German Palatines
Encyclopedia
The German Palatines were natives of the Electoral Palatinate region of Germany, although a few had come to Germany from Switzerland, the Alsace, and probably other parts of Europe. Towards the end of the 17th century and into the 18th, the wealthy region was repeatedly invaded by French troops, which resulted in continuous military requisitions, widespread devastation and famine. The "Poor Palatines" were some 13,000 Germans who came to England between May and November 1709. Their arrival in England, and the inability of the British Government to integrate them, caused a highly politicized debate over the merits of immigration. The English tried to settle them in England, Ireland, and the Colonies. The English transported nearly 3,000 in ten ships to New York in 1710. Many of them first were assigned to work camps along the Hudson River to work off their passage. Close to 850 families settled in the Hudson River Valley, primarily in what are now Germantown
and Saugerties, New York
. In 1723 100 heads of families from the work camps were the first Europeans to acquire land west of Little Falls, New York
, in present-day Herkimer County on both the north and south sides along the Mohawk River. Later additional Palatine Germans settled along the Mohawk River
for several miles, founding towns such as Palatine Bridge, and in the Schoharie Valley
.
What triggered the mass emigration in 1709 of impoverished people to England was the Crown's promise of free land in the American Colonies. Parliament
discovered in 1711 that several “agents” working on behalf of the Colony of Carolina had promised the peasants around Frankfurt
free passage to the plantations. Spurred by the success of several dozen families the year before, thousands of German families headed down the Rhine to England and the New World.
, whence the majority embarked for London. Throughout the summer, ships unloaded thousands of refugees, and almost immediately their numbers overwhelmed the initial attempts to provide for them. By summer, most of the Poor Palatines were settled in Army tents in the fields of Blackheath
and Camberwell
. A Committee dedicated to coordinating their settlement and dispersal sought ideas for their employment. This proved difficult, as the Poor Palatines were unlike previous migrant groups — skilled, middle-class, religious exiles such as the Huguenots or the Dutch in the 16th century — but were instead mostly unskilled rural laborers, neither sufficiently educated nor healthy enough for most types of employment.
During the reign of Queen Anne
(1702–1714), political polarization increased. Immigration and asylum had long been debated, from coffee-houses to the floor of Parliament, and the Poor Palatines were inevitably brought into the political crossfire.
For the Whigs
, who controlled Parliament, these immigrants provided an opportunity to increase Britain’s workforce. Only two months before the German influx, Parliament had enacted the "Act for the Naturalization of Foreign Protestants", whereby immigrants could pay a small fee to become naturalized. The rationale was the belief that an increased population created more wealth, and that Britain’s prosperity could increase with the accommodation of foreign peoples. Britain had already benefited from French Huguenot refugees, as well as the Dutch (or “Flemish”) exiles, who helped revolutionize the English textile industry.
Similarly, in an effort to increase the sympathy and support for these expatriates, many Whig tracts and pamphlets described the Palatines as “refugees of conscience” and victims of Catholic oppression and intolerance. Louis XIV of France
had become infamous for the persecution of Protestants within his realm. The invasion and destruction of the Rhineland region by his forces was considered by many in Britain as a sign that the Palatines were likewise objects of his religious tyranny. With royal support, the Whigs formulated a charity brief to raise money for the “Poor Distressed Palatines”, who had grown too numerous to be supported by the Crown alone.
The Tories and members of the High Church
Party (those who sought greater religious uniformity), were dismayed by the numbers of Poor Palatines amassing in the fields of Southeast London. Long-standing opponents of naturalization, the Tories condemned the Whig assertions that the immigrants would be beneficial to the economy, as they were already an acute financial burden. Similarly, many who worried for the security of the Church of England
were concerned about the religious affiliations of these German families, especially after it was revealed that many (perhaps more than 2,000) were Catholic. Though the majority of the Catholic Germans were immediately sent back across the English Channel, many English thought their presence disproved the religious refugee status of the Poor Palatines.
