NOT THOSE KNICKERBOCKERS!
When you think of early Colonial settlers, you probably think of the Puritans straggling off the Mayflower onto Plymouth Rock. Maybe Virginia tobacco planters. Definitely not the Knickerbockers, the early Dutch aristocracy.
But the Dutch were already here and setting up shop in New Amsterdam, better known as New York. The Dutch started out in the very lucrative fur trade, and eventually had a vibrant shipping business going out of the port, which continues to this day.
The English took over – and renamed – the place before the turn of the 18th century, and the Colonial story turned to the Founding Fathers we all learned about in school. The English got credit for John Adams and George Washington…the Knickerbockers got Washington Irving.
Not that there’s anything wrong with him, though most of us probably wouldn’t want our entire culture remembered for the Headless Horseman and Rip Van Winkle. The Knickerbockers, though, were always in the background in New York.
They were the aristocracy before the Four Hundred, living quietly comfortable lives in downtown townhouses, some of which survive to this day. And they weren’t very impressed by the newly rich folk after the Civil War, which is why Mrs. Astor and company had to make their own society – and did it so well that the Knickerbockers were forgotten.
Not that they disappeared.
The old Dutch families were woven into the fabric of the City and nation. Alexander Hamilton’s wife Elizabeth Schuyler Hamilton was a granddaughter of one of the oldest families: the Van Rensselaers.
You may have heard of one of the other Knickerbocker clans: the Roosevelts. At least one historian considers Teddy Roosevelt’s old-school aristocratic upbringing a key part of the politician he became.
The Dutch influence is also all over New York, if you know where to look. Many iconic place names come from the early settlers – including Brooklyn, Staten Island and even Broadway. Not to mention, as one expert points out, that every place name ending in “kill” is Dutch.
By the late 19th century, Knickerbocker was less a designation for an Olde Dutch aristocrat, and more popular slang for a Manhattanite. That’s why we’re Knicks fans…aren’t we?
A real Knickerbocker, though, turned out to be the perfect addition to Ella Shane’s world. Cabot Bridgewater – the family name was originally de Brede Wege, also anglicized to “Broadway” – is from a clan so old and wealthy they don’t bother much with pretensions. He’s an opera and baseball fancier, and committed to using his resources for good. All of which makes him a great friend for Ella and her cousin Tommy.
Unfortunately, his wealth and prominence also makes him a target, and he’s not going to have an easy ride in A FATAL OVERTURE!
A later Knickerbocker appears in my contemporary mystery, LIVE, LOCAL, AND DEAD. The Vermont governor was originally Will Auchincloss, from an old Scots family, but while I was researching Cabot, I came across the name Ten Broeck…and the Knickerbocker, as the main character calls him, was born.
And then there’s “Knickerbocker Glory.” It’s probably too sweet for Cabot or Will – but I want to try the British dessert, which apparently is sort of a fancy fruit sundae. Sign me up!
Got a #ThrowbackThursday idea? Drop it in the comments!
But the Dutch were already here and setting up shop in New Amsterdam, better known as New York. The Dutch started out in the very lucrative fur trade, and eventually had a vibrant shipping business going out of the port, which continues to this day.
The English took over – and renamed – the place before the turn of the 18th century, and the Colonial story turned to the Founding Fathers we all learned about in school. The English got credit for John Adams and George Washington…the Knickerbockers got Washington Irving.
Not that there’s anything wrong with him, though most of us probably wouldn’t want our entire culture remembered for the Headless Horseman and Rip Van Winkle. The Knickerbockers, though, were always in the background in New York.
They were the aristocracy before the Four Hundred, living quietly comfortable lives in downtown townhouses, some of which survive to this day. And they weren’t very impressed by the newly rich folk after the Civil War, which is why Mrs. Astor and company had to make their own society – and did it so well that the Knickerbockers were forgotten.
Not that they disappeared.
The old Dutch families were woven into the fabric of the City and nation. Alexander Hamilton’s wife Elizabeth Schuyler Hamilton was a granddaughter of one of the oldest families: the Van Rensselaers.
You may have heard of one of the other Knickerbocker clans: the Roosevelts. At least one historian considers Teddy Roosevelt’s old-school aristocratic upbringing a key part of the politician he became.
The Dutch influence is also all over New York, if you know where to look. Many iconic place names come from the early settlers – including Brooklyn, Staten Island and even Broadway. Not to mention, as one expert points out, that every place name ending in “kill” is Dutch.
By the late 19th century, Knickerbocker was less a designation for an Olde Dutch aristocrat, and more popular slang for a Manhattanite. That’s why we’re Knicks fans…aren’t we?
A real Knickerbocker, though, turned out to be the perfect addition to Ella Shane’s world. Cabot Bridgewater – the family name was originally de Brede Wege, also anglicized to “Broadway” – is from a clan so old and wealthy they don’t bother much with pretensions. He’s an opera and baseball fancier, and committed to using his resources for good. All of which makes him a great friend for Ella and her cousin Tommy.
Unfortunately, his wealth and prominence also makes him a target, and he’s not going to have an easy ride in A FATAL OVERTURE!
A later Knickerbocker appears in my contemporary mystery, LIVE, LOCAL, AND DEAD. The Vermont governor was originally Will Auchincloss, from an old Scots family, but while I was researching Cabot, I came across the name Ten Broeck…and the Knickerbocker, as the main character calls him, was born.
And then there’s “Knickerbocker Glory.” It’s probably too sweet for Cabot or Will – but I want to try the British dessert, which apparently is sort of a fancy fruit sundae. Sign me up!
Got a #ThrowbackThursday idea? Drop it in the comments!
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