1909 MacCoun City Map or Plan of New Amsterdam (New York City) in 1653-1664

This is a 1909 Townsend MacCoun city map or plan of the colony of New Amsterdam, now known as New York City, between 1653 and 1664. Located on the southern tip of Manhattan, the map depicts the region from the Hudson River to the East River and from Midtown to the Battery. The colony itself, however, is confined to the southernmost extreme of Manhattan from Wall Street to the Battery. Streets are illustrated and labeled throughout the settlement, as is Fort Amsterdam and the Wall that gave Wall Street its name. the residences of prominent citizens are labeled within the settlement as well, as are numerous other 'points of interest'. Outside the walls, several farms are labeled by the owner's name (including the Dutch West India Company Farm), along with streets, a mill, and Wolfert Webber's tavern.

The Colony of New Amsterdam

Originally founded in 1624 by the Dutch West India Company, New Amsterdam gained municipal rights on February 2, 1653, officially becoming a city. The city remained under the control of the Dutch until August 27, 1664, when four English frigates sailed into New Amsterdam's harbor and demanded the city's surrender. On September 6, Peter Stuyvesant, the director of New Amsterdam, sent six delegates to sign the official Articles of Capitulation, and the settlement was reincorporated as New York City in June of the following year.

This map was created by Townsend MacCoun and engraved and printed by the L.L. Poates Engraving Company in 1909.