The author Daniel Defoe
was a major spokesman, who attacked the critics of the government’s policy. Defoe’s Review, a tri-weekly journal dealing usually with economic matters, was for two months dedicated to denouncing opponents’ claims that the Palatines were disease-ridden, Catholic bandits who had arrived in England “to eat the Bread out of the Mouths of our People.” In addition to dispelling rumors and propounding the benefits of an increased population, Defoe advanced his own ideas on how the Poor Palatines should be “disposed”.
was charged with finding a means for their dispersal. Contrary to the immigrants, who wanted to be transported to the colonies, most schemes involved settling them within the British Isles, either on uninhabited lands in England or in Ireland (where they could bolster the numbers of the Protestant minority). Most officials involved were reluctant to send the Germans to the colonies due to the cost, and to the belief that they would be more beneficial if kept in Britain. Since the majority of the Poor Palatines were husbandmen, vinedressers and laborers, it was widely felt that they would be better suited in agricultural areas. There were some attempts to disperse them in neighboring towns and cities. Ultimately, large-scale settlement plans came to nothing, and the government sent Palatines piecemeal to various regions in England and Ireland. These attempts mostly failed, and many of the Palatines returned from Ireland to London within a few months, in far worse condition than when they had left.
The commissioners finally acquiesced and sent numerous families to New York to produce naval stores. The Germans transported to New York in the summer of 1710 totaled about 2800 people in ten ships, the largest group of immigrants to enter the colony before the American Revolution
. Because of their refugee status and weakened condition, as well as shipboard diseases, they had a high rate of fatality. Another 300-some Palatines made it to the Carolinas. But even these schemes failed: though the impetus for their departure from Germany was to reach the colonies, few actually settled in the New World, and the majority returned (or were sent) home to their respective states in Germany.
The experience with the Poor Palatines discredited the Whig philosophy of naturalization, and figured in political debates as an example of the pernicious effects of offering asylum to refugees. Once the Tories returned to power, they retracted the Act of Naturalization, which they claimed had lured the Palatines to England (though few had in fact become naturalized). Later attempts to reinstate an Act for Naturalization would suffer from the tarnished legacy of Britain’s first attempt to support mass immigration of foreign-born peoples.
Despite the unsuccessful attempt by the Poor Palatines to reach the Carolinas, later groups of German émigrés succeeded in establishing thriving communities in the New World. They made significant contributions to the wealth and prosperity of the American Colonies.
's government had sympathy for the Protestant Germans and had invited them to go to the colonies and work in trade for passage. Official correspondence in British records shows a total of 13,146 refugees traveled down the Rhine and from Amsterdam
to England in the summer of 1709. More than 3500 of these were returned from England either because they were Roman Catholic or at their own request. Henry Jones, quotes an entry in a churchbook by the Pastor of Dreieichenhain that states a total of 15,313 Germans left their villages in 1709 “for the so-called New America and, of course, Carolina.” The flood of immigration overwhelmed English resources. It resulted in major disruptions, overcrowding, famine
, disease and the death of a thousand or more Palatines. It appeared the entire Palatinate would be emptied before a halt could be called to emigration. Many reasons have been given to explain why so many families left their homes for an unknown land. Knittle summarizes them: “(1) war devastation, (2) heavy taxation, (3) an extraordinarily severe winter, (4) religious quarrels, but not persecutions, (5) land hunger on the part of the elderly and desire for adventure on the part of the young, (6) liberal advertising by colonial proprietors, and finally (7) the benevolent and active cooperation of the British government.”
No doubt the biggest impetus was the harsh, cold winter that preceded their departure. Birds froze in mid-air, casks of wine, livestock, whole vineyards were destroyed by the unremitting cold. With what little was left of their possessions, the refugees made their way on boats down the Rhine to Amsterdam, where they remained until the English government decided what to do about them. Ships were finally dispatched for them across the English Channel
, and the Palatines arrived in London They waited longer while the British government considered its options. So many arrived that the government created a winter camp for them outside the city walls. A few were settled in England, a few more may have been sent to Jamaica
and Nassau
, but the greatest numbers were sent to Ireland, Carolina
and especially, New York in the summer of 1710. They were obligated to work off their passage.
