Abstract
In February 1660, supercargo Laurens de Sille sailed from New Amsterdam (Manhattan) to Curaçao aboard the galliot Nieuwer Amstel. Tasked with maintaining a record of the cargo, De Sille kept a journal of the four-month journey to Curaçao and back. While keeping a journal was common practice on Dutch ships, few survive from the seventeenth century. De Sille’s journal offers a unique insight into mid-seventeenth-century shipping activities at Curaçao, as his account captures day-to-day proceedings during a period for which there are only sparse extant sources on the island’s history. More importantly, De Sille’s chronicle of his two-month stay on the island depicts Curaçao as it emerged as a hub for the Dutch transatlantic slave trade.
1 Introduction
In late winter 1660, the crew of the Nieuwer Amstel lifted anchor in New Amsterdam, destined for Curaçao. The primary purpose of the voyage was to supply the Dutch-controlled island with much-needed provisions and, secondarily, to procure horses from nearby Aruba as return cargo for New Amsterdam. The recent discovery of the ship’s journal in a Dutch provincial archive provides a unique opportunity to shed light on contemporary interactions between the two Dutch Atlantic colonies of New Netherland and Curaçao. Accompanied by a Dutch transcription and an English translation of the journal, this article contextualizes a rare primary source that provides insight into seventeenth-century Dutch Atlantic navigational practices, regional shipping patterns and trade, the rise of Curaçao as a center of Caribbean commerce, and the transatlantic and intra-American trafficking of enslaved people.
2 Background
The Dutch West India Company (WIC) conquered Curaçao in 1634, with the intention of turning it into a base for privateering ventures against Spanish and Portuguese shipping and for raids against enemy colonies on the mainland. These plans were hampered by the island’s arid climate, which did not provide an adequate fresh-water supply or sufficient food resources.1 For most food supplies, Dutch forces on Curaçao were initially dependent on capturing goats and sheep as well as local tortoises, and on dried beans from ships arriving from the Dutch Republic. Seeking additional ways of provisioning, the WIC turned to New Netherland as early as 1638 as a source for foodstuffs and other necessities for Curaçao. The exchange of New Netherland provisions for salt, horses, sugar, dyewood, and enslaved people was intended to provide an essential lifeline for the Caribbean island, but volumes remained small and shipping connections intermittent. Voyages from New Netherland to Curaçao occurred on average only once a year and took from three to five weeks.2
The appointment, in 1645, and installation, in 1647, of Petrus Stuyvesant as director general of both New Netherland and the Dutch Caribbean islands reflected the ambition of the WIC to increase oversight and strengthen connections between their Atlantic possessions. Stuyvesant, who had served as director of Curaçao from 1642 until 1644, was eager to combine the administrations of the two colonial outposts. Frustrated by cumbersome communication and in the wake of the loss of Dutch Brazil, he embarked on a trip from New Amsterdam, via Barbados, to Curaçao in 1655. Upon arrival, he appointed Matthias Beck as the new vice-director of Curaçao (Heijink 2015). Looking to expand business opportunities, in 1657, Beck proposed developing the slave trade on Curaçao to build relationships with merchants from the nearby Spanish Main.3
3 Journal Provenance
The journal is part of the small collection of the “De Sille Family Papers” (coll. no. 554) housed in the Gelders Archief (provincial archives of Gelderland) in Arnhem, the Netherlands. Other documents in the collection pertain to Nicasius de Sille’s military career prior to his departure for New Netherland, such as his letter of appointment as an officer in the garrison at the town of Maastricht, signed by the stadtholder’s secretary, Constantijn Huygens. While research into the provenance and acquisition of the journal was made impossible by the COVID crisis, the veracity of the document is sufficiently corroborated by its archival context and the authenticity of both paper and handwriting.

Figure 1
Opening pages of the journal of the Nieuwer Amstel
Citation: New West Indian Guide / Nieuwe West-Indische Gids 96, 3-4 (2022) ; 10.1163/22134360-bja10017

Figure 1
Opening pages of the journal of the Nieuwer Amstel
Citation: New West Indian Guide / Nieuwe West-Indische Gids 96, 3-4 (2022) ; 10.1163/22134360-bja10017
Figure 1
Opening pages of the journal of the Nieuwer Amstel
Citation: New West Indian Guide / Nieuwe West-Indische Gids 96, 3-4 (2022) ; 10.1163/22134360-bja10017
4 Journal Author
Laurens de Sille was born in the Dutch Republic in 1643. He arrived in New Netherland in November 1653, along with his four siblings, when his father, Nicasius de Sille, took up the position of first councilor to Stuyvesant.4 A Latin vocabulary in the same quire as the journal indicates that Laurens studied the Latin language, a skill tied to an upper-tier education.5 He had already served the WIC in New Amsterdam for four years as a cadet when, at 16 years of age, he applied for the position of supercargo on the galliot Nieuwer Amstel. After his return from Curaçao, De Sille continued to serve the administration in New Netherland as a clerk in the secretary’s office until his resignation in 1663. He returned to the Dutch Republic after the 1664 English takeover of New Netherland and eventually became Ontvanger van convooien en licenten (Receiver of duties for imports and exports) in Waalwijk, where he died in 1729.6
5 The Ship
The Nieuwer Amstel arrived in New Netherland, from Amsterdam, in August 1657. Together with a larger ship, the Waegh, the Nieuwer Amstel brought colonists and supplies to New Amstel, the new settlement on the Delaware River sponsored by the City of Amsterdam. The Nieuwer Amstel was a galliot, a mid-sized merchant vessel with a shallow draft, especially useful for river expeditions. The galliot was to remain in New Amstel at the disposal of the city colony’s director, Jacob Alrichs, for local communication. Owned by the City of Amsterdam, the galliot was occasionally chartered for coastal voyages, especially in winter, when ice prevented navigation on the rivers.7 In 1659, merchant Augustin Herman outfitted the Nieuwer Amstel for a voyage to Curaçao and St. Kitts, where it supplied provisions and returned with sugar, salt, and dyewood destined for transfer to Amsterdam (Gehring & Schiltkamp 1987: docs. 45–8b). The galliot’s crew consisted of its skipper, Jacob Jansz Huys, a pilot or first mate, a cook, at least three sailors, and, for some voyages, a ship’s carpenter and cabin boy (O’Callaghan, II:179–80). De Sille requested appointment as supercargo on the Nieuwer Amstel in 1660, a month before the WIC chartered the galliot for the voyage to Curaçao described below.8 Later that year, English merchant Thomas Willet chartered it for a six-month voyage to Virginia and Curaçao (O’Callaghan, II:124–25). In 1662, the Nieuwer Amstel was sold to “some Englishmen” (Gehring 1981:310).
6 The Voyage
The main purpose of the 1660 voyage of the Nieuwer Amstel was to supply Curaçao with provisions and other necessary goods from New Netherland, in response to repeated requests by Vice-Director Beck. The WIC directors in Amsterdam had previously dispatched the small vessel Diemen for use between New Netherland and Curaçao, but that ship was lost on the return leg of its first voyage in 1658. Without a dedicated vessel at his disposal to provision Curaçao from New Netherland, Stuyvesant chartered the Nieuwer Amstel for 500 guilders per month, in addition to providing food for the galliot’s crew.9 The galliot arrived in New Amsterdam, from New Amstel, a few days before Christmas in 1659, to take on supplies of beams, timber, and wagons, and provisions of wheat, peas, mackerel, bacon, and other meat.10
De Sille’s journal records the galliot’s departure from the roadstead of New Amsterdam on February 17, 1660. In the first weeks of the journey at sea, De Sille’s entries consist of reports about the weather, the sails they employed, geographic locations, and any land sightings. The ship sailed east toward Bermuda to avoid the strong, northerly Gulf Stream and to set an easterly approach to Curaçao, in traversable currents. Though uneventful on the surface, this section of the journal documents the seventeenth-century shipping route from New Netherland to Curaçao, while highlighting the dangers inherent to sailing to the Caribbean—unique historical elements that are not often found in other types of records.11 Passing Bermuda, the crew found themselves six feet from a rocky outcrop west of the island, and confronted with a funnel of reefs ahead, which they escaped, “through God’s grace.” Like an iceberg, any peak visible above the water line hints at a greater mass underwater. Knowing this, the crew kept a close watch as they sailed south past St. Kitts, for tiny Aves Island, a known but treacherous outcropping in an otherwise deceptively open sea. As the Nieuwer Amstel neared its destination, the galliot stopped briefly at Bonaire, where the crew encountered another Dutch ship, the Stadt Hamburgh. The ship had come from Cayenne (present-day French Guiana), where it had conveyed 72 passengers to establish a new colony, and was loading salt before returning to Amsterdam.12 Just over three weeks into the voyage, Curaçao came into view.
