Adriaen Block (c. 1567 – buried April 27, 1627) was a
DutchThe Netherlands is a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, located mainly in North-West Europe and with several islands in the Caribbean. Mainland Netherlands borders the North Sea to the north and west, Belgium to the south, and Germany to the east, and shares maritime borders...
private trader and navigator who is best known for exploring the coastal and river valley areas between present-day
New JerseyNew Jersey is a state in the Northeastern and Middle Atlantic regions of the United States. , its population was 8,791,894. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York, on the southeast and south by the Atlantic Ocean, on the west by Pennsylvania and on the southwest by Delaware...
and
MassachusettsThe Commonwealth of Massachusetts is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States of America. It is bordered by Rhode Island and Connecticut to the south, New York to the west, and Vermont and New Hampshire to the north; at its east lies the Atlantic Ocean. As of the 2010...
during four voyages from 1611 to 1614, following the 1609 expedition by
Henry HudsonHenry Hudson was an English sea explorer and navigator in the early 17th century. Hudson made two attempts on behalf of English merchants to find a prospective Northeast Passage to Cathay via a route above the Arctic Circle...
. He is noted for naming
Block IslandBlock Island is part of the U.S. state of Rhode Island and is located in the Atlantic Ocean approximately south of the coast of Rhode Island, east of Montauk Point on Long Island, and is separated from the Rhode Island mainland by Block Island Sound. The United States Census Bureau defines Block...
,
Rhode IslandThe state of Rhode Island and Providence Plantations, more commonly referred to as Rhode Island , is a state in the New England region of the United States. It is the smallest U.S. state by area...
, and establishing early trade with the
Native AmericansThe indigenous peoples of the Americas are the pre-Columbian inhabitants of North and South America, their descendants and other ethnic groups who are identified with those peoples. Indigenous peoples are known in Canada as Aboriginal peoples, and in the United States as Native Americans...
, and for the 1614 map of his last voyage on which many features of the mid-Atlantic region appear for the first time, and on which the term
New NetherlandNew Netherland, or Nieuw-Nederland in Dutch, was the 17th-century colonial province of the Republic of the Seven United Netherlands on the East Coast of North America. The claimed territories were the lands from the Delmarva Peninsula to extreme southwestern Cape Cod...
is first applied to the region. He is credited with being the first European to enter
Long Island SoundLong Island Sound is an estuary of the Atlantic Ocean, located in the United States between Connecticut to the north and Long Island, New York to the south. The mouth of the Connecticut River at Old Saybrook, Connecticut, empties into the sound. On its western end the sound is bounded by the Bronx...
and the
Connecticut RiverThe Connecticut River is the largest and longest river in New England, and also an American Heritage River. It flows roughly south, starting from the Fourth Connecticut Lake in New Hampshire. After flowing through the remaining Connecticut Lakes and Lake Francis, it defines the border between the...
and to determine that
ManhattanManhattan is the oldest and the most densely populated of the five boroughs of New York City. Located primarily on the island of Manhattan at the mouth of the Hudson River, the boundaries of the borough are identical to those of New York County, an original county of the state of New York...
and Long Island are islands.
Early life
Though spending much of his time on sea, Block called Amsterdam his home his entire life. There, on October 26, 1603, he married Neeltje Hendricks van Gelder, with whom he would baptize five children between 1607 and 1615 (see
http://archiver.rootsweb.com/th/read/Dutch-Colonies/2006-12/1164959278). In 1606 they moved into a house called "De Twee Bontecraijen" (The Two Hooded Crows) on Amsterdam's Oude Waal street, where they would live the rest of their lives.
In the 1590s, Block already was active in the shipping trade, transporting wood from Northern Europe to deforested Spain. He is for example mentioned delivering Norwegian wood in April 1596 in
BilbaoBilbao ) is a Spanish municipality, capital of the province of Biscay, in the autonomous community of the Basque Country. With a population of 353,187 , it is the largest city of its autonomous community and the tenth largest in Spain...
. From there he headed for Rivadeo to buy goods for
CadizCadiz is a city and port in southwestern Spain. It is the capital of the homonymous province, one of eight which make up the autonomous community of Andalusia....
. In April 1601, he was part of a convoy of ships leaving Amsterdam for the
Dutch East IndiesThe Dutch East Indies was a Dutch colony that became modern Indonesia following World War II. It was formed from the nationalised colonies of the Dutch East India Company, which came under the administration of the Netherlands government in 1800....
, at that time probably as far as the Moluccas, returning home in 1603.
In the spring of 1604, after delivering goods in
LiguriaLiguria is a coastal region of north-western Italy, the third smallest of the Italian regions. Its capital is Genoa. It is a popular region with tourists for its beautiful beaches, picturesque little towns, and good food.-Geography:...