The Reverend Joshua Kocherthal paved the way in 1709, with a small group of fifty who settled in Newburgh, New York, on the banks of the Hudson River
. “In the summer of 1710, a colony numbering 2,227 arrived in New York and were [later] located in five villages on either side of the Hudson, those upon the east side being designated as East Camp, and those upon the west, as West Camp.” A census of these villages on May 1, 1711 showed 1194 on the east side and 583 on the west side. The total number of families was 342 and 185, respectively. About 350 Palatines had remained in New York City, and some settled in New Jersey.
.jpg)
was accomplished as a result of Governor Hunter's negotiations with Robert Livingston
, who owned Livingston Manor
in what is now Columbia County, New York
. (This was not the town now known as Livingston Manor
on the west side of the Hudson River). Livingston was anxious to have his lands developed. The Livingstons benefited for many years from the revenues they received as a result of this business venture. West Camp, on the other hand, was located on land the Crown had recently "repossessed" as an "extravagant grant." Pastors from both Lutheran and Reformed churches quickly began to serve the camps and created extensive records of these early settlers long before the state of New York was established or kept records.
The British Crown believed that the Palatines could work and be “useful to this kingdom, particularly in the production of naval stores, and as a frontier against the French and their Indians.” Naval stores which the British needed were hemp
, tar
and pitch
, poor choices for the climate and the variety of pine trees in New York State. On September 6, 1712, work was halted. “The last day of the government subsistence for most of the Palatines was September 12th.” “Within the next five years, many Palatines moved elsewhere. Several went to Pennsylvania
, others to New Jersey
, settling at Oldwick
or Hackensack
, still others pushed a few miles south to Rhinebeck, New York, and some returned to New York City, while quite a few established themselves on Livingston Manor [where they had originally been settled]. . . Some forty or fifty families went to Schoharie
between September 12th and October 31, 1712."
to be allowed to buy land that far west in the valley. The Palatine communities gradually extended along both sides of the Mohawk River
to Canojoharie. Their legacy was reflected in place names, such as German Flatts and Palatine Bridge, and the few colonial-era churches and other buildings that survived the Revolution. They taught their children German and used the language in churches for nearly 100 years. Many Palatines married only within the German community until the 19th century.
Germantown (town), New York
Germantown is a town in Columbia County, New York, United States. The population was 2,018 at the 2000 census.The Town of Germantown is located in the southwest part of the county.- History :...
and Saugerties, New York
Saugerties (town), New York
Saugerties is a town in Ulster County, New York, USA. The population was 19,482 at the 2000 census. The Town of Saugerties contains the Village of Saugerties. The town is in the northeast corner of Ulster County....
. In 1723 100 heads of families from the work camps were the first Europeans to acquire land west of Little Falls, New York
Little Falls (town), New York
Little Falls is a town in Herkimer County, New York, United States. The population was 1,544 at the 2000 census. The town is named after a waterfall located nearby.The Town of Little Falls has on its eastern end a small city called Little Falls...
, in present-day Herkimer County on both the north and south sides along the Mohawk River. Later additional Palatine Germans settled along the Mohawk River
Mohawk River
The Mohawk River is a river in the U.S. state of New York. It is the largest tributary of the Hudson River. The Mohawk flows into the Hudson in the Capital District, a few miles north of the city of Albany. The river is named for the Mohawk Nation of the Iroquois Confederacy...
for several miles, founding towns such as Palatine Bridge, and in the Schoharie Valley
Schoharie Valley
The Schoharie Valley is a corridor that runs through Schoharie County from Schoharie, New York until Gilboa, New York.-Geography:The Schoharie Valley is made up of plains surrounding the Schoharie Creek. Within the Schoharie Valley are the locations of Middleburgh, Schoharie, Fultonham, Breakabeen...
.
Origins
Throughout the Nine Years War (1688–1697) and the War of Spanish Succession (1701–1714), recurrent invasions by the French Army devastated the area of what is today Southwest Germany. The depredations of the French Army and the destruction of numerous cities (especially within the Palatinate) created economic hardship for the inhabitants of the region, exacerbated by a rash of harsh winters and a poor harvests that created famine in Germany and much of northwest Europe.What triggered the mass emigration in 1709 of impoverished people to England was the Crown's promise of free land in the American Colonies. Parliament
Parliament of Great Britain
The Parliament of Great Britain was formed in 1707 following the ratification of the Acts of Union by both the Parliament of England and Parliament of Scotland...
discovered in 1711 that several “agents” working on behalf of the Colony of Carolina had promised the peasants around Frankfurt
Frankfurt
Frankfurt am Main , commonly known simply as Frankfurt, is the largest city in the German state of Hesse and the fifth-largest city in Germany, with a 2010 population of 688,249. The urban area had an estimated population of 2,300,000 in 2010...
free passage to the plantations. Spurred by the success of several dozen families the year before, thousands of German families headed down the Rhine to England and the New World.