On the Nieuwer Amstel’s arrival at Curaçao on March 12, the crew found three large ships in the harbor, along with two smaller ships and a galliot. The vessels De Sille records in his two months at Curaçao provide a snapshot of ships’ activities at the island in 1660. This is where the journal provides us with especially significant information not available through other sources. The documentation of these other voyages contributes valuable historical details, such as dates of arrival and departure, the identities of skippers, and the nature of maritime business, which complement broader sources and add to our understanding of contemporary shipping patterns. The St. Jan and the St. Jacob, which De Sille mentions as departing soon after his arrival, are likely two of the ships he encountered in the harbor. On March 13, he describes a boat arriving from the Spanish Main, carrying four Spaniards, who stayed for a week. The ship Eyckenboom had arrived earlier, carrying enslaved people from Africa, and Vice-Director Beck clearly had interested buyers. A letter to Stuyvesant reflects Beck’s dismay at having had to turn away two large Spanish ships from Cadiz in January, “after having sailed over in five weeks expressly to fetch Negroes contracted for,” as he hoped for the timely arrival of the Eyckenboom (Gehring & Schiltkamp 1987: doc. 55). De Sille also notes a WIC ship from Delft, the Fama (or Faem), arriving from Africa on March 28 after the sermon that Sunday, and carrying an unknown number of enslaved people to the island.
While the Trans-Atlantic Slave Trade Database contains entries for five voyages to Curaçao as the principal place of slave-landing in 1660, including that of the Eyckenboom, there is no record for the Fama.13 Further, the database shows a total of five slave voyages to Curaçao in the adjacent years of 1659 and 1661, but cannot convey nuance for other slave voyages, such as that of the St. Jan, which was wrecked nearby in late 1659 but was nonetheless destined for Curaçao (Gehring & Schiltkamp 1987: doc. 52). While De Sille does not indicate whether any of the other ships he encountered carried enslaved Africans, his journal allows us to add the voyage of the Fama, and suggests that there were more ships that brought enslaved Africans to the island than have been documented to date. His observations of 14 ships at Curaçao during his two-month stay, including the Stadt Hamburgh returning from Cayenne, also make it evident that the transport of enslaved people from Africa was only part of the shipping activity that touched the island in that period.
Table 1
Ships De Sille encountered at Curaçao, March 12–May 8, 1660
Vessel name |
Voyage origination |
Shipping activity noted |
---|---|---|
Unnamed Ship |
Unknown |
|
Unnamed Ship |
Unknown |
|
Unnamed Ship |
Unknown |
|
Unnamed Galliot |
Unknown |
Acquisition of horses |
St. Jacob |
Unknown |
|
St. Jan |
Unknown |
|
Unnamed Spanish Boat |
Spanish Main |
Unknown trade |
St. Jan |
St. Croix or Other |
Trade with Spanish Main Salt procurement |
Fama (or Faem) |
Delft |
Trade of enslaved people |
Stadt Hamburgh |
Amsterdam |
Salt procurement |
Eyckenboom |
Amsterdam |
Trade of enslaved people Salt procurement Acquisition of horses |
St. Joanna |
Unknown |
Acquisition of horses |
St. Paulus |
Unknown |
Unknown |
St. Mattheus |
Unknown |
Salt procurement |
Besides activities surrounding the slave trade, De Sille’s journal pays particular attention to the acquisition of salt and horses. From the beginning of the Dutch occupation of Curaçao, the island, along with neighboring Bonaire and Aruba, played an important role in the production of specific commodities and in facilitating their export. Salt harvested from the natural salt pans of Bonaire, and horses introduced previously by the Spanish on Aruba, constituted the main export items from Curaçao to New Netherland, both for local use and for re-export to English colonies. In addition to the Stadt Hamburgh, which remained at Curaçao for two additional weeks after loading salt at Bonaire, the Eyckenboom also loaded salt at Bonaire after disembarking its captives, and then returned to Curaçao. De Sille further records a galliot, St. Jan, intending to load salt together with another ship, St. Mattheus, after returning from a visit to the Spanish Main. At the end of March, De Sille describes an unnamed galliot leaving for Aruba in search of a cargo of horses. He also notes the departure of a large ship, St. Joanna, which sailed via Aruba in May for horses after a month-long stay. On Curaçao, Vice-Director Beck ordered the Eyckenboom to pick up horses at Aruba, along with the Nieuwer Amstel, for transport to New Netherland.14
The Nieuwer Amstel departed Curaçao for Aruba, together with the Eyckenboom, on the evening of May 8. De Sille’s journal does not document the galliot’s cargo of lemon juice, sugar, conch, and cheese, nor the passengers it carried, including two indigenous Curaçaoans Stuyvesant had requested to help care for the horses.15 It also contains no mention of the 20 enslaved Africans the galliot’s companion ship, the Eyckenboom, transported from Curaçao to New Netherland, one of whom died during the voyage.16 After arriving at Aruba, crews of both ships loaded hay for the animals. The Nieuwer Amstel boarded 24 horses, 6 sheep, and 6 goats, while the Eyckenboom loaded 50 horses.
The two ships set sail for New Netherland, together, on May 20. After three weeks at sea, De Sille communicated about the condition of the horses with the crew of the Eyckenboom, who reported 18 horses dead to the Nieuwer Amstel’s 13. The crew of the Nieuwer Amstel immediately placed the remainder of their horses in slings. Nonetheless, of the 74 horses aboard the two ships, only 27 survived the journey, and those were barely able to stand, having become malnourished and debilitated from poor-quality fodder during the voyage.17
On the afternoon of June 22, the Nieuwer Amstel approached Sandy Hook and encountered a fisherman, who subsequently announced the ships’ pending arrival in Manhattan.18 That evening, the two ships anchored before the entrance to the bay. The next day they rounded what is now Coney Island and arrived in the roadstead of Manhattan at about 4 o’clock in the afternoon.
7 Concluding Remarks
The edited journal, presented here in the original Dutch language and with an English translation, is of significance for a variety of reasons. It constitutes a very rare, perhaps the only, example of a journal of an intra-American voyage starting in New Amsterdam (in contrast to transatlantic voyages between Amsterdam and New Amsterdam, of which six examples are extant). It is therefore a unique source for seventeenth-century navigational information for both the route from New Amsterdam to Curaçao as well as for the return voyage from the Caribbean. Similarly, it contains rare details about the nature, acquisition, and handling of cargoes, especially surrounding the salt and horse trade from Curaçao and the adjacent Dutch-controlled islands. Finally, the journal’s specific information on shipping movements at Curaçao, not found in other sources, adds considerable insight to our understanding of the rise of Curaçao as an entrepôt for trade with Spanish colonies in various commodities, including enslaved Africans. In doing so, the journal also contributes information that allows a number of emendations to be made to the Trans-Atlantic Slave Trade Database. More broadly, De Sille’s journal provides a rare view of Curaçao during an interval of lesser-known activity, as the island gradually transformed from an isolated base from which to attack Iberian ships, to its later, more widely recognized, role as a Caribbean center of trade.

Figure 2
The route of the Nieuwer Amstel, outlined on the map, “America Septentrionalis” (1641)
Citation: New West Indian Guide / Nieuwe West-Indische Gids 96, 3-4 (2022) ; 10.1163/22134360-bja10017

Figure 2
The route of the Nieuwer Amstel, outlined on the map, “America Septentrionalis” (1641)
Citation: New West Indian Guide / Nieuwe West-Indische Gids 96, 3-4 (2022) ; 10.1163/22134360-bja10017
Figure 2
The route of the Nieuwer Amstel, outlined on the map, “America Septentrionalis” (1641)
Citation: New West Indian Guide / Nieuwe West-Indische Gids 96, 3-4 (2022) ; 10.1163/22134360-bja10017
Acknowledgments
The authors would like to thank Rik Wassenaar, without whom it is unlikely that the existence of the ship’s journal would have come to their attention. The authors also thank Greg O’Malley and the anonymous peer reviewers for their suggestions and remarks.
English Translation19
Page [1] Journal of the Voyage made with the Galliot Nieuwer Amstel to Curaçao from Amsterdam in New Netherland
Sailed out on Tuesday, February 17
Anno: 1660
Kept by [Laurens] D[e] Sille, Supercargo
[2] Year: 1660: Journal or daily record of what occurred to us on the voyage to Curaçao with the galliot Nieuwer Amstel
Tuesday
Feb. 17. We set sail with a NW wind from the City of Amsterdam at 2 o’clock in the afternoon, and yet reached the sea toward evening;20 the course SEbS.21
18. At noon we reckoned to be about 19 miles from the coast;22 the wind WbN with a topsail breeze;23 the course as before.
19. At 6 o’clock, during the morning watch, it became calm and began to rain hard, and at midday the weather cleared up again;24 the wind then turned NEbE with a nice breeze; reckoned latitude 38°5′; the course as before; we added our bowsprit sail again.25
20. In the morning at daybreak the wind NE, calm with a cloudy sky; toward noon a topsail breeze began to blow from the ENE;26 we set our course SE; at midday it began to rain very hard with a travado;27 we lowered our topsail; during the night it was sometimes calm and sometimes very blustery weather again; the wind NE North and West with a hollow sea.28
[3] Feb. 21. In the morning, wind NNE, course SEbS with hollow swells, rainy weather; in the afternoon it began to clear up, and we added our bowsprit sail again.
