The Peach Tree War of 1655: When the Dutch Bought New Jersey for a Price
Dozens of war canoes of the Susquehannock Nation, long hollowed out tree trunks, gather on the New Jersey side of the Hudson River. On the night of September 15, 1655 the unsuspecting residents of New Amsterdam across the Hudson, the river they call the North River at the time, have no idea what awaits them as the morning approaches. Six-hundred Susquehannock warriors armed with flintlock muskets, tomahawks and flaming torches fill the dozens of war canoes and resolutely row them towards the tip of lower Manhattan and Staten Island. The warriors are seeking retribution and recompense for what the Dutch have just done. Only days before the Dutch under the command of Peter Stuyvesant had conquered the Susquehannock’s largest trading partner in the area, the colony of New Sweden and now they control not only New Amsterdam and all European settlements along the Hudson River, but the Netherlands can also claim all of present day southern New Jersey for their burgeoning c...