Arrival in England
The first boats packed with refugees began arriving in early May 1709. The first 900 people were given housing, food and supplies by a number of wealthy Englishmen. The immigrants were called “Poor Palatines”: “poor” in reference to their pitiful and impoverished state upon arrival in England, and “Palatines” since many of them came from lands controlled by the Elector Palatine. The majority came from regions outside the Palatinate and, against the wishes of their respective rulers, they fled by the thousands down the Rhine River to the Dutch city of RotterdamRotterdam
Rotterdam is the second-largest city in the Netherlands and one of the largest ports in the world. Starting as a dam on the Rotte river, Rotterdam has grown into a major international commercial centre...
, whence the majority embarked for London. Throughout the summer, ships unloaded thousands of refugees, and almost immediately their numbers overwhelmed the initial attempts to provide for them. By summer, most of the Poor Palatines were settled in Army tents in the fields of Blackheath
Blackheath, London
Blackheath is a district of South London, England. It is named from the large open public grassland which separates it from Greenwich to the north and Lewisham to the west...
and Camberwell
Camberwell
Camberwell is a district of south London, England, and forms part of the London Borough of Southwark. It is a built-up inner city district located southeast of Charing Cross. To the west it has a boundary with the London Borough of Lambeth.-Toponymy:...
. A Committee dedicated to coordinating their settlement and dispersal sought ideas for their employment. This proved difficult, as the Poor Palatines were unlike previous migrant groups — skilled, middle-class, religious exiles such as the Huguenots or the Dutch in the 16th century — but were instead mostly unskilled rural laborers, neither sufficiently educated nor healthy enough for most types of employment.
Political controversy
Anne of Great Britain
Anne ascended the thrones of England, Scotland and Ireland on 8 March 1702. On 1 May 1707, under the Act of Union, two of her realms, England and Scotland, were united as a single sovereign state, the Kingdom of Great Britain.Anne's Catholic father, James II and VII, was deposed during the...
(1702–1714), political polarization increased. Immigration and asylum had long been debated, from coffee-houses to the floor of Parliament, and the Poor Palatines were inevitably brought into the political crossfire.
For the Whigs
British Whig Party
The Whigs were a party in the Parliament of England, Parliament of Great Britain, and Parliament of the United Kingdom, who contested power with the rival Tories from the 1680s to the 1850s. The Whigs' origin lay in constitutional monarchism and opposition to absolute rule...
, who controlled Parliament, these immigrants provided an opportunity to increase Britain’s workforce. Only two months before the German influx, Parliament had enacted the "Act for the Naturalization of Foreign Protestants", whereby immigrants could pay a small fee to become naturalized. The rationale was the belief that an increased population created more wealth, and that Britain’s prosperity could increase with the accommodation of foreign peoples. Britain had already benefited from French Huguenot refugees, as well as the Dutch (or “Flemish”) exiles, who helped revolutionize the English textile industry.
Similarly, in an effort to increase the sympathy and support for these expatriates, many Whig tracts and pamphlets described the Palatines as “refugees of conscience” and victims of Catholic oppression and intolerance. Louis XIV of France
Louis XIV of France
Louis XIV , known as Louis the Great or the Sun King , was a Bourbon monarch who ruled as King of France and Navarre. His reign, from 1643 to his death in 1715, began at the age of four and lasted seventy-two years, three months, and eighteen days...
had become infamous for the persecution of Protestants within his realm. The invasion and destruction of the Rhineland region by his forces was considered by many in Britain as a sign that the Palatines were likewise objects of his religious tyranny. With royal support, the Whigs formulated a charity brief to raise money for the “Poor Distressed Palatines”, who had grown too numerous to be supported by the Crown alone.