22. During the morning watch the wind turned NNW and a storm began to blow; we let it run with just our jib and topgallant sail;29 we lowered the mainsail and mizzen;30 at noon our topsail came falling down from above; we then hoisted the bowsprit sail on the one side and the forestay sail on the other;31 at midday we reckoned the latitude at 33°57′; the course as before; the wind NW with a stiff ongoing breeze.
23. The wind NE with a topsail breeze; our course SSE; at noon at latitude 32°34′; this was the first time that we measured latitude; about 1 o’clock we saw land ahead which was Bermuda;32 we then turned away from the land; about two hours later, we turned again toward the shore to pass the west hook; toward the evening (we were about 1½ miles from land) we could see clear ground through the water; we cast out the lead; we were at 4 fathoms water; then we turned away from shore; we were then on a reef [4] protruding from the west point of Bermuda; we sailed past a large rocky outcrop lying above water to the windward of us about 6 feet away, and on the lee and straight ahead it was full of reefs so that we were suddenly surrounded as if in a funnel of reefs;33 nonetheless we sailed so close to the wind that we made it out of there through God’s grace, and then let it run right off the island; in the evening about 8 o’clock we returned to our course.
24. During the morning watch it began to rain with a nice breeze from the NE; however the weather cleared up with a weak breeze; toward noon it began to rain a little again, so we could not obtain latitude; in the afternoon the wind turned NNW with nice weather and calm; our course SbE; we readied our topsail that had come falling down from above on the 22nd and hoisted it; during the night we took it in again; variable weather with wind and rain from all directions.
25. In the morning quite variable weather with rain, thunder, and lightning, and strong wind from all directions; we shortened our sail and let it run with just the jib and during the night a storm blew with rain; the wind easterly, course WSW; we lowered our bonnet.34
[5] Feb. 26. In the morning it was still blustery weather with rain and strong wind from the east; toward noon it began to wane somewhat and cleared up; at noon the latitude was 29°39′ with a nice breeze, our course SbE; in the afternoon we hoisted our mainsail along with the topsail.35
Feb. 27. In the morning the wind ENE with a nice breeze; we hoisted our bonnet again; our course SSE; toward noon it began to rain so that no latitude could be obtained; it cleared up again in the afternoon with a fair topsail breeze.
28. In the morning the wind NE with a nice breeze; our course SSE with drizzle; toward noon it began to clear up and the weather became nice; at noon at latitude 26°37′; during the night it began to rain hard again.
29. Still rainy weather; the wind and course as before; toward noon it cleared up; at noon the latitude 25°2′; then our course was SbE; during the night it began to rain hard and to blow stiffly.
[6] March First. The wind NE; in the morning rainy weather; at noon at latitude 22°52′; our course SbE with fair weather and a mild breeze.
2. At noon at latitude 20°52′; the wind N; our course SbE, calm.
3. In the morning the wind turned SSW and W; at noon at 20°33′ latitude; the course South, and SbE; the wind W with a mild breeze.36
4. In the morning the wind was still SSW; course SbE; at midday at 19°37′ latitude, with fair weather and a mild breeze.
5. In the morning the wind changed to N; our course SbW; at noon at 18°41′ latitude; after mealtime we saw land SSE of us; our course was then SbE; at about 4 o’clock we identified it and it was St. Martin;37 thereupon we also saw Sombrero lying WNW of us;38 we also saw Antigua and Anguilla;39 then we saw the four mountains40 that lie a little more westerly, [7] as St. Eustatius41 straight ahead, very high land; Saba also came into view;42 we also saw St. Kitts;43 we saw a sail straight ahead but could not get to it because night fell upon us; we set our course to SSW; the wind E with a moderate breeze.
6. In the morning good weather; the wind E with a moderate breeze; our course SSW; at noon at latitude 17°5′; we still saw the mountains; we caught two large kingfish on the drag line;44 we piloted during the night out of fear of Aves Island;45 during the morning watch we stayed our course.
7. Sunday morning, the wind NE and course SSW; at noon at 15°22′ latitude with nice weather and a steady breeze; during the night it began to rain hard.
8. In the morning it cleared up; the wind ENE; course SSW; at noon at 13°24′ latitude; we piloted during the night for fear of land; during the morning watch we stayed our course [remainder crossed out].
[8] March 9. In the morning our course SSW; at sunrise we saw land ahead and it was Orchila Island;46 it is high mountainous land; we then set our course WbN, the wind ENE with a stiff topsail breeze and sometimes blustery weather with rain, but it cleared up again; in the afternoon we saw land again WSW of us; we identified it and it was Las Aves Archipelago;47 we then sailed southward to run above Las Aves and when we were above it we then set our course to WbN.
10. Last night after 6 glasses had passed in the first watch we tacked about until daybreak;48 when it became day we were near the east point of Bonaire, and came to anchor in the bay about 7 o’clock in the morning with a stiff breeze, the wind EbS;49 we found a large ship named Stadt Hamburgh at the pier, which was loading salt; the skipper was Jacob Maesen Cloot, who came from Cayenne.50
[9] March 11. We lay at Bonaire this day since the commander could not finish the letters; in the evening we took our leave.
12. In the morning about 4 o’clock we set sail from Bonaire with an easterly wind; by day Curaçao came into view; toward midday we arrived at the roadstead of Curaçao;51 there we found three large ships and two small ones, as well as a galliot.
13. In the afternoon we unloaded some goods; a Spanish boat with four Spaniards came from the mainland.52
14. Sunday; nothing special occurred.
15. We were busy with unloading.
16. We were still occupied with unloading.
17. We were still occupied with unloading.
18. In the afternoon we finished unloading.
[10] March 19. Nothing special occurred.
20. The Spanish boat that had come here on the 13th of this month left.
21. Sunday.
22. We were busy tarring the galliot and getting ready to load our horses.
25. A ship named St. Jacob set sail from the roadstead.
27. In the morning another ship set sail, named St. Jan.53
28. Sunday morning a galliot named St. Jan arrived from St. Cruijs;54 in the morning after the sermon a West India Company ship from Delft named the Fama came from West Africa with Negroes.55
30. A galliot departed to Aruba for horses.
[11] March 31. In the evening the galliot that had come from St. Cruijs on the 28th left for the mainland.
April 2. The ship Stadt Hamburgh arrived here from Bonaire.
4. Sunday.
7. In the evening the galliot that had left on March 31st returned.
8. At midday a ship named Eyckenboom arrived here from Bonaire; it was supposed to load salt there but had drifted away with 3 anchors.56
11. Sunday.
12. In the afternoon a large ship named St. Joanna arrived here.
[12] April 17. In the morning the ship Stadt Hamburgh sailed from here.
18. Sunday.
21. A yacht named St. Paulus arrived here.
22. A ship named St. Mattheus arrived here.57
25. Sunday.
May 2. Sunday.
5. We rigged our sails.
6. The ship St. Mattheus left with the galliot St. Jan to St. Cruijs; the ship as well as St. Jan intends to load salt.
7. [words crossed out]
[13] May 8. In the evening we set sail in the company of the ship Eyckenboom; we lit a fire in the evening and started WNW.58
9. In the morning the wind ESE; course WbN; in the misty weather we saw no land; about 8 o’clock we saw land ahead; we identified it about noon and it was the Paraguaná Peninsula on the mainland since we had drifted past Aruba;59 we turned then ENE; in the afternoon Aruba came into view; we came into the bay in the dark and ran aground; we then applied an anchor astern and got off that way; we then dropped anchor.
10. We drew in close to the shore.
12. In the afternoon we loaded our hay.
13. The ship Eyckenboom loaded hay.
16. Pentecost Sunday; in the afternoon the ship St. Joanna arrived from Curaçao to get horses.
[14] May 17. The ship Eyckenboom loaded horses; in the afternoon we loaded 4 horses.
18. We loaded 20 more horses and 6 sheep and 6 goats.
19. The ship Eyckenboom cast off.
20. We set sail in the afternoon with the ship Eyckenboom; the wind E and ENE; course NbE and during the night NNE with a stiff topsail breeze.
21. At noon we found latitude 13°59′; weather and wind as before; in the afternoon the wind changed to EbS and ESE; the course NE and NEbN; we added our topgallant sail again and took it in again in the evening during the first watch; a horse went into a sling.
22. Before noon we hoisted our topgallant sail again; at noon at latitude 15°48′; the wind E; course NNE; after mealtime our topgallant sail came falling down from aloft, but we readied it and hoisted it again; hung another horse in a sling.
[15] May 23. During the morning watch we lowered our topgallant sail in blustery weather; the wind EbN, the course NbE and NNE; at noon at latitude 17°33′; we hoisted our topgallant sail again with a sharp breeze; in the evening we saw Hispaniola but could not make a survey of it;60 we then turned toward sea; in the first watch the course E and EbS and ESE.
