Dutch Arms in NY prior to 1690

[rich pierce]

I have a specific interest in the Dutch influence in New York prior to 1700 as I have Dutch ancestors (Jan Barents Wemp or Wemple and Myndert Wemp or Wemple) who settled Schenectady NY.

So- for discussion- what were the Dutch exporting in guns to America to trade in New Amsterdam, Fort Orange, Schenectady, etc., during their brief tenure as "rulers" of New York, and what might the settlers at Schenectady NY been armed with when the French and Hurons attacked in 1690?

I have seen prints of club-butt-shaped, long-barreled trade guns of Mohawk warriors but do not know whether these are "artists projections" and mere assumptions of what may have been available at an earlier time.

Here is an artist's rendering circa 1710 of a Mohawk chief who visited London in that year.

 

[John Tice]

Rich, there is book: "Dutch and other Flintlocks from Seventeenth century Iroquois Sites" by Jan Piet Puype. It is part One of a series of the "Proceedings of the 1984 Trade Gun Conference." 1985 Published by the Rochester Museum and Science Center, Rochester, NY. It has a lot of lock pictures and descriptions. Very well done. Mr. Leonard Day up in Massachusetts builds an excellent Dutch trade gun of the period.

 

[Puffer]

Rich, there is book: "Dutch and other Flintlocks from Seventeenth century Iroquois Sites" by Jan Piet Puype. It is part One of a series of the "Proceedings of the 1984 Trade Gun Conference." 1985 Published by the Rochester Museum and Science Center, Rochester, NY.

John, Do you have ANY info on other books or info From the above "conference" ??? This one is one I am going to try to add to my Lib.

Puffer

 

[Story]

Proceedings of the 1984 Trade Gun Conference, by Jan Piet Puype. 1985. Two volumes.
Vol. I, "Dutch and Other Flintlocks from Seventeenth Century Iroquois Sites." 120 pp. [$5] :thumbsup:
[url] http://www.rmsc.org/museum/library/publications.html[/url]

 

[rich pierce]

Thanks, I will order that book.

 

[tg]

You are probably aware of this but I will mention it anyway, Hamiltons "Colonial Frontier Guns" shows a couple of late 17th century Dutch guns and talks about them briefly.

 

[rich pierce]

TG,
Yes, I've checked those pictures out in Hamilton's book- seems that's about all there is to go on. The style of guard shown in Hamilton Figures 3 and 4 seems to be quite well represented in burials etc. Figure 6, page 27 shows a creative reconstruction of a gun, whereas Figure 7, page 28, is the real deal. Long barrel, no buttpiece, very plain (wouldn't it have been nice to find that one!). I have to get out to the Museum of the Fur Trade sometime and see it.