The Tories and members of the High Church
High church
The term "High Church" refers to beliefs and practices of ecclesiology, liturgy and theology, generally with an emphasis on formality, and resistance to "modernization." Although used in connection with various Christian traditions, the term has traditionally been principally associated with the...
Party (those who sought greater religious uniformity), were dismayed by the numbers of Poor Palatines amassing in the fields of Southeast London. Long-standing opponents of naturalization, the Tories condemned the Whig assertions that the immigrants would be beneficial to the economy, as they were already an acute financial burden. Similarly, many who worried for the security of the Church of England
Church of England
The Church of England is the officially established Christian church in England and the Mother Church of the worldwide Anglican Communion. The church considers itself within the tradition of Western Christianity and dates its formal establishment principally to the mission to England by St...
were concerned about the religious affiliations of these German families, especially after it was revealed that many (perhaps more than 2,000) were Catholic. Though the majority of the Catholic Germans were immediately sent back across the English Channel, many English thought their presence disproved the religious refugee status of the Poor Palatines.
The author Daniel Defoe
Daniel Defoe
Daniel Defoe , born Daniel Foe, was an English trader, writer, journalist, and pamphleteer, who gained fame for his novel Robinson Crusoe. Defoe is notable for being one of the earliest proponents of the novel, as he helped to popularise the form in Britain and along with others such as Richardson,...
was a major spokesman, who attacked the critics of the government’s policy. Defoe’s Review, a tri-weekly journal dealing usually with economic matters, was for two months dedicated to denouncing opponents’ claims that the Palatines were disease-ridden, Catholic bandits who had arrived in England “to eat the Bread out of the Mouths of our People.” In addition to dispelling rumors and propounding the benefits of an increased population, Defoe advanced his own ideas on how the Poor Palatines should be “disposed”.
Dispersal
Not long after the Palatines' arrival, the Board of TradeBoard of Trade
The Board of Trade is a committee of the Privy Council of the United Kingdom, originating as a committee of inquiry in the 17th century and evolving gradually into a government department with a diverse range of functions...
was charged with finding a means for their dispersal. Contrary to the immigrants, who wanted to be transported to the colonies, most schemes involved settling them within the British Isles, either on uninhabited lands in England or in Ireland (where they could bolster the numbers of the Protestant minority). Most officials involved were reluctant to send the Germans to the colonies due to the cost, and to the belief that they would be more beneficial if kept in Britain. Since the majority of the Poor Palatines were husbandmen, vinedressers and laborers, it was widely felt that they would be better suited in agricultural areas. There were some attempts to disperse them in neighboring towns and cities. Ultimately, large-scale settlement plans came to nothing, and the government sent Palatines piecemeal to various regions in England and Ireland. These attempts mostly failed, and many of the Palatines returned from Ireland to London within a few months, in far worse condition than when they had left.
The commissioners finally acquiesced and sent numerous families to New York to produce naval stores. The Germans transported to New York in the summer of 1710 totaled about 2800 people in ten ships, the largest group of immigrants to enter the colony before the American Revolution
American Revolution
The American Revolution was the political upheaval during the last half of the 18th century in which thirteen colonies in North America joined together to break free from the British Empire, combining to become the United States of America...
. Because of their refugee status and weakened condition, as well as shipboard diseases, they had a high rate of fatality. Another 300-some Palatines made it to the Carolinas. But even these schemes failed: though the impetus for their departure from Germany was to reach the colonies, few actually settled in the New World, and the majority returned (or were sent) home to their respective states in Germany.
The experience with the Poor Palatines discredited the Whig philosophy of naturalization, and figured in political debates as an example of the pernicious effects of offering asylum to refugees. Once the Tories returned to power, they retracted the Act of Naturalization, which they claimed had lured the Palatines to England (though few had in fact become naturalized). Later attempts to reinstate an Act for Naturalization would suffer from the tarnished legacy of Britain’s first attempt to support mass immigration of foreign-born peoples.
Despite the unsuccessful attempt by the Poor Palatines to reach the Carolinas, later groups of German émigrés succeeded in establishing thriving communities in the New World. They made significant contributions to the wealth and prosperity of the American Colonies.