24. In the morning we turned again toward the coast; the course NbE; at midday we were close to the coast, about 5 or 6 miles west of Santo Domingo;61 Toward the evening we turned again from the coast; the course S and ESE; during the dog watch one of our horses died and we hung another horse in a sling.62
25. In the morning we turned again toward the coast with some rain; the wind EbS; course NNE and NEbN; at midday we were a little west of the harbor of Santo Domingo; turning then again toward sea; the course SE and SSE; weak breeze; toward the evening we turned again toward land, afterward again toward sea; during the night two horses died; we also had a small travado.
[16] May 26. In the morning we turned again toward the coast; in the afternoon we turned toward sea; course SbE, the wind E and ESE; toward the evening we again turned toward the coast; in the evening we turned toward sea again.
27. In the morning we turned again toward land; at midday we came about 1½ miles above Catalina Island then turned again toward sea;63 toward the evening we came close below Saona but could not come to anchor;64 we kept close that night.
28. In the morning about 8 o’clock we came to anchor below the west point of Saona to see if we could obtain water there; we dug a pit and got just one cargo of water that day but it was very brackish;65 in the morning a horse died.
29. In the morning, as it became day, a horse died; before noon two horses died, among them a mare; we fetched two cargoes of water.
[17] May 30. In the early morning another horse died; at about 8 o’clock we went to sail together with an easterly wind and rainy weather; the course SE with a sharp breeze; in the afternoon we turned toward the coast again and toward the evening back toward sea; we lowered our mizzen sail to stay with the Eyckenboom.
31. In the morning the wind as before; we could briefly see the ship Eyckenboom to our lee; we were then at the east point of Saona, turning then from the shore; then another horse died; we saw a sail straight ahead coming toward us; it was very close to us; we sailed then before the wind toward the Eyckenboom and hoisted our topgallant sail (that we had taken in to wait for the Eyckenboom);66 shortly afterward the ship went its course; turning then together toward the coast, we came three miles lower than in the morning, then turned again toward sea and in the afternoon again toward the shore, and in the evening again toward sea.
[18] June First. At night we turned again toward the shore; in the morning we were about a mile east of Saona; then we turned again toward sea and the wind ENE; at midday again toward land; toward the evening we had a travado; we lowered our topgallant sail, and after sundown hoisted it again, and at the end of the first watch took it in again with blustery weather.
2. In the morning, blustery weather of thunder, lightning, and hard rain; we passed the east hook of Hispaniola NbW of us but we could not get above it; after mealtime the weather calmed down a little; we then turned toward sea again and hoisted our topgallant sail; at noon we had lost more than we had gained; toward the evening we lowered our topgallant sail with a travado; Mona came into view EbN of us and Monito, ENE of us and the course mostly SSE;67 the wind E and EbN.
[19] June 3. Last night we turned again at the beginning of the middle watch and hoisted our bowsprit sail;68 the wind EbS and ESE; the course NNE and NEbE; in the morning we lowered our bowsprit sail and hoisted our topgallant sail again; we then had Monito mostly ESE of us and at midday it was calm; we passed the cape of Hispaniola named Cabo Engaño NW of us and Saona lay SSE of us;69 the course NNE; the wind EbS; calm.
4. At midday we found latitude 19°25′; weak breeze; course NbE; the wind EbS with good weather.
5. At noon very calm; we had a latitude of 20°42′; the course NbE; we set our boat out and sailed to the ship Eyckenboom to see if we could obtain any stockfish since ours had run out, but nothing.70
6. In the morning toward daybreak still very calm; when the sun came up a small breeze came out of the SW but at mealtime we had a travado from the N; we lowered our topgallant sail, navigating then somewhat to the west but it did not take long before the wind turned W again with a weak breeze; the course N.
[20] June 7. At midday we were at latitude 21°32′; the wind SW with a calm; course NbE; in the afternoon a light breeze came out of the east; in the evening it began to blow a nice breeze with good progress.
8. At noon we reckoned latitude of 23°8′; in the afternoon we passed the ecliptic;71 course NbW with a nice mild breeze.
9. In the morning at daybreak another horse died; the wind SSE, the course NbW; at noon at latitude 24°30′ with a mild breeze.
10. At noon we reckoned latitude 26°35′; the wind and course were as before with an overcast sky and fair breeze; in the afternoon another horse died.
[21] June 11. Last night a nice breeze; in the morning rainy weather; after mealtime we got a sharp breeze; at noon we reckoned latitude of 28°; the wind SSW and SW; mild breeze; the course NNW; in the afternoon calm; toward the evening we had a strong travado out of the west; we lowered our topgallant sail and quickly hoisted it again; when the travado was over the twelfth horse died.
12. At noon at reckoned latitude of 28°30′; blustery; the wind W and then again somewhat southerly; in the afternoon WbN with a mild breeze.
13. Toward day the wind changed to NE and NEbE; toward 8 o’clock we turned our course to W and WbN with a mild breeze; at noon at latitude 29°15′.
[22] June 14. In the morning the wind ENE; the course NW and NWbN; in the morning the thirteenth horse died; at noon at latitude 29°35′; course NNE with a calm.
15. In the morning our topsail came falling down from aloft and we hoisted it again; the wind SW, course NNW with a weak breeze, though it began to increase in strength; at noon at the latitude of 30°29′; in the afternoon we spoke with the Eyckenboom; they already had 18 horses dead; we hung all our horses in slings and in the evening hoisted our bowsprit sail to keep up with the Eyckenboom.
16. In the morning at daybreak we had a strong travado with hard rain and wind with thunder and lightning; we gathered a portion of water; toward midday it began to clear up, then the wind turned westerly; course NWbN; in the afternoon the fourteenth horse died.
[23] June 17. In the morning the wind NW; course NbE and NNE with a weak breeze; toward midday it began to get very calm; at noon at the latitude of 32°35′; in the afternoon the fifteenth horse died; toward the evening the wind changed to W and WSW; the course NWbN with a nice breeze.
18. In the morning the wind W with lightning, thunder, and rain; at noon we found latitude of 34°; good weather, the wind W; the course NNW; we kept the course NbW for 24 hours.
19. In the morning a sheep died; the wind SE with a sharp breeze and good headway; course NWbN; at noon at latitude 35°36′.
[24] June 20. In the morning the wind SEbS; course NWbN with a sharp breeze and good progress; at noon at latitude 36°59′; toward the evening we saw a sail; we proceeded toward him and called to him; he came from Manhattan and wanted to go to Virginia; he said that Smith Island lay WbN of us;72 we cast out the lead at 12 fathoms shell ground, and shortly afterward saw land; we then headed NEbN with a sharp breeze; the wind South and SbW.
21. In the morning the wind South; course NE; at midday we were near Delaware Bay; in the evening we were by the Egg Harbor;73 the wind as before; we turned then NEbE.
22. In the morning the wind and course as before with rainy weather; we saw the Atlantic Highlands;74 about 8 o’clock it cleared up, then the wind changed to NbW. [25] Course NEbN with a nice breeze; toward midday it became very calm; in the afternoon a light breeze came out of the ENE; we started then NNW; we saw a sail come out by Sandy Hook, called to him and it was a boat that lay there and fished;75 toward the evening we came inside Sandy Hook; about one hour after sundown we let our anchor fall behind Sandy Hook at 6 fathoms.
23. During the morning watch the sixteenth horse died; in the morning about 6 o’clock we lifted our anchor and came to sail; came to anchor about 10 o’clock a little outside Coney Island because it was calm and the tide had run out;76 in the afternoon a light breeze came; we lifted our anchor and came to sail; we came about 4 o’clock to anchor in the roadstead of Manhattan.
