Fort Nassau: the first Dutch trading house built in North America, was constructed on Castle (Westerlo) Island on the Upper Hudson where Albany is. It was but a small redoubt, yet deemed the acorn from which sprouted the American Middle States. This trading post lasted only three years and was badly damaged by a spring freshet and abandoned. Eventually even its ruins were silted over and forgotten.
In 1796, Albany contemplated a plan to acquire patents for water lots and extend South End streets opposite the north end of Castle Island, out into the Hudson River. It was similar, on a smaller scale, to the way Manhattan expanded out into the Hudson and East Rivers. In the course of finally implementing this in the 1840s, dredging was found necessary to adjust the upper end of Castle Island and Island Creek to accommodate the plan.
At some point, as an incidental result of this dredging, the north side of Fort Nassau’s moat was broken into. This in turn, apparently caused a large washout area to the west and south of the fort’s remains. This temporary re-exposure of Fort Nassau was recorded on a survey of the Upper Hudson conducted in 1861 by the U.S. Coast Survey and printed by them in 1863.
I have the good fortune of owning one of these scarce charts. By the way of some slightly painstaking intermediate measures, I transferred the fort’s quadrangle from the 1863 printed chart onto a current satellite image. The little orange square on this satellite image is about 60 foot square, which squares with the only contemporary source for the fort’s quadrangle plan. It’s in a text block on Adriaen Block’s “NIEUNEDER LANDT” chart of 1614. This reads: “Fort van Nassauen is binnen de wallen 58 voeten wydt in’t vierkant.” (“Nassau’s Fort has within its walls a 58 foot quadrangle.”) This is the little “lump” with a sort of wedge or tail below it on the detail enlargement of the 1863 chart. Close to 60 feet English (American) measure would be 58 feet Rynland Measure.
Of Doubts And Redoubts
Don Rittner, archaeologist and president of the Onrust Project, suspects two additional Fort Nassau about half a mile south of that which I have pinpointed – these would be opposite the Normans Kill which flows into Island Creek from the west. One spot of Don’s is on the west bank of Castle Island, there. The first spot seems to be indicated on Block’s Nieuneder Landt chart as referenced to above. The second is on a chart of 1616 two years later. So there could be not one but three sites, although only one is now pin pointed and should be tested A.S.A.P.
Why are we, here, met with such seeming anomalies? I can’t really say considering the paucity of contemporary written sources in this case. Strata, features and artifacts can be “read” in many a good site. Once my pinpointed site is archaeologically tested and explored and the other two suspected places searched, perhaps a nagging and persistent local legend might be affirmed or denied. This legend has it that a French Chateaux was built on Castle Island in 1540 and that Fort Nassau was constructed atop the ruins of the Chateaux.
Note: Follow the story of Fort Nassu here on The New York State History Blog here.
John Wolcott is a cartographic researcher who studied anthropology under Dr. Ralph Solecki, and has been researching Albany’s built and natural environment for more than 50 years. He has identified many important sites in downtown Albany for Hartgen Archaeological Associates and has received several historic research and community awards, including “A Sense of Place” presented by Historic Albany, Cherry Hill and the Albany Visitor’s Center. In 1969 Wolcott correctly pinpointed the precise location of Fort Orange in Albany, which was uncovered then buried under an exit for I-787 the following year.
To see the maps and charts John Wolcott used to pinpoint the location of Fort Nassau, visit: http://duncancrary.com/clients/FortNassauWolcott.html
The Albany Public Library offers free program: “How I Found Fort Nassau, beginning at 7 p.m. Wednesday, Sept. 10, at the main library on 161 Washington Ave. Local historian John Wolcott will focus on how he determined the location of the 1614 Dutch Fort Nassau, detailing his analysis of 17th, 19th, and 20th century maps of Albany. A question-and-answer session follows.
http://blog.timesunion.com/history/library-presents-historical-programs-sept-10-13/1163/
Fort Nassau bult in 1614 by Dutch fur traders where the South End of Albany is now. The first known Dutch trading post in North America. Should we compare it to the first French trading post in north America for comparisons of how the two might have been bu and looked like ? Perhaps but with some degree of caution and without looking for literal imitation. The first trading post of definite record in Canada was built by a trader named Pierre Chauvin in 1600. It was at Tadousac on the left bank of the St. Lawrence River about 125 miles below Quebec City at the confluence of the Saguenay and St. Lawrence Rivers. The place still has the same highly descriptive Montagnais Indian name. According to Samuel Champlain; the outpost at Tadousac was built by a fur trader named Pierre Chauving in 1600 and lasted only a year when
it was abandoned by the severity of the cold winter. Champlain described the fort’s combined
storehouse and living quarters as being 25 by 18 feet . A little smaller than the 26 by 36 feet of
the combined storehuse and living quarters of Fort Nassau but of similiar proportions. As for
the defensive features at Tadousac; they were partially shown in an actual drawing by Champlain .