Migration to New York
Germans had trickled into North American colonies since their earliest days. The first mass migration, however, began in 1708. Queen AnneAnne of Great Britain
Anne ascended the thrones of England, Scotland and Ireland on 8 March 1702. On 1 May 1707, under the Act of Union, two of her realms, England and Scotland, were united as a single sovereign state, the Kingdom of Great Britain.Anne's Catholic father, James II and VII, was deposed during the...
's government had sympathy for the Protestant Germans and had invited them to go to the colonies and work in trade for passage. Official correspondence in British records shows a total of 13,146 refugees traveled down the Rhine and from Amsterdam
Amsterdam
Amsterdam 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...
to England in the summer of 1709. More than 3500 of these were returned from England either because they were Roman Catholic or at their own request. Henry Jones, quotes an entry in a churchbook by the Pastor of Dreieichenhain that states a total of 15,313 Germans left their villages in 1709 “for the so-called New America and, of course, Carolina.” The flood of immigration overwhelmed English resources. It resulted in major disruptions, overcrowding, famine
Famine
A famine is a widespread scarcity of food, caused by several factors including crop failure, overpopulation, or government policies. This phenomenon is usually accompanied or followed by regional malnutrition, starvation, epidemic, and increased mortality. Every continent in the world has...
, disease and the death of a thousand or more Palatines. It appeared the entire Palatinate would be emptied before a halt could be called to emigration. Many reasons have been given to explain why so many families left their homes for an unknown land. Knittle summarizes them: “(1) war devastation, (2) heavy taxation, (3) an extraordinarily severe winter, (4) religious quarrels, but not persecutions, (5) land hunger on the part of the elderly and desire for adventure on the part of the young, (6) liberal advertising by colonial proprietors, and finally (7) the benevolent and active cooperation of the British government.”
No doubt the biggest impetus was the harsh, cold winter that preceded their departure. Birds froze in mid-air, casks of wine, livestock, whole vineyards were destroyed by the unremitting cold. With what little was left of their possessions, the refugees made their way on boats down the Rhine to Amsterdam, where they remained until the English government decided what to do about them. Ships were finally dispatched for them across the English Channel
English Channel
The English Channel , often referred to simply as the Channel, is an arm of the Atlantic Ocean that separates southern England from northern France, and joins the North Sea to the Atlantic. It is about long and varies in width from at its widest to in the Strait of Dover...
, and the Palatines arrived in London They waited longer while the British government considered its options. So many arrived that the government created a winter camp for them outside the city walls. A few were settled in England, a few more may have been sent to Jamaica
Jamaica
Jamaica is an island nation of the Greater Antilles, in length, up to in width and 10,990 square kilometres in area. It is situated in the Caribbean Sea, about south of Cuba, and west of Hispaniola, the island harbouring the nation-states Haiti and the Dominican Republic...
and Nassau
Nassau, Bahamas
Nassau is the capital, largest city, and commercial centre of the Commonwealth of the Bahamas. The city has a population of 248,948 , 70 percent of the entire population of The Bahamas...
, but the greatest numbers were sent to Ireland, Carolina
Province of Carolina
The Province of Carolina, originally chartered in 1629, was an English and later British colony of North America. Because the original Heath charter was unrealized and was ruled invalid, a new charter was issued to a group of eight English noblemen, the Lords Proprietors, in 1663...
and especially, New York in the summer of 1710. They were obligated to work off their passage.
The Reverend Joshua Kocherthal paved the way in 1709, with a small group of fifty who settled in Newburgh, New York, on the banks of the Hudson River
Hudson River
The 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...
. “In the summer of 1710, a colony numbering 2,227 arrived in New York and were [later] located in five villages on either side of the Hudson, those upon the east side being designated as East Camp, and those upon the west, as West Camp.” A census of these villages on May 1, 1711 showed 1194 on the east side and 583 on the west side. The total number of families was 342 and 185, respectively. About 350 Palatines had remained in New York City, and some settled in New Jersey.