Transcription77
Page [1] Joernael vande Reijse gedaen met het Galjoot Nieuwer Amstel naer Curaçao van Amsterdam in N. Nederlant
Uitgevaeren Op dinsdagh Den 17 Februarij Ao: 1660
Gehouden door D Sille Supra Cargo
[2] Ao: 1660: Joernael ofte dach regisster vant geene ons op de Reijs naer Curaçao, met het galjoot Nieuwer Amstel is gepasseert
Dinsdach
17. febr. gingen met een N: W: Wint van de Stadts Amsterdam te Seijl affter middachs ten 2 uren en raeckten tegen den Avont noch in Zee de Coers Z.O. ten Z:
18. do. op den middach gisten ontrent 19. mijl buijten dewal tewesen de Wint W: ten N: met topseijls Coelte de Coers als vooren
19. do. des Smorgens 6 inde dach wacht worden het stil, en begon lustich te regenen en op den middach Claerden het weer op doen liep de Wint N: O: ten O: met moeije Coelte gegiste breete 38. graeden en 5. minuten de Coers als vooren setten onse Cluijff fock daerweer bij
20. do. Smorgens met den dach de Wint N: O: met stilte, en een betrochen lucht tegen den middach begon het een marsseijls Coelte tewaeijen uijt den O: N: O: setten onse Coers Z: O: s’ middachs begon heel hart te regenen met travaeden naemen ons mars Seijl in in de nacht was het somtijts stil en somtijts weer hart travadich weder de Wint N: O: Noort en West met holle zee
[3] den 21. feb.
des smorgens Wint N: N: O: Coers Z: O: ten Z: met hollen dijningen regenachtich weder saffter middachs begon het op te Claeren, en setten ons Cluijffock daer weer bij
22. do. des Smorgens inde dach wacht liep de Wint N: N: W: en waijden een storm liettent met onse fock en topseijl soo heen loopen, het groote Seijl en besaen dicht gemaeckt op den middach quam ons mars seijl van boven neer vallen, doen hebben wij de Cluijffock aen de eene sijde geset en de stach fock aen de andere sijde op den middach gegiste breete 33. graeden 57. minuten de Coers als vooren de Wint N: W: met stijve door gaende Coelte
23. do. de Wint N: O: met top seijls Coelte onse Coers Z: Z: O: s’ middachs op de breete van 32 graeden 34 minuten dit was de eerste mael dat hooghte hadde genomen ontrent ten 1. uren saegen lant voor uijt het welcke de Barmudas was wendent doen van de Wal aff ontrent 2. uren daer nae wendent weer nae de Wal om de W hoek te passeren tegen den avont (waeren ontrent 1½ mijl van lant) conden door het waeter de claer gront sien wierpen het loot waeren op 4. vaedem waeter wendent doen van wal aff waeren doen op een riff [4] het welcke van de West punt van Barmudas uijt steeckt, seijlden voorbij een groote klip dewelck te loeffwaert boven waeter van ons lach ontrent 6. voet van ons en aen lij en recht voor uijt leijdent vol Clippen, soo dat wij gelijck als in een fuijck van Clippen beset waeren, doch staecken het soo dicht bij de Wint dat wij door Godts genaede daer uijt geraecken en lieten het doen soo recht van het Eijlant aff loopen, S’ avonts ontrent ten 8. uren gingen weder ons Coers
24. do. inde dach wacht begonde het te regenen met moeije Coelte uijt den N: O: doch Claerden weder op met slappe Coelte tegen den middach begonde het weer een weijnich teregenen alsoo dat geen hooghte conden becommen s’ afftermiddachs liep de Wint N: N: W: met mooij weer en stilte onse Coers Z: ten O: maeckten onse marsseijl weer Claer die den 22 dito van boven neer quam vallen en setten hem daer bij, Inde nacht naemen hem weer in, variable weder met Wint en regen uijt alle boegen
25. do. des s’ morgens noch al variable weder met regen donder en blixem, en harde Wint uijt alle boegen hebben ons seijl dicht gemaeckt en liettent soo met de fock heen lopen, Inde nacht waeijden het een Storm met regen de Wint oostelijck Coers W: Z: W: namen ons Bonnet in
[5] 26. Feb.
des Smorgens was noch ongestruijmich weder met regen en harde Wint uijt de oostelijcke kant tegen den middach begon het wat te bedaeren en claerden op s’ middachs de hoochte was 29. graeden en 39 minuten met mooije Coelte onse Coers Z: ten O: nae de middach maeckten ons schover seijl daer bij met het Marsseijl
27. febr. s’ morgens de Wint O: N: O: met mooije Coelte maeckten ons bonnet daer weer bij onse Coers Z: Z: O: tegen den middach begon het te regenen soo dat geen hooghte conden becommen, Claerden s’ aftermiddachs weer op met mooije topseijls Coelte
28. do. S’ morgens de Wint N: O: met mooije Coelte onse Coers Z: Z: O: met stoff Regen tegen de middach begonde het op te Claeren en werde mooij weder, s’ middachs op de brete van 26. graeden 37. minuten, s’ nachts begonde het weer lustich te regenen
29. do. noch regenachtig weder de Wint en Coers als vooren tegen den middach Claerden het op, s middachs de brete van 25. graeden 2 minuten doen onse Coers Z: ten Oosten s’ nachts begonde het hart te regene en stijff aenwaeijen
[6] Primo Maert
de Wint N: O: s’ morgens regenachtich weder s’ middachs op de brete van 22 graeden 52. minuten onse Coers Z: ten O: met mooij weer en mooije Coelte
2. do. s’ middachs op de brete van 21. graeden en 2. minuten de Wint N: onse Coers Z: ten O: met stilte
3. do. des S’ morgens liep de Wint Z: Z: W: en W: S’ middachs op de brete van 20. graeden 33. minuten de Coers Zuijden, en Z: ten O: de Wint W: met een Labber Coelte
4. do. s’ morgens de Wint noch Z: Z: W: Coers Z: ten O: s’ middachs op de brete van 19. graeden en 37. minuten, met mooij weer, en een Labber Coelte
5. do. s’ morgens liep de Wint N: onse Coers Z: ten W: s’ middachs op den brete van 18. graeden 41 minuten nae het schaffen van de kock saegen lant Z: Z: O: van ons doen onse koers Z: ten O: raeckten ontrent ten 4. uren verkent en t’ was St. Maarten, saegen oock daernae Sombrere lagh W: N: W: van ons saegen oock Antigua en Anguilla doen saegen de vier bergen die een weijnich westelijcker leggen [7] Als Stacio recht voor uijt heel hooch lant kregen oock Saba int gesicht saegen oock St. Christoffel, saegen een seijl recht voor uijt maer conden bij hem niet comen overmits de nacht ons overviel setten onse Coers Z: Z: W: aen de Wint O: met redelijke Coelte
6. do. s’ morgens goet weer de Wint O: met redelijcke Coelte onse Coers Z: Z: W: s’ middachs op de brete van 17. graeden 5. minuten saegen de Bergen noch, wij vingen aen de Sleep lijn t’wee groote Konincq Vissen leijdent s’ nachts bij vreesden voor Ille Davis inde dachwacht gingen onse Coers
7. do. sondach s’ morgens de Wint N: O: en Coers Z: Z: W: s’ middachs op de brete van 15. graeden 22. minuten met mooij weer en Mars seijls Coelte s’ nachs begon het Lustich te regenen
8. do. s’ morgens claerden het op de Wint O: N: O: Coers Z: Z: W: s’ middachs op de brete van 13. graeden 24. minuten leijdent in de nacht bij vreesden voor lant in de dach wacht gingen onse Coers [remainder crossed out]
[8] 9. maartij
s’ morgens onse Coers Z: Z: W: met Sonnen op gank saegen voor uijt lant en het was Orchilla het is hooch Bergachtich lant stelden doen onse Coers W: ten N: de Wint O: N: O: met stijve top seijls Coelte en somtijts travadich weder met regen doch Claerden weer op, nae de middach saegen weder lant W: Z: W: van ons raekten verkent en ‘t was Ille Davidts seijlde doen Z: henen om boven Ille Davids te loopen en doen wij daer boven waeren setten doen onse Coers W: ten N: aen
10. do. Verleden nacht doen daer 6 glaesen inde eerste wacht uijt waeren hebben wij het bijgesmeten tot dach toe, doen het dach was waeren wij dicht neffens de O: punt van Bonaijro, en quamen ontrent ten 7. uren voor de middach inde Baeij ten ancker met een lustige Coelte, de Wint O: ten Z: vonden aende stellingh een groot Schip genaempt De Stadt Hamburgh daer schipper op was Jacob Maesen Cloot dewelcke aldaer Sout laeden hij quaem van Cajana
[9] 11. Martij
Bleven desen dach noch aen Bonaijro leggen alsoo den Commandeur niet claer konde raecken met de brieven, saevonts naemen ons affschijt
12. do. s’ morgens ontrent ten 4 uren gingen met een ooste[lijck] Wint van Bonaijro t’ zeijl met den dach kregen Curaçao int gesicht quam tegen de middach op de ree van Curaçao, vond aldaer 3. groote scheepen en 2 cleijne met een galjoot
13. do. Losten s’ aftermiddachs eenige goederen, daer quam een Spaense Boot met 4. Spaegnarden van de vaste Cust
14. do. Sondach niet besonders voorgevallen
15. do. Waeren besich met Lossen
16. do. Waeren noch doende met Lossen
