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Underneath
a Giant Tulip Tree |
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A song by
Chris Jennings about the purchase of Manhattan by Peter Minuit from the
Lenape. |
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Manhattan,
1626 |
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ÒMinuitÕs first official act was to buy Manhattan from the
Indians. On May 6, 1626, he convened
the principal chiefs of nearby tribesÉbroke open sea chests, and gave them 60
guildersÕ worth of cloth, beads, hatchets, and other trinkets. The redskins had no conception of
individual or tribal ownership of landÉThe Indians understood that they would
yield from time to time such portions of the island as the palefaces might
need. They never expected to be
driven completely off it.Ó (Ellis, E.R., The Epic of New York City, p.25-26). |
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ÒIn 1954 the Peter Minuit Post of the American Legion dedicated
a plaque at the southwest corner of the ballfield (at 214th Street) to mark
the location of a historic tree and a legendary real estate transaction. A
living link with the local Indians who resided in the area, a magnificent
tulip tree stood and grew on that site for 280 years until its death in 1938.
The marker also honors Peter MinuitÕs reputed purchase of Manhattan from the
Lenape in 1626. The celebrated sale has also been linked to sites in Lower
Manhattan.Ó (NYC Dept. of Parks & Recreation, www.washington-heights.us/history/archives). |
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