Servitude
Settlement on the east side (East Camp) of the Hudson RiverHudson River
The 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...
was accomplished as a result of Governor Hunter's negotiations with Robert Livingston
Robert Livingston the Elder
Robert Livingston the Elder was a New York colonial official, and first lord of Livingston Manor. He married Alida Schuyler in 1679. He was the father of nine children, including Philip, Robert and Gilbert...
, who owned Livingston Manor
Livingston Manor
This article contains information related to Livingston Manor, the 18th century New York estate. Livingston Manor, New York is a town in Sullivan County...
in what is now Columbia County, New York
Columbia County, New York
Columbia County is a county located in the U.S. state of New York. As of the 2010 census, the population was 63,096. The county seat is Hudson. The name comes from the Latin feminine form of the name of Christopher Columbus, which was at the time of the formation of the county a popular proposal...
. (This was not the town now known as Livingston Manor
Livingston Manor, New York
Livingston Manor is a hamlet in Sullivan County, New York, United States. The population was 1,355 at the 2000 census.Livingston Manor is in the south part of the Town of Rockland, adjacent to New York State Route 17.-History:...
on the west side of the Hudson River). Livingston was anxious to have his lands developed. The Livingstons benefited for many years from the revenues they received as a result of this business venture. West Camp, on the other hand, was located on land the Crown had recently "repossessed" as an "extravagant grant." Pastors from both Lutheran and Reformed churches quickly began to serve the camps and created extensive records of these early settlers long before the state of New York was established or kept records.
The British Crown believed that the Palatines could work and be “useful to this kingdom, particularly in the production of naval stores, and as a frontier against the French and their Indians.” Naval stores which the British needed were hemp
Hemp
Hemp is mostly used as a name for low tetrahydrocannabinol strains of the plant Cannabis sativa, of fiber and/or oilseed varieties. In modern times, hemp has been used for industrial purposes including paper, textiles, biodegradable plastics, construction, health food and fuel with modest...
, tar
Tar
Tar is modified pitch produced primarily from the wood and roots of pine by destructive distillation under pyrolysis. Production and trade in tar was a major contributor in the economies of Northern Europe and Colonial America. Its main use was in preserving wooden vessels against rot. The largest...
and pitch
Pitch (resin)
Pitch is the name for any of a number of viscoelastic, solid polymers. Pitch can be made from petroleum products or plants. Petroleum-derived pitch is also called bitumen. Pitch produced from plants is also known as resin. Products made from plant resin are also known as rosin.Pitch was...
, poor choices for the climate and the variety of pine trees in New York State. On September 6, 1712, work was halted. “The last day of the government subsistence for most of the Palatines was September 12th.” “Within the next five years, many Palatines moved elsewhere. Several went to Pennsylvania
Pennsylvania
The Commonwealth of Pennsylvania is a U.S. state that is located in the Northeastern and Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States. The state borders Delaware and Maryland to the south, West Virginia to the southwest, Ohio to the west, New York and Ontario, Canada, to the north, and New Jersey to...
, others to New Jersey
New Jersey
New 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...
, settling at Oldwick
Oldwick, New Jersey
Oldwick is an unincorporated area within Tewksbury Township in Hunterdon County, New Jersey, United States. The area is served as United States Postal Service ZIP Code 08858. As of the United States 2000 Census, the population for ZIP Code Tabulation Area 08858 was 177.Oldwick was formerly known as...
or Hackensack
Hackensack, New Jersey
Hackensack is a city in Bergen County, New Jersey, United States and the county seat of Bergen County. Although informally called Hackensack, it was officially named New Barbadoes Township until 1921. As of the 2010 United States Census, the city population was 43,010....
, still others pushed a few miles south to Rhinebeck, New York, and some returned to New York City, while quite a few established themselves on Livingston Manor [where they had originally been settled]. . . Some forty or fifty families went to Schoharie
Schoharie
Schoharie may refer to:*Schoharie County, New York, USA**Schoharie , New York, in the above county***Schoharie , New York, in the above town*Schoharie Creek, a stream in upstate New York, USA**Schoharie Valley, surrounding the above creek...
between September 12th and October 31, 1712."
