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In the year 1524, Florence Italy was an independent state, Holland was a colony of Spain,
Romeo and Juliet had not been
written, as William Shakespeare was not to be born for another 40 years, Spain ruled Naples,
Copernicus was making ground on a model of the Solar System with the Earth orbiting the Sun, the Sistine
Chapel's ceiling was just newly finished by Michelangelo, and the Modern Calendar was not
to be established until Pope Gregory XIII introduced
it in 1582.......
Oh yes - Also in 1524 Brooklyn and Long Island were discovered by Verrazano for the French King Francis. In typical Brooklyn fashion, King Francis was defeated by Charles V at Pavia and imprisoned in Madrid Spain. Thus ended French settlement of Brooklyn, putting off European development of the area for 75 years. Otherwise we might be speaking French with a Brooklyn accent today, 450 years before Hatian Immigrants to Flatbush and Crown Heights perfected this art. As it was, it was not until the newly freed nation of the Netherlands sent the English Henry Hudson to scout the area in his ship the Halve Maen. On September 4th, 1609 some of Hudson's men landed in Gravesend Brooklyn. They described Gravesend as: "full of great tall oaks, and the land as pleasant to see, with grass and flowers as ever they had seen, and very sweet smelles came from them." By the 1620's, a number of families had settled into Western Long Island, including the Walloons. By the 1630's, the 5 Dutch Towns of Kings County had been codified into law. The Dutch settled into Brooklyn in the face of English Military threats, hostile English settlements east of Queens, and English settlement in Gravesend. Before Galileo was censured for his observations of the moons of Jupiter, Dutch settlers had an active culture in Brooklyn. We often think of American History in terms of being about 200 years old. In fact, it is considerably older, starting in the very height of the Renaissance, predating many cities and countries in Europe. During the 1600's Bruekelen Settlers had churches, Indian Wars, Slaves, Farms, trade, schools, By 1660, in the wilderness of Long Island, in the town of Brooklyn, resided 134 people..... Of which we know nearly nothing...... Enter the LOTT HOUSE
The Story of Colonial Settlement of Brooklyn and Flatlands is repeated throughout the
East Coast. We know very little about the dawn of Western Civilization on the North
American continent.
If we, of the Borough of Brooklyn, blow this opportunity, we will not only loose a piece of our local history, but the History of America itself. Help Brooklyn On Line support this project. It is critical to the city, and the nation. Support this Project and this Web Site:
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