New York City

After a 4 month delay off the coast of England, the voyage across the ocean took another 2 months.  Finally the first ship, the Lyon of Leith, reached New York with 350 Palatines on board.  A total of 10 ships had left England and 8 of them arrived at their destination by the end of June.  The other 2 ships encountered problems along the way, arriving in July and August.  A doctor aboard the Lyon of Leith reported that all of its passengers had been sick during the voyage.  There are no records of how many Palatines died during the voyage, but it is estimated that upward of 500 people who boarded the ships in December did not survive.

In 1710 New York City had a population of 6,000.  As was the situation in Rotterdam and again in London, the sudden influx of 3,000 immigrants was more than the city was capable of supporting.  Because of this, it was decided that the Palatines would be settled on Nutten Island in army tents.  Governor Hunter reported that they were in a “deplorable sickly condition.”

There were many widows and orphans by the time the Palatines reached America.  Because the men would be the laborers for the Tar and Pitch project, anyone without a man in the family was considered useless.   Many widows remarried quickly to solidify their future in this new land.  However, orphaned children, as well as children of widows were apprenticed to the residents of New York City.  This created the first of many problems between Governor Hunter and the people he was supposed to be helping.

 

Reference:  “Becoming German” by Phillip Otterness