Cornelius Jacobsen Mey
Encyclopedia
Cornelis Jacobszoon May (also Cornelius; Mey; Meij), was a Dutch
explorer, captain and fur trader, and namesake of Cape May
, Cape May County, and the city of Cape May, New Jersey
, so named first in 1620.
but may have been born in the small village of Schellinkhout
, just east of Hoorn, as he appears to have been the brother of Jan Jacobsz May van Schellinkhout, after whom the island of Jan Mayen
is named . Both brothers were the cousin of an in his days far more famous sailor, Jan Cornelisz May, who led several expeditions to explore the Northeast passage and between 1614 and 1617 circumnavigated the world with Joris van Spilbergen
.
in 1613) in 1614 where an agreement was made among various competing traders whereunder the explorer Adriaen Block. On October 11, 1614, May became a party to the New Netherland Company which received an exclusive patent from the States General
for four voyages to be undertaken for three years to territories discovered between the 40th and 45th parallels at the exclusion of all other Dutch (until January 1618).
From August until November 1616, the company tried unsuccessfully to obtain a new patent for a territory situated between the 38th and 40th parallels (i.e., the Delaware Bay
area) which in 1614, 1615 and 1616 had been surveyed by Cornelis Hendricksz from Monnikendam on the ship Onrust. On behalf of the successor company of the New Netherland Company, Cornelis Jacobsz. May had explored and surveyed the Delaware Bay on the ship named Blijde Boodschap (en. "Joyful Message") from which he carried on trade with the Indians there in 1620. In 1621, he ordered the construction of factorij of Fort Nassau
at the mouth of the Big Timber Creek
.
Two of the six business partners of the ships Blijde Boodschap and Bever which focused on exploration and trade in the Zuidt Rivier or Delaware River
, were Thijmen Jacobsz Hinlopen
and Samuel Godijn. Cape Hinlopen, now spelled Cape Henlopen
in Delaware is named after the former. Cape Hinlopen was New Netherland's most southern border on the 38th parallel. Samuel Godyn had Godyn's Bay named after him, now renamed New York Bay. Also spelled Godijn or Godin, he was one of the first patroons in New Netherland
as well as a director of the West India Company and of the Northern Company.
with the delivery of the first settlers to New Netherland in 1624. May was the captain of the ship New Netherland who delivered the first boat load of colonists to New Netherland
on Governors Island
in June of that year. Having so transformed the New Netherland territory to a province, he was named the province's first director.
Netherlands
The 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...
explorer, captain and fur trader, and namesake of Cape May
Cape May
Cape May is a peninsula and island ; the southern tip of the island is the southernmost point of the state of New Jersey, United States. It runs southwards from the New Jersey mainland, separating Delaware Bay from the Atlantic Ocean...
, Cape May County, and the city of Cape May, New Jersey
Cape May, New Jersey
Cape May is a city at the southern tip of Cape May Peninsula in Cape May County, New Jersey, where the Delaware Bay meets the Atlantic Ocean and is one of the country's oldest vacation resort destinations. It is part of the Ocean City Metropolitan Statistical Area. As of the 2010 United States...
, so named first in 1620.
Family
May is said to be from the city of HoornHoorn
-Cities :* Purmerend * Enkhuizen * Alkmaar * Amsterdam * Lelystad * Den Helder * Leeuwarden -Towns :* Edam...
but may have been born in the small village of Schellinkhout
Schellinkhout
Schellinkhout is a very small town located in the municipality of Drechterland, North Holland at the border of the IJsselmeer, about 3 km southeast of Hoorn in West-Frisia...
, just east of Hoorn, as he appears to have been the brother of Jan Jacobsz May van Schellinkhout, after whom the island of Jan Mayen
Jan Mayen
Jan Mayen Island is a volcanic island in the Arctic Ocean and part of the Kingdom of Norway. It is long and 373 km2 in area, partly covered by glaciers . It has two parts: larger northeast Nord-Jan and smaller Sør-Jan, linked by an isthmus wide...
is named . Both brothers were the cousin of an in his days far more famous sailor, Jan Cornelisz May, who led several expeditions to explore the Northeast passage and between 1614 and 1617 circumnavigated the world with Joris van Spilbergen
Joris van Spilbergen
Joris van Spilbergen was a Dutch naval officer of the 17th century.His first major expedition was in 1596, when he sailed to Africa....
.