17. do. Waeren noch doende met Lossen
18. do. s’ middachs raeckten los
[10] 19. Martio
Niet bijsonders voorgevallen
20. do. gingh de Spaensche Boot wech die den 13. deses hier was gecomen
21. do. Sondach
22. do. waeren besich met het galjoot te Teeren en claer te maken ons peerden in te nemen
25. do. ginck een Schip van de ree t’ zeijl genaemt St. Jacob
27. do. s’ morgens ging er noch een schip t’ zeijl genaemt St. Jan
28. sondach s’ morgens quam daer een galjoot van St. Cruijs [some words crossed off] genaemt St. Jan s morgens nae de predicatie comt daer een schip vande W: Indise Comp van delft uijt Gunea met Negros genaemt de Fama
30. do. ging er een galjoot nae Aruba om paerden
[11] 31. Martio
[line crossed out]
s’ avonts gingh het galjoot wech naede vaste Cust dat den 28. do. van St. Cruijs gecomen was
Aprillus
2. quam het schip de Stadt Hamburgh van Bonaijro alhier
4. do. sondach
7. do. s’ avonts quam het galjoot het welck den 31. marti was vertrocken [line crossed out]
8. do. s’ middachs quam hier een schip genaemt Den Eekenboom van Bonaijro soude aldaer sout laeden doch dreeff met 3. anckers wech
11. do. Sondach
12. do. s’ middachs arriveerde alhier een groot schip genaemt St. Joanna
[12] 17. April
s’ morgens ginck het schip de Stadt Hamburgh, van hier t’ seijl
18. do. Sondach
21. do. arriveerden alhier een jacht genaempt St. Paulus
22. do. arriveerden alhier een schip genaemt [name crossed out] St. Mattheus
25. do. Sondagh
2. Maij Sondagh
5. do. sloegen onse seijlen Aen
6. do. Vertroch het schip St. Mattheus met het galjoot St. Jan nae St. Cruijs het schip souden als St. Jan sout laeden
7. do. [words crossed out]
[13] Meijus
8. gingen savonts in Comp van het schip den Eekenboom t seijl staecken savonts een vuer op en liepen W: N: W: aen
9. do. des s’ morgens de Wint O: Z: O: Coers W: ten N: inde dijsich weder saegen geen lant ontrent ten 8. uren saegen lant vooruijt raekten ontrent ten middach verkent en het was de bocht van Cora aende Vaste Cust alsoo dat wij Aruba mis gedreven waeren liepen doen O: N: O: kregen s’ afftermiddachs Aruba int gesicht quamen met den doncker inde Baij en raekten daer vast doen brachten wij een ancker achteruijt en kregent er soo off lieten doen ons ancker vallen,
10. do. korten dicht aende Wal
12. do. s afftermiddachs laeden ons hooij
13. do. het schip den Eekenboom hooij te laeden
16. do. Pinxter sondach s afftermiddach arriveerden het schip St. Joanna van Curaçao om peerden
[14] Maijus
17. do. laeden het schip den Eekenboom peerden safftermiddachs laeden wij 4. peerden
18. do. Laeden wij noch 20. peerden en 6. schaepen en 6. geijten
19. do. wierp het schip den Eekenboom uijt
20. do. gingen safftermiddags met het schip den Eekenboom t’ seijl de Wint O: en O: N: O: Coers N: ten O: en snachts N: N: O: met stijve mars seijls Coelte
21. do. op de middach bevonden brete 13. gr 59. minuten Weer en Wint als vooren op den after middach liep de Wint O: ten Z: en O: Z: O: de Coers N: O: en N: O: ten N: maeckten ons top seijl daer weer bij en naemen het savonts in de eerste Wacht weer in gingen een paert in een hanghmack
22. do. voordemiddach setten ons top seijl daer weer bij smiddachs op de brete van 15. gr. 48. minuten de Wint O: Coers N: N: O: nae het schaffen van de kock quam ons top seijl van boven neer vallen, doch maeckten het weer claer en setten hem daer weer bij—hingen noch een paert in een hanghmack
[15] Maij
23. do. Des smorgens inde dach wacht naemen ons top seijl in travaedich weer de Wint O: ten N: de Coers N: ten O: en N: N: O: smiddachs op de brete van 17. gr. 33. min. maeckten ons top seijl daer weer bij met snedige Coelte savonts saegen Spangiole maer conden niet verkent worden hebben het doen gewent nae zee in de eerste wacht de Coers O: en O: ten Z: en O: Z: O:
24. do. Des smorgens weer gewent nae dewal de Coers N: ten O: waeren op de middach dicht bij de Wal ontrent 5. a 6. mijl bewesten St. Domingo. tegen den avont hebben weer van de Wal gewent de Coers Z: en O: Z: O: inde plat voet stierff een van onse paerden en hingen noch een paert in een hangmack
25. do. des smorgens weer gewent naedewal met wat regen de Wint O: ten Z: Coers N: N: O: en N: O: ten N: op de middach waeren een weijnich bewesten de haven van St. Domingo wendent doen weer nae zee de Coers Z: O: en Z: Z: O: slappe Coelte tegen den avont weer nae lant toe daernae weer nae zee snachts stierven daer 2. paerden, hadden ooch een Cleijn travaed
[16] Maij
26. do. des smorgens weer gewent naedewal op de aftermiddach wendent nae zee Coers Z. ten O. de Wint O. en O: Z: O: tegen den avont weer nae de wal savonts wendent weer nae zee
27. do. des smorgens weer gewent nae lant quamen op de middach ontrent 1½ mijl boven het Eijlant St. Catalina doen weer gewent nae zee tegen den avont quamen wij dicht onder Saona maer conden niet ten ancker comen hielden dien nacht off en aen
28. do. des smorgens ontrent ten 8. uren quamen wij ten ancker onder de West punt van Saona om te sien off wij daer waeter conde becomen graeffden een put en cregen dien dach noch een boot waeter doch was zeer brack, des smorgens storff een paert
29. do. des smorgens met den dach stierff een paert voor de middach stierff daer 2 paerd daeronder een merrie haelden 2 boots waeter
[17] Meij
30. do. des smorgens vroegh storff daer noch een paert gingen ontrent ten 8. uren samen t’ seijl met een ooste Wint en regenachtich weer de Coers Z: O: met een snedige Coelte wenden smiddachts weer nae de wal en tegen den avont weer nae zee naemen onse besaen in om het schip den Eekenboom bij tehouden
31. do. smorgens de Wint als vooren conden het schip den Eeknboom even sien te lijwaert van ons wij waeren doen aen de oost punt van Saona wendent doen van de Wal doen stierff daer noch een paert saegen een seijl recht voor uijt op ons affcomen was heel dicht bij ons liepen doen voorwint nae den Eekenboom en setten ons top seijl daerbij (het welcke wij ingenomen hadden om den Eeckenboom intewachten) een weijnich daernae gingh het schip sijn Coers wendent doen samen naer de Wal quaemen wel drie mijl laeger als des smorgens doen weer nae zee gewent en des affter middachs weer nae de Wal en des avonts weer nae zee
[18] Primo Junij Des snachts weer gewent nae de Wal des smorgens waeren wij ontrent een mijl beoosten Saona doen weer gewent nae zee de Wint O: N: O: en des smiddachs weer nae lant tegen den avont cregen wij een travaed naemen ons top seijl in, en nae sons onderganck weer bij gemaeckt en int laest vande eerste wacht weer ingenomen met travaedich weer
2. do. des smorgens, travadich weer van donder Blixem en harde regen, hadden de oost hoeck van Espangiole N: ten W: van ons doch conden daer niet boven comen nae kock schaffen bedaerden het weer een weijnich doen weer nae zee gewent en ons top seijl bij gemaeckt op de middach hadden wij meer verlooren als gewonnen tegen den avont ons top seijl ingenomen met een travaed cregen Moena int gesicht O: ten N: van ons en Monica, O: N: O: van ons en de Coers meest Z: Z: O: de Wint O: en O: ten N:
[19] Junij
3. Verleden nacht weer gewent int begin vande hondenwacht en onse kluijffock bij gemaekt de Wint O: ten Z: en O: Z: O: de Coers N: N: O: en N: O: ten O: des smorgens onse Cluijffock ingenomen en ons topseijl weer bij gemaeckt doen hadden wij Monica meest O: Z: O: van ons en op de middach stilletjes hadden de Cap van Espangiole genaemt Engano N: W: van ons en Saona lach Z: Z: O: van ons de Coers N: N: O: de Wint O: ten Z: stille
4. do. op de middach bevonden brete 19. gr. 25. m. slappe Coelte Coers N: ten O: de Wint O: ten Z: met goet w[eer]
5. do. op de middach heel stil hadden de hoochte van 20 gr. 42 minuten de Coers N: ten O: setten onse boot uijt en vaeren aen het schip den Eekenboom om te sien off wij eenige stockvis conden becomen alsoo de onse op was maer nihil
6. do. des smorgens tegen den dach noch heel stil doen de son op quam quam daer een kleijn coeltje uijt Z: W: maer met Kock schafften cregen wij een travatie uijt den N: naemen ons top seijl in leijdent doen W waet over maer duerden niet lanck off de Wint liep weer W: met slappe Coelte de Coers N:
[20] Junij