Resettlement
A report in 1718 placed 224 families of 1,021 persons along the Hudson River while 170 families of 580 persons were in Schoharie. In 1723, under Governor Burnetsfield, 100 heads of families from the work camps were settled on 100 acre (0.404686 km²) each in the Burnetsfield Patent midway in the Mohawk River Valley, just west of Little Falls. They were the first EuropeansEuropean American
A European American is a citizen or resident of the United States who has origins in any of the original peoples of Europe...
to be allowed to buy land that far west in the valley. The Palatine communities gradually extended along both sides of the Mohawk River
Mohawk River
The Mohawk River is a river in the U.S. state of New York. It is the largest tributary of the Hudson River. The Mohawk flows into the Hudson in the Capital District, a few miles north of the city of Albany. The river is named for the Mohawk Nation of the Iroquois Confederacy...
to Canojoharie. Their legacy was reflected in place names, such as German Flatts and Palatine Bridge, and the few colonial-era churches and other buildings that survived the Revolution. They taught their children German and used the language in churches for nearly 100 years. Many Palatines married only within the German community until the 19th century.
Legacy
Because of the concentration of Palatine refugees in New York, the term "Palatine" became associated with German. "Until the American War of Independence 'Palatine' henceforth was used indiscriminately for all 'emigrants of German tongue.'"Notable Palatines
- Nicholas HerkimerNicholas HerkimerNicholas Herkimer was a militia general in the American Revolutionary War, who died of wounds after the Battle of Oriskany.-Career:...
, commanding general at Battle of OriskanyBattle of OriskanyThe Battle of Oriskany, fought on August 6, 1777, was one of the bloodiest battles in the North American theater of the American Revolutionary War and a significant engagement of the Saratoga campaign...
, American Revolutionary WarAmerican Revolutionary WarThe American Revolutionary War , the American War of Independence, or simply the Revolutionary War, began as a war between the Kingdom of Great Britain and thirteen British colonies in North America, and ended in a global war between several European great powers.The war was the result of the... - Alexander MackAlexander MackAlexander Mack was one of the founders of the Schwarzenau Brethren.Alexander Mack may refer to:*Alexander Mack , Civil War Medal of Honor recipient*Alex Mack, American football player*Alex Mack...
- Conrad WeiserConrad WeiserWeiser's colonial service began in 1731. The Iroquois sent Shikellamy, an Oneida chief, as an emissary to other tribes and the British. Shikellamy lived on the Susquehanna River at Shamokin village, near present-day Sunbury, Pennsylvania. An oral tradition holds that Weiser met Shikellamy while...
, Pennsylvanian pioneer, Indian interpreter, and diplomat - Johann Conrad Weiser, Sr.Johann Conrad Weiser, Sr.Johann Conrad Weiser, Sr. was a German soldier, baker, and farmer who fled his homeland with thousands of other German Palatines and settled in New York. Weiser became a leader in the Palatine community and was founder of their settlement of Weiser's Dorf, now known as Middleburgh, New York...
, prominent Palatine leader
Further reading
- Defoe, Daniel, 1661?-1731. Defoe's Review. Reproduced from the original edition, with an introduction and bibliographical notes by Arthur Wellesley Secord. 9 vols. in 22 (Facsimile Text Soc., 44). New York, 1938-9.
- Dickinson, Harry Thomas. 'The poor Palatines and the parties'. English Historical Review, 82 (1967), 464-85.
- Knittle, Walter Allen. Early eighteenth century Palatine emigration. A British government redemptioner project to manufacture naval stores. Philadelphia (PA), 1937.
- Statt, Daniel. Foreigners and Englishmen : the controversy over immigration and population, 1660-1760. Newark (DE): University of Delaware Press, 1995.
- Olson, Alison. "The English reception of the Huguenots, Palatines and Salzburgers, 1680-1734 : a comparative analysis" in Randolph Vigne & Charles Littleton, (eds.), From strangers to citizens : the integration of immigrant communities in Britain, Ireland and colonial America, 1550-1750 (Brighton and Portland (OR): The Huguenot Society of Great Britain and Ireland and Sussex Academic Press, 2001).
External links
- Palatines to America
- "The Poor Palatines" Gene Garman, 1999.
- Palatine DNA Project
- "Causes of the Early Palatine Emigration" Excerpted from Early Palatine Emigration, Walter Allen Knittle, Ph.D., Philadelphia, 1937.