1614 to 1616 expeditions to New Netherland
Cornelis Jacobsz May sailed first in the Mauritius River or "Hudson's river" (so referred to first by Adriaen BlockAdriaen Block
Adriaen Block was a Dutch private trader and navigator who is best known for exploring the coastal and river valley areas between present-day New Jersey and Massachusetts during four voyages from 1611 to 1614, following the 1609 expedition by Henry Hudson...
in 1613) in 1614 where an agreement was made among various competing traders whereunder the explorer Adriaen Block. On October 11, 1614, May became a party to the New Netherland Company which received an exclusive patent from the States General
States-General of the Netherlands
The States-General of the Netherlands is the bicameral legislature of the Netherlands, consisting of the Senate and the House of Representatives. The parliament meets in at the Binnenhof in The Hague. The archaic Dutch word "staten" originally related to the feudal classes in which medieval...
for four voyages to be undertaken for three years to territories discovered between the 40th and 45th parallels at the exclusion of all other Dutch (until January 1618).
From August until November 1616, the company tried unsuccessfully to obtain a new patent for a territory situated between the 38th and 40th parallels (i.e., the Delaware Bay
Delaware Bay
Delaware Bay is a major estuary outlet of the Delaware River on the Northeast seaboard of the United States whose fresh water mixes for many miles with the waters of the Atlantic Ocean. It is in area. The bay is bordered by the State of New Jersey and the State of Delaware...
area) which in 1614, 1615 and 1616 had been surveyed by Cornelis Hendricksz from Monnikendam on the ship Onrust. On behalf of the successor company of the New Netherland Company, Cornelis Jacobsz. May had explored and surveyed the Delaware Bay on the ship named Blijde Boodschap (en. "Joyful Message") from which he carried on trade with the Indians there in 1620. In 1621, he ordered the construction of factorij of Fort Nassau
Fort Nassau (South River)
Fort Nassau was a factorij in the colonial province of New Netherland from 1623-1651.The name Fort Nassau was used by the Dutch in the 17th century for several fortifications, mostly trading stations, named for the House of Orange-Nassau....
at the mouth of the Big Timber Creek
Big Timber Creek
Big Timber Creek is a stream in southwestern New Jersey, United States, and is also known by the name 'Tetamekanchz Kyl' by the Lenape tribes. It drains a watershed of . A tributary of the Delaware River, it enters the Delaware between the boroughs of Brooklawn and Westville, just south Gloucester...
.
Two of the six business partners of the ships Blijde Boodschap and Bever which focused on exploration and trade in the Zuidt Rivier or Delaware River
Delaware River
The Delaware River is a major river on the Atlantic coast of the United States.A Dutch expedition led by Henry Hudson in 1609 first mapped the river. The river was christened the South River in the New Netherland colony that followed, in contrast to the North River, as the Hudson River was then...
, were Thijmen Jacobsz Hinlopen
Thijmen Jacobsz Hinlopen
Thijmen Jacobsz Hinlopen , was one of the leaders of the Dutch merchant and whaling company of Noordsche Compagnie since 1617 and participant in the New Netherland Company, interested in furs...
and Samuel Godijn. Cape Hinlopen, now spelled Cape Henlopen
Cape Henlopen
Cape Henlopen is the southern cape of the Delaware Bay along the Atlantic coast of the United States. It lies in the state of Delaware, near the town of Lewes, Delaware...
in Delaware is named after the former. Cape Hinlopen was New Netherland's most southern border on the 38th parallel. Samuel Godyn had Godyn's Bay named after him, now renamed New York Bay. Also spelled Godijn or Godin, he was one of the first patroons in New Netherland
New Netherland
New 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...
as well as a director of the West India Company and of the Northern Company.
Later activities
Cornelis Jacobsz. May, however, was unable to trade in the South River (Delaware River) at the exclusion of competing Dutch companies. Though the competing Dutch companies were eventually able to reach agreement in New Netherland, discord arose again which was settled, finally, by a judgment of arbitrators at Amsterdam on December 23, 1623. The 38th and 39th parallels region came under the final jurisdiction of the Dutch West India CompanyDutch West India Company
Dutch West India Company was a chartered company of Dutch merchants. Among its founding fathers was Willem Usselincx...
with the delivery of the first settlers to New Netherland in 1624. May was the captain of the ship New Netherland who delivered the first boat load of colonists to New Netherland
New Netherland
New 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...
on Governors Island
Governors Island
Governors Island is a island in Upper New York Bay, approximately one-half mile from the southern tip of Manhattan Island and separated from Brooklyn by Buttermilk Channel. It is legally part of the borough of Manhattan in New York City...
in June of that year. Having so transformed the New Netherland territory to a province, he was named the province's first director.