7. smiddachs waeren op de breete van 21 gr. 32 minuten de Wint Z: W: met stilte Coers N: ten O: op den after middach quam daer een cleijn luchie uit den oosten savonts begon het een mooije Coelte te waeijen met een goede voort ganck
8. do. smiddachs gegiste brete van 23. gr 8. min safftermiddachs passeerden wij de Son Coers N: ten W: met een mooij Labber Coelte
9. do. smorgens, met den dach stierff noch een paert de Wint Z: Z: O: de Coers N: ten W: smiddachs op de brete van 24. gr 30. minuten met een Labber Coelte
10. do. op de middach gegiste brete 26. gr. 35. de Wint en Coers als vooren met een betogen lucht en mooije Coelte safftermiddachs storff daer noch een paert
[21] Junij
11. Verleden nacht een mooije Coelte des smorgens regenachtig weder nae koch schaffen cregen wij een snedige Coelte op den middach gegiste brete van 28. gr. de Wint Z.Z.W. en Z.W. Labber Coelte de Coers N: N: W: op den afftermiddach stil tegen den avont cregen een harde travaed uit den W: namen ons top seijl in en maeckten het voort weer bij doen de travaed over was storff het twaelffste paert
12. do. smiddachs op gegiste brete van 28.–30 minuten travaedich de Wint W: en dan weer wat suijdich op den afftermiddach W: ten N: met slappe Coelte
13. do. tegen den dach liep de Wint N: O: en N: O: ten O: tegen 8. uren gewent de Coers W: en W: ten N: met slappe Coelte smiddachs op de brete van 29. graeden 15. minuten
[22] Junij
14. do. smorgens de Wint O: N: O: de Coers N: W: en N: W: ten N: op de voormiddach stierff het dertiende paert smiddachs op de breete van 29. gr. 35 minuten Coers N: N: O: met stilte
15. do. smorgens quam ons marsseijl van boven neer vallen en maeckten hem weer bij de Wint Z: W: Coers N: N: W: met slappe Coelte, doch begon hart overhant te wackeren smiddachs op de brete van 30. gr. 29. minuten safftermiddachs praeijden den Eekenboom had al 18. paerd doot, wij hingen al onse paerden in hangmaecken en namen savonts ons Cluijffock om den Eekenboom bij te blijven
16. do. smorgens met den dach cregen een harde travaed van harde regen en Wint met donder en Blixem gaerden noch een partije Waeter tegen den middach begon het op te claeren doen liep de Wint Westelijck Coers N: W: ten N: safftermiddachs storf het viertiende paert
[23] Junij
17. do. des smorgens de Wint N: W: Coers N: ten O: en N: N: O: met slappe Coelte, tegen den middach begon het heel stil te worden, smiddachs op de Brete van 32. graden 35 minuten saftermiddachs storf het vijfftiende paert tegen den avont liep de Wint W: en W: Z: W: de Coers N: W: ten N: met mooije Coelte
18. do. des smorgens de Wint W: met Blixem donder en regen op de middach bevonden brete van 34 gr. goet weer de Wint W: de Coers N: N: W: de Coers dit etmael behouden N: ten W:
19. do. des Smorgens storff een schaep de Wint Z: O: met een snedige Coelte en goede voort ganck. Coers N: W: ten N: smiddachs op de brete van 35 gr. 36. minuten
[24] Junij
20. do. des smorgens de Wint Z: O: ten Z: Coers N: W: ten N: met snedige Coelte en goede voortganck smiddachs op brete van 36. graden 59. minuten tegen den avont hebben wij een seijl gesien liepen nae hem toe en praeijde hem hij quam van de Manhatans en wou [unreadable] Virginia hij seijde dat Smidts eijlant W: ten N: van ons Lach; wij wierpen het loot op 12. vaedem schulp gront een weijnich daer nae saegen het Landt hebbent toe noort oost ten Noorden aengeset met snedige Coelte de Wint Zuijden en suiden ten Westen
21. do. des smorgens de Wint Zuijden Coers N: O: waeren smiddachs neffens Zuijt Revier Baeij, savonts waeren bij de Eijerhaven de Wint als vooren liepen doen N: O: ten O:
22. do. des smorgens de Wint en Coers als vooren met regenachtig weer saegen Renselaers hoeck ontrent ten 8 uren claerden het op doen liep de Wint N: ten W:
[25] Junij
Coers N: O: ten N: met mooije Coelte tegen den middach wierd het heel stil safftermiddachs quam daer een cleijn Coeltje uijt den O: N: O: liepen doen N: N: W: aen, saegen een seijl bij de sant punt uijtcomen, praeijden hem en twas een Boot dewelcke daer lagh en viste tegen den avont quamen wij binnen de sant punt daer en ontrent een uur nae son ons Ancker achter de sant punt vallen op 6. vadem
23. do. In de dach wacht storff het sestiende paert ontrent smorgens ten 6. uren lichten wij ons ancker en gingen t’ seijl, quamen ontrent ten 10. uren alsoo het stil was en de strom verloopen was een weijnich buijten het Kenijnen Eijlant ten ancker safftermiddachs quam daer een cleijn Luchie lichten ons ancker en gingen t’ seijl quamen ontrent ten 4. uren op de Rede van de Manhatans ten ancker
On Curaçao in the early decades following the Dutch conquest, see Goslinga 2017:267–73; Klooster 2016:155–88; Rupert 2012:17–42.
Julie van den Hout, “Voyages of New Netherland,”
Gehring & Schiltkamp 1987: doc. 28. As early as 1643, approximately 40 enslaved Africans were working in the WIC salt pans of nearby Bonaire, see Gehring & Schiltkamp 1987: doc. 5b. In 1657, the Bontekoe was the first ship to bring large numbers of enslaved people from Africa to Curaçao. The Trans-Atlantic Slave Trade Database shows the Bontekoe disembarked 281 enslaved people, see David Eltis et al., “The Trans-Atlantic Slave Trade Database,”
“Letter from Nicasius de Sille to Maximilliaen van Beeckercke” (May 23, 1654), in Van Laer 1920:100–4; “Baptismal Record of Laurens de Sille” (October 4, 1643), Doopregister, 1632–1644, St. Jan’s, Nederlands Hervormde Kerk, Maastricht.
New Amsterdam initiated the founding of a Latin School in 1659, though it is unknown whether Laurens studied Latin in the context of the school, or privately.
“Petition, Laurens de Sille for an Increase of Salary; Granted” (September 2, 1660), New York Colonial Manuscripts, New York State Archives [hereafter NYCM] 9:390; “Resignation, Laurens de Sille, Clerk in the Secretary’s Office” (May 17, 1663), NYCM 10(2):109; Regt 1922:267–71.
Questions have arisen as to whether the WIC or the City of Amsterdam owned the Nieuwer Amstel. Letters from the galliot’s skipper asking the Amsterdam City Commissioners for supplies and for his own discharge point to the City of Amsterdam as its owner, see “Skipper Huys to the Commissioners for the Colonie on the Delaware River” (December 24, 1659 and September 30, 1660) in O’Callaghan, II:114–16, 124–25.
“Petition, Laurens de Sille To Be Appointed Supercargo” (January 16, 1660), NYCM 9:26.
“Letter from Stuyvesant to the Directors at Amsterdam” (December 26, 1659), NYCM 13:60(4).
“Letter from Stuyvesant to the Directors at Amsterdam” (December 26, 1659), NYCM 13:60 (4–4v). The manifest of the Nieuwer Amstel, which includes approximately 13 bushels of peas and 190 bushels of wheat, provides an indication of the foodstuffs and supplies produced and sourced in New Netherland, see Gehring & Schiltkamp 1987: doc. 63.
For the dangers facing Atlantic ships in this era, see De Laet 1644 and Jacobs 2005:46, especially n. 3.
“Summary Charter Contract of De Stadt Hamburgh” (August 15, 1659), Notarial Archive 30452, Archief van S. Hart: (Gedeeltelijke) Toegang op de Notariële Archieven, Stadsarchief Amsterdam [hereafter SAA NA], inv. 369; “Summary Attestation of Francisco van Dalen” (May 11, 1660), SAA NA inv. 527.
The five voyages are: Eikenboom [Eyckenboom] (ID 11392), Liefde (ID 11689), Nieuw Westindisch Huis (ID 11803), Eendracht (ID 11804), and Medea (ID 44225), Eltis et al., “The Trans-Atlantic Slave Trade Database,”
In a letter to the WIC directors in Amsterdam, Stuyvesant reports that Beck sent horses to New Netherland on the Eyckenboom because there was no return freight for the ship at Curaçao, but he expresses concern that trade is also slow in New Netherland, see NYCM 13:116(10v). Stuyvesant later reprimanded Beck for shipping horses on the Eyckenboom over and above those he had ordered via the Nieuwer Amstel, which delayed the galliot and ate into any potential profits from the additional horses, see NYCM 13:117.
Gehring & Schiltkamp 1987: doc.65; “Letter from Director Stuyvesant to the Vice Director of Curaçao” (February 17, 1660), NYCM 13:70(4).
NYCM 13:116(11). The Trans-Atlantic Slave Trade Database lists New York as the second place of slave-landing for this voyage. It does not indicate the number of enslaved transported nor the death on the passage from Curaçao.
