREPARATION WITH LILLIAN BUTLER & EDDIE ROBINSON

THIS IS ONE OF THE STUDENT MIXING THE MOCK SALMON PATE, WHILE THE OTHER STUDENT SLICE, CUT AND ADD INGREDIENTS AND OBSERVE


LILLIANS HAND ON THE RIGHT ADDING GREEN ONIONS TO THE MIX.



THE PATTERNS ON THE WALL IN THE BACK GROUND IS MY ORIGINAL STENCIL WORK... I CREATED THIS DESIGN ESPECIALLY FOR RAW SOUL....



LILLIAN HOLDING THE BOWL OF FINISH MOCK SALMON PATE... READY TO GO ON THE PLATES TO BE SERVED.

THE PROUD CLASS AT THE END OF THE FULL FOOD DEMOSTRATION.... WAIT A MINUTE... WHERE'S EDDIE.

OK... THERE HE IS IN THE ORANGE SHIRT ON THE RIGHT.

THE CLASS BEFORE THE MEAL IS SERVED WRITING OUT THEIR CLASS EVALUATIONS.

MONDAY EVENING, I DECIDED TO WALK UP TO 145TH AND 8TH AVE, TO RAW SOUL FOOD RESTAURANT, AND GET ME A SLICE OF LIVE FRUIT CHEESE CAKE MADE WITH CASHEWS AND COCONUT MEAT TO MAKE IT CREAMY... WHEN I GOT TO THE DOOR, I NOTICED THAT IT LOOKED LIKE THE RESTAURANT WAS NOT OPEN FOR DINNING,... THERE WAS A LIVE FOOD PREPARATION CLASS IN SESSION.

LILLIAN BUTLER SAW ME LOOKING IN THE DOOR AND SIGNALED FOR ME TO COME ON IN,... I DID,... THE AROMA OF ALL THE CHOPPED INGRIENDANTS MADE MY MOUTH WATER AS SOON AS I WALKED THROUGH THE DOOR WAY.

I ASK IF THERE WAS ANY SLICES OF PIE LEFT,... I DID'NT EVEN ASK FOR A SPECIFIC PIE, I WAS WELLING TO SETTLE FOR WHAT EVER PIE I COULD GET. LILLIAN BROUGHT OUT MY SLICE OF BANANA CREME PIE,... I PAID FOR IT, AND SHE INVITED ME TO STAY FOR A WHILE.

AND AM I HAPPY I DID... I REMEBERED HOW I WAS PLANNING TO GET MY DIET BACK TOGETHER AND TAKE SOME MORE COURSES WITH LILLIAN AND EDDY. THEY HAVE THE WIDEST VARIETY OF THEIR ORIGINAL MENU'S OF INTERNATIONAL DELICOUS LIVE FOOD RECIPES I HAVE EVER TASTED.

THEY HAVE DONE ALL OF THE HARD WORK IN PREPARING THE RECIPES, THE STUDENTS ARE FREE TO ADD ANY CHANGES TO THE BASIC RECIPE TO MEET THEIR PERSONAL TASTE.

I WAS INVITED TO SAMPLE THE FOOD WHEN IT WAS BROUGHT TO THE TABLE, I CANNOT TELL YOU HOW DELICOUSE THE FOOD WAS. ESPECIALLY THE HOMEMAKE ICE CREAM, OVER A PEAR CRISP, THIS WAS THE MOST DIVINE DESERT I HAVE EVER TASTED. YOU CAN SEE, I DID'NT EVEN HAVE A CHANCE TO PHOTOGRAPH THE FOOD BECAUSE I WAS CONSCINTRATING ON WHAT WAS ON MY PLATE.

EDDY WAS DEMONSTRATING THE PREPARATION OF THE ICE CREAM WHEN I WALKED IN, I GOT THE RAW SOUL FOOD PREPARATION BOOK WITH THE RECIPE IN IT, NOW I HAVE TO MAKE THIS ICE CREAM MYSELF.

THE MENU THAT THEY WERE WORKING WITH WAS

PEAR COBBLER
VANILLA BEAN ICE CREAM
MOCK SALMON PATE
GARDEN VEGETABLE PILAF

RAW SOUL IS GOING TO BE HAVING ANOTHER RAW FOOD PREPARATION DEMONSTRATION ON SUNDAY, NOVEMBER 16TH, 2008 6:00-9:00

THEY WILL BE PREPARING A HOLIDAY FEAST MENU

APPLE CRANBERRY CHUTNEY
MARINATED GREEN BEANS
DIRTY RICE LIFAF
CAJUN CROQUETTES WITH HOLIDAY SAUCE
LOUISIANA YAM PIE

ENJOY THE ABUNDANT BOUNTY OF THANKSGIVING THAT IS HEALTHY AND DELICIOUS.... ORGANIC INGREDIENTS USED IN PREPARATION OF ALL DISHES.RECIPES AND AMPLE SAMPLES PROVIDED.

FOR MORE INFORMAITON VISIT THE WEBSITE WWW.RAWSOUL.COM OR CALL 212 491-5859.

RAW SOUL
348 W. 145TH STREET.
NYC 10039

212 491-5859

THIS IS A LIFE ENHANCING EXPERIENCE IN FINE LIVE FOOD CUISINE... YOU CAN TAKE MY WORD FOR IT.