, Block sailed on to
CyprusCyprus , officially the Republic of Cyprus , is a Eurasian island country, member of the European Union, in the Eastern Mediterranean, east of Greece, south of Turkey, west of Syria and north of Egypt. It is the third largest island in the Mediterranean Sea.The earliest known human activity on the...
buying goods (rice, cotton, nuts, etc.) he hoped to sell in
VeniceVenice is a city in northern Italy which is renowned for the beauty of its setting, its architecture and its artworks. It is the capital of the Veneto region...
. This trade fell through, and he headed home to Amsterdam. Passing
LisbonLisbon is the capital city and largest city of Portugal with a population of 545,245 within its administrative limits on a land area of . The urban area of Lisbon extends beyond the administrative city limits with a population of 3 million on an area of , making it the 9th most populous urban...
, he came upon a
LübeckThe Hanseatic City of Lübeck is the second-largest city in Schleswig-Holstein, in northern Germany, and one of the major ports of Germany. It was for several centuries the "capital" of the Hanseatic League and, because of its Brick Gothic architectural heritage, is listed by UNESCO as a World...
-based ship returning from a trip to
BrazilBrazil , officially the Federative Republic of Brazil , is the largest country in South America. It is the world's fifth largest country, both by geographical area and by population with over 192 million people...
. He had written permission from Dutch authorities to capture enemy ships, which he put to use, taking the ship and its load to Amsterdam. Though the ship and some of its goods were returned to its owners, Block made a lot of money, with which he probably bought the house on the Oude Waal.
Early voyages (1611–1612)
Following Hudson's contact with the Native Americans in the
Hudson ValleyThe Hudson Valley comprises the valley of the Hudson River and its adjacent communities in New York State, United States, from northern Westchester County northward to the cities of Albany and Troy.-History:...
in 1609, the Dutch merchants in
AmsterdamAmsterdam is the largest city and the capital of the Netherlands. The current position of Amsterdam as capital city of the Kingdom of the Netherlands is governed by the constitution of August 24, 1815 and its successors. Amsterdam has a population of 783,364 within city limits, an urban population...
had deemed the area worth exploring as a potential source of trade for
beaverThe North American Beaver is the only species of beaver in the Americas, native to North America and introduced to South America. In the United States and Canada, where no other species of beaver occurs, it is usually simply referred to as "beaver"...
pelts, which were a lucrative market in Europe at the time.
The following year in 1610, a ship from Monnikendam, skipper Symen Lambertsz Mau, perished in the
Hudson RiverThe Hudson is a river that flows from north to south through eastern New York. The highest official source is at Lake Tear of the Clouds, on the slopes of Mount Marcy in the Adirondack Mountains. The river itself officially begins in Henderson Lake in Newcomb, New York...
and the following year in 1611, at the commission of a group of Lutheran merchants, Block and fellow captain
Hendrick ChristiaensenHendrick Christiaensen was a Dutch explorer who was involved in the earlier exploration of what became present day New York City.In 1611, Christiaensen paid two visits to Manhattan, including one with fellow explorer Adriaen Block...
revisited the area Hudson had explored, bringing back furs and two sons of a native
sachemA sachem[p] or sagamore is a paramount chief among the Algonquians or other northeast American tribes. The two words are anglicizations of cognate terms from different Eastern Algonquian languages...
. The prospect of successful fur trade prompted the States General, the Governing body of the Dutch Republic, to issue a statement, on March 27, 1614, stipulating that the discoverers of new countries, harbors, and passages would be given an exclusive patent good for four voyages, to be undertaken within three years, to the territories discovered, if the applicant would submit a detailed report within 14 days after his return.
The 1614 expedition
In 1614, he made a fourth voyage to the lower Hudson in the
TygerThe Tyger was the ship used by Dutch captain Adriaen Block during his 1613 voyage to explore the East Coast of North America and the present day Hudson River...
accompanied by several other ships especially equipped for trading. While moored along southern Manhattan, the
Tyger was accidentally destroyed by fire. Over the winter, he and his men, with help from the
LenapeThe Lenape are an Algonquian group of Native Americans of the Northeastern Woodlands. They are also called Delaware Indians. As a result of the American Revolutionary War and later Indian removals from the eastern United States, today the main groups live in Canada, where they are enrolled in the...
, built the 42 feet (12.8 m) ship 16-ton
OnrustThe Onrust was a Dutch ship that was built by Adriaen Block and the crew of the Tyger, which had been destroyed by fire. The ship, a yacht, was the first decked vessel to be built entirely in America. The construction took one winter on Manhattan Island...
("trouble" or "restless").
In this latter ship, he explored the
East RiverThe East River is a tidal strait in New York City. It connects Upper New York Bay on its south end to Long Island Sound on its north end. It separates Long Island from the island of Manhattan and the Bronx on the North American mainland...
and was the first known European to navigate the
Hellegat (now called
Hell GateHell Gate is a narrow tidal strait in the East River in New York City in the United States. It separates Astoria, Queens from Randall's Island/Wards Island ....
) and to enter Long Island Sound. Travelling along Long Island Sound, entered the
Housatonic RiverThe Housatonic River is a river, approximately long, in western Massachusetts and western Connecticut in the United States. It flows south to southeast, and drains about of southwestern New England into Long Island Sound...
(which he named "River of Red Hills") and the Connecticut River, which he explored it at least as far as present day
HartfordHartford is the capital of the U.S. state of Connecticut. The seat of Hartford County until Connecticut disbanded county government in 1960, it is the second most populous city on New England's largest river, the Connecticut River. As of the 2010 Census, Hartford's population was 124,775, making...
, sixty miles up the river
http://www.bio.umass.edu/biology/conn.river/block.html. Leaving Long Island Sound, he charted
Block IslandBlock Island is part of the U.S. state of Rhode Island and is located in the Atlantic Ocean approximately south of the coast of Rhode Island, east of Montauk Point on Long Island, and is separated from the Rhode Island mainland by Block Island Sound. The United States Census Bureau defines Block...
, which is named for him and
Narragansett BayNarragansett Bay is a bay and estuary on the north side of Rhode Island Sound. Covering 147 mi2 , the Bay forms New England's largest estuary, which functions as an expansive natural harbor, and includes a small archipelago...
, where he possibly named "
Roode EylandtAquidneck Island, located in the state of Rhode Island, is the largest island in Narragansett Bay. The island's official name is Rhode Island, and the common use of name "Aquidneck Island" helps distinguish the island from the state. The total land area is 97.9 km²...
" after the red (
DutchDutch is a West Germanic language and the native language of the majority of the population of the Netherlands, Belgium, and Suriname, the three member states of the Dutch Language Union. Most speakers live in the European Union, where it is a first language for about 23 million and a second...
rood) color of its soil
http://international.loc.gov/intldl/awkbhtml/kb-1/kb-1-2-5.html. On
Cape CodCape Cod, often referred to locally as simply the Cape, is a cape in the easternmost portion of the state of Massachusetts, in the Northeastern United States...
, he rendezvoused with one of the other ships of the expedition and left the
Onrust behind before returning to Europe.
Life in the colony
Block set up some colonies in Connecticut; one of the first is present day Windsor. The life was hard, as it was settled in the winter as a result of the Connecticut river turning to ice.
New Netherland company
Upon returning, Block compiled a map of his voyage together with known information of the time. The Block map was the first to apply the name "
New NetherlandNew Netherland, or Nieuw-Nederland in Dutch, was the 17th-century colonial province of the Republic of the Seven United Netherlands on the East Coast of North America. The claimed territories were the lands from the Delmarva Peninsula to extreme southwestern Cape Cod...
" to the area between English Virginia and
French CanadaNew France was the area colonized by France in North America during a period beginning with the exploration of the Saint Lawrence River by Jacques Cartier in 1534 and ending with the cession of New France to Spain and Great Britain in 1763...
, as well as the first to show
Long IslandLong Island is an island located in the southeast part of the U.S. state of New York, just east of Manhattan. Stretching northeast into the Atlantic Ocean, Long Island contains four counties, two of which are boroughs of New York City , and two of which are mainly suburban...
as an island.
On October 11, 1614, Block, Christiaensen, and a group of twelve other merchants presented to the States General a petition to receive exclusive trading privileges for the area. Their company, the newly-formed
New Netherland CompanyNew Netherland Company was a chartered company of Dutch merchants.Following Henry Hudson's exploration of the east coast of North America on behalf of the Dutch East India Company in 1609, several Dutch merchants sent ships to trade with the Native Americans and to search for the Northwest Passage...
, was granted exclusive rights for three years to trade between the
40th parallel northThe 40th parallel north is a circle of latitude that is 40 degrees north of the Earth's equatorial plane. It crosses Europe, the Mediterranean Sea, Asia, the Pacific Ocean, North America, and the Atlantic Ocean....
and the 45th parallel north.
http://www.colonialwarsct.org/1614.htm
After his return to Amsterdam in July 1614 he would not return to the New World again. In 1615, Block was Commissary-General of three men-of-war and eleven whaleships sent to
SpitsbergenSpitsbergen is the largest and only permanently populated island of the Svalbard archipelago in Norway. Constituting the western-most bulk of the archipelago, it borders the Arctic Ocean, the Norwegian Sea and the Greenland Sea...
by the
Noordsche CompagnieThe Noordsche or Groenlandse Compagnie was a cartel for whaling, founded by several cities in the Netherlands...
. He remained sailing until his death in 1627. He was buried in Amsterdam's Oude Kerk in a grave next to his wife.
Trivia
A multi-million dollar redevelopment on the Connecticut River in Hartford, Connecticut is named Adriaen's Landing after Block.
Adriaen Block has a middle school in Flushing, Queens (NYC) named after him.
External links