again somwhat smaller but proporitonately similiar enough ; A simple square with no bastions.
is shown. I think that Fort Nassau had not bastions either since such are not referenced in the
only contemporary description I know of; that on the so called Adriaen Block Chart of
NIEUNEDER LANDT of 1614. Also my own editon of Vauban shows a plan for an isolated simple
redoubt with no bastions and otherwise looking strikingly similiar to to both Tadousac and Nassau.
It’s a little more like Nassau though since it shows a moat whereas the drawing of Tadousac shows
nonthing around the defensive wall outline, though the written description has a ” ditch “which was
probably what’s called a ” dry moat “. The materials for Tadousac are very interesting fun since
one can go back and forth between Champlain’s written description and his extremely telling
drawing and get a fair picture of the whole thing except the upper interior framing. There are
reason not rely overly much on a shaky 1943 so called ” replica ” of the trading fort at Tadousac
called ” The Chavin House ” It was done by a William Covedale then owner of the ” Canada
Steamship Line ” Their steamships brought maily rich Canadians and Americans as tourist
to Tadousac. Coverdale wanted tourist to enjoy there visit more and to attract lots more of
them. Coverdale was had notoriety and some prestige as being an avid collecot of ” heritage
material and items. Frankly he sounds like a glorified pot hunter. Anyway he discovered
some foundation during construction work and declared them to be the reamins of Chavin’s
trading post.. William Coverdale then proceeded to build something which he tought looked
just like the trading house. However some critics at the time poited out that the measurements
of these foundations didn’t correspond with Champlain’s . Not being the least daunted
Coverdale not only built hes ” replica ” but took up the stones from the foundation and buit
the central fireplace now to be seen there. Its sounds like no archaeology was done there.
and when a counter view was put forth no one said; ” Well there’s only one way to prove it. ”
a few more things to consider. The lightness and relative smallness of the tow forts considered
here seems due to both having only the problem of defense against Indian archer as opposed
to European cannons. Both were established by middling sized small private companies and
didn’t want to go to really excessive expense.. Something for archaeologists who hopeully
will become involved at both places is that one had a dry moat the other a water moat.
I know from personal field experience yeats ago diggine up the dry moat of a fortifedl
proto historic Indian village in the Northen Plains that moats dry or wet was where lots of garbage
and broken items of every sort were sonstantly tossed over the wall into. Thats makes them
gold mines archaeologically . Perhaps the moat should be looked for first if the Fort Nasau
is to be probed for as it should be and then procedd from there. I would suggest the same
if Tadouscac is thouroughly reviested which it neds. Could the layout at Tadousac have influenced
that of a few years later at Nasau. Not sure but Arnout Vogles and Jaques Elkens both affiliated
with the Duch van Tweenhuysen Company that built Fort Nassa, had connexions with a Noraman
copany in Ruen that traded to Caanda in the years before Fort Nasau. Who knows ?
One positive and rewarding bit of knowledfge and information I recieved form attempting this
comparision betwixt Chavins’ fort at Tadousac and Fort Nassau at Albany is the precise mehtod
of wall construction at Tadousac. If one looks closely at Champlain”s little drawing to the little
house ; Posts can be seen at the corers and at widnow and door sides. Horizontal planks ( not
boards or full logs ) can be seen between each of these posts. This can be none ohter than the
earliest record of the appearance in Canada of ‘ Pied sur piece ” or ‘ en coulisse ” construction
something peculiar to the realm of early Canadian architecture. The posts are crooved or slotted to take tenons of the width of the plank ends at those ends. This forms one of the
stoutest type of wall imaginable. If there is no known originalof the technique in Europe , this may have actually originated at Tadousac. If so then that’s a real claim to fame for the place in
addtion to the loclae including the Saguenay Fjord just about right there make it one the ablsolutely most incredibly beautiful places in the word. I recommedn traveling there both
to urge some good archaelogy realtive to Chavins’ trading post and to see a few real
historic buidings the Beluga whales, and the unsurpassed scenery.
John Wolcott
orignalted at Tadousac.
Hi,
Trying to track down my old friend John Wolcott.