New Sweden ( sv, Nya Sverige) was a Swedish colony along the lower reaches of the
Delaware River
The Delaware River is a major river in the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic region of the United States. From the meeting of its branches in Hancock (village), New York, Hancock, New York, the river flows for along the borders of N ...
in what is now the United States from 1638 to 1655, established during the
Thirty Years' War
The Thirty Years' War was one of the longest and most destructive conflicts in European history
The history of Europe is traditionally divided into four time periods: prehistoric Europe (prior to about 800 BC), classical antiquity (80 ...
when
Sweden
Sweden, formally the Kingdom of Sweden,The United Nations Group of Experts on Geographical Names states that the country's formal name is the Kingdom of SwedenUNGEGN World Geographical Names, Sweden./ref> is a Nordic country located on ...
was a great military power. New Sweden formed part of the
Swedish efforts to colonize the Americas. Settlements were established on both sides of the
Delaware Valley
The Delaware Valley is a metropolitan region on the East Coast of the United States that comprises and surrounds Philadelphia, the sixth most populous city in the nation and 68th largest city in the world as of 2020. The toponym Delaware Val ...
in the region of
Delaware
Delaware ( ) is a state in the Mid-Atlantic region of the United States, bordering Maryland to its south and west; Pennsylvania to its north; and New Jersey and the Atlantic Ocean to its east. The state takes its name from the adjacent Del ...
,
New Jersey
New Jersey is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern regions of the United States. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York; on the east, southeast, and south by the Atlantic Ocean; on the west by the Delaware ...
,
Maryland
Maryland ( ) is a state in the Mid-Atlantic region of the United States. It shares borders with Virginia, West Virginia, and the District of Columbia to its south and west; Pennsylvania to its north; and Delaware and the Atlantic Ocean to ...
, and
Pennsylvania
Pennsylvania (; ( Pennsylvania Dutch: )), officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a state spanning the Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes regions of the United States. It borders Delaware to its southeast, ...
, often in places where Swedish traders had been visiting since about 1610.
Fort Christina in
Wilmington, Delaware
Wilmington ( Lenape: ''Paxahakink /'' ''Pakehakink)'' is the largest city in the U.S. state of Delaware. The city was built on the site of Fort Christina, the first Swedish settlement in North America. It lies at the confluence of the Christina ...
, was the first settlement, named after the reigning Swedish monarch. The settlers were Swedes, Finns, and a number of Dutch. New Sweden was conquered by the
Dutch Republic
The United Provinces of the Netherlands, also known as the (Seven) United Provinces, officially as the Republic of the Seven United Netherlands (Dutch: ''Republiek der Zeven Verenigde Nederlanden''), and commonly referred to in historiography ...
in 1655 during the
Second Northern War and incorporated into the Dutch colony of
New Netherland
New Netherland ( nl, Nieuw Nederland; la, Novum Belgium or ) was a 17th-century colonial province of the Dutch Republic that was located on the East Coast of the United States, east coast of what is now the United States. The claimed territor ...
.
History
By the middle of the 17th century, the
Realm of Sweden
The Swedish Empire was a European great power that exercised territorial control over much of the Baltic region during the 17th and early 18th centuries ( sv, Stormaktstiden, "the Era of Great Power"). The beginning of the empire is usually t ...
had reached its greatest territorial extent and was one of the great powers of Europe; it was the ''
stormaktstiden'' ("age of greatness" or "great power period"). Sweden then included
Finland
Finland ( fi, Suomi ; sv, Finland ), officially the Republic of Finland (; ), is a Nordic country in Northern Europe. It shares land borders with Sweden to the northwest, Norway to the north, and Russia to the east, with the Gulf of B ...
and
Estonia
Estonia, formally the Republic of Estonia, is a country by the Baltic Sea in Northern Europe. It is bordered to the north by the Gulf of Finland across from Finland, to the west by the sea across from Sweden, to the south by Latvia, a ...
, along with parts of modern
Russia
Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a List of transcontinental countries, transcontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia, Northern Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the ...
,
Poland
Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe. It is divided into 16 administrative provinces called voivodeships, covering an area of . Poland has a population of over 38 million and is the fifth-most populous ...
,
Germany
Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...
, and
Latvia
Latvia ( or ; lv, Latvija ; ltg, Latveja; liv, Leţmō), officially the Republic of Latvia ( lv, Latvijas Republika, links=no, ltg, Latvejas Republika, links=no, liv, Leţmō Vabāmō, links=no), is a country in the Baltic region of ...
under King
Gustavus Adolphus
Gustavus Adolphus (9 December Old_Style_and_New_Style_dates">N.S_19_December.html" ;"title="Old_Style_and_New_Style_dates.html" ;"title="/nowiki>Old Style and New Style dates">N.S 19 December">Old_Style_and_New_Style_dates.html" ;"title="/now ...
and later
Queen Christina. Other northern European nations were establishing colonies in the
New World
The term ''New World'' is often used to mean the majority of Earth's Western Hemisphere, specifically the Americas."America." ''The Oxford Companion to the English Language'' (). McArthur, Tom, ed., 1992. New York: Oxford University Press, p. 3 ...
and building successful trading empires at this time. The Swedes sought to expand their influence by creating their own plantation (
tobacco
Tobacco is the common name of several plants in the genus '' Nicotiana