NYCM 13:117(1).
NYCM 13:116(4v).
Translation note: Adjustments have been made for capitalization, punctuation (semicolons, commas, and periods), and sentence structure, to maintain the style and tone of the original while producing a readable document in English. Directional headings expressed as points on the compass have been retained. This translation was guided by Kline 1998, especially pp. 104–16.
De Sille’s usage of Stadts Amsterdam, or City of Amsterdam, reflects the most common Dutch reference to New Amsterdam (Manhattan) as “Amsterdam in Nieu Nederlandt,” rather than “Nieu Amsterdam.” New Amsterdam was the seat of the New Netherland administration.
Southeast by South. For example, SEbS indicates a direction south of SE on a 32-point compass, bisecting SE and SSE.
The Dutch nautical mile at this time measured approximately 7.5 kilometers.
A steady breeze. The topzeil is the uppermost sail on the mast.
The dagwacht was the ship’s watch from 4:00 a.m. to 8:00 a.m.
A cluijffock, or kluiffok, is a type of triangular jib sail set forward of the mast to catch wind and act as a foil for the mainsail.
A strong, steady wind. The marsseijl, or marszeil, is the sail mounted directly above the lowermost sail on the mast, and below the topgallant sail.
Travaeden (from the Portuguese travados), any of several types of storms that arise suddenly at sea or on land, characterized by strong wind and rain, often with thunder and lightning.
From holle zee, meaning a turbulent or impetuous sea.
Fock, or fok, is the triangular jib sail set forward of the mast.
Besaen, or bezaan, is the rear sail on a smaller ship.
A stagfok is a small, triangular jib sail on the stay of the bow, often utilized during a storm.
The island archipelago of Bermuda.
The Bermuda archipelago is part of a roughly circular volcanic ridge outlined by coral reefs extending several miles to the northwest of the main land mass. There are several places where the crew could have encountered rocky reefs as they passed the west hook of the island. Land outcroppings on the lee, or the downwind side of a ship, are especially hazardous as the wind pushes the ship toward them.
A bonnet is a piece of canvas laced to the bottom of a sail to extend the sail area.
The schoverzeil is the mainsail.
Originally Labber Coelte, (Labberkoelte), meaning a mild breeze.
St. Martin is one of the Leeward Islands of the Lesser Antilles in the Caribbean. Since 1648, the island has been shared by the Dutch (south) and French (north).
Sombrero, a small island to the northwest of Anguilla.
Antigua and Anguilla are part of the Leeward Islands of the Lesser Antilles; Anguilla lies just north of St. Martin and Antigua lies further to the southeast.
Possibly the Virgin Islands.
St. Eustatius lies south of Anguilla and St. Martin.
The small island of Saba lies roughly southwest of St. Martin.
St. Kitts lies southeast of Saba and St. Eustatius.
Kingfish, also known as king mackerel.
Originally written as Ille Davis, possibly D’ Avis. Aves Island (Isla de Aves) is a dependency of Venezuela that lies 185 kilometers southwest of Montserrat, the closest land body. At 50 meters wide and 4 meters high, at most, the island is more a rock than an island and constitutes a hazard for ships in the Caribbean.
Orchila Island, or La Orchila, is a dependency of Venezuela that lies off its north coast.
Not to be confused with Aves Island, Las Aves Archipelago is a Venezuelan dependency lying near the north coast of Venezuela between the island of Bonaire and the Los Roques Archipelago.
The eerstewacht, or first watch, was the ship’s watch from 8:00 p.m. until midnight. On board, time was kept by hourglass, where it took half an hour for the upper bulb, or glass, to empty into the lower one. Each four-hour watch thus had eight glasses.
Bonaire, along with Curaçao and Aruba, is part of the Leeward Antilles off the north coast of present-day Venezuela.
Cayenne is currently the capital of French Guiana. The Dutch made several attempts to colonize the region in the seventeenth century.
A roadstead is a sheltered stretch of water near the shore where ships can anchor.
Present-day Venezuela.
Notarial records reflect more than one ship named St. Jan in the area of Curaçao during this period, though it is unclear whether any of these is the St. Jan that De Sille mentions.
It is unclear whether St. Cruijs refers to the island of St. Croix or to St. Kruis Bay (Boka Santa Krus) on the northwest coast of Curaçao, near the St. Jan salt pans.
Gunea, or Guinea, was a general term used by the seventeenth-century Dutch referring to any number of geographical locations in West Africa.
The Eyckenboom had lost its original anchors in Africa, see letter of Stuyvesant to the director at Curaçao, July 12, 1660. NYSA_A1810–78_V13_0117, Digital Collections, New York State Archives.
Notarial records reflect more than one ship named St. Mattheus in the area of Curaçao during this period, though is unclear which, if any, of these is the St. Mattheus that De Sille encountered.
The word “fire” likely refers here to a lantern on the rear poop deck, so as to help maintain contact with the other ship.
The Paraguaná Peninsula juts out north of Coro, Venezuela.
Hispaniola is one of the islands of the Greater Antilles chain in the Caribbean and now shared by Haiti and the Dominican Republic.
Santo Domingo is on the south coast of the Dominican Republic, and is its present-day capital city.
The platvoetwacht was the ship’s watch from 4:00 p.m. until 8:00 p.m.
Catalina Island (Isla Catalina) is a small island two and a half miles off the southeast coast of the Dominican Republic.
Saona Island (Isla Saona) lies just off the southeast tip of the Dominican Republic.
The word boot may refer to a boatload or, possibly, an older standard of measure such as a vat or barrel. “Brackish” meant the water was mixed with saltwater, and thus undrinkable.
It is unclear whether the reference to voorwind infers a change of course to sail downwind (running before the wind), or whether it simply refers to a favorable wind. Regardless, the goal was to sail closer to the Eyckenboom as security in case the approaching ship was a privateer or otherwise unfriendly.
Mona Island (Isla de Mona) and Monito Island both belong to Puerto Rico and lie between Puerto Rico and Hispaniola.
The hondewacht was the ship’s watch from midnight to 4:00 a.m.
Cabo Engaño is a cape on the easternmost point of the island of Hispaniola, now in the Dominican Republic.
Stockfish were provisions of dried cod.
The ecliptic (also sun path or day arc) is the path that the sun appears to follow in a line across the sky.
Smith Island is one of the Virginia Barrier Islands, located southwest of Cape Charles on the Atlantic (as opposed to the more commonly known Smith Island, Maryland, located within Chesapeake Bay).
Egg Harbor, near Atlantic City.
The Atlantic Highlands of Monmouth County, New Jersey.
Sandy Hook, New Jersey.
Coney Island, a small peninsula on southwest Long Island in present-day Brooklyn, New York.
Transcription note: The author’s use of italics and capitalization has been retained in the transcription.
References
Gehring, Charles T. (ed.), 1981. Delaware Papers: A Collection of Documents Pertaining to the Regulation of Affairs on the South River of New Netherland, 1648–1664. Baltimore MA: Genealogical Publishing Co., Inc.
Gehring, Charles T. & J.A. Schiltkamp (eds.), 1987. Curacao Papers, 1640–1665. Interlaken NY: Heart of the Lakes Publishing.
Goslinga, Cornelis C.H., 2017. The Dutch in the Caribbean and on the Wild Coast, 1580–1680. Gainesville: University of Florida Press. [Orig. 1971.]
Heijink, M.P., 2015. Connecting Colonies: Shipping, Trade and Administration between New Netherland and Curaçao, 1645–1664. Research MA Thesis, Leiden University, Leiden, the Netherlands. https://studenttheses.universiteitleiden.nl/handle/1887/35364.
Jacobs, Jaap, 2005. New Netherland: A Dutch Colony in Seventeenth-Century America. Leiden, the Netherlands: Brill.
Kline, Mary-Jo, 1998. A Guide to Documentary Editing. Baltimore MD: The Johns Hopkins University Press.
Klooster, Wim, 2016. The Dutch Moment: War, Trade, and Settlement in the Seventeenth-Century Atlantic World. Ithaca NY: Cornell University Press.
Laer, A.J.F. van, 1920. Letters of Nicasius de Sille, 1654. The Quarterly Journal of the New York State Historical Association 1(3):100–4.
Laet, Johannes de, 1644. Historie ofte Iaerlijck verhael van de verrichtinghen der geoctroyeerde West-Indische Compagnie. Leiden, the Netherlands: Bonaventuer ende Abraham Elsevier.
O’Callaghan, E.B. (ed.), 1853–87. Documents Relative to the Colonial History of the State of New York. Vol. 2. Holland Documents: VIII–XVI. 1657–1678. (1858) Albany NY: Weed, Parsons and Company. [15 vols.]
Regt, W.M.C., 1922. Het geslacht De Sille. De Nederlandsche Leeuw 40:267–71.
Rupert, Linda, 2012. Creolization and Contraband, Curaçao in the Early Modern Atlantic World. Athens: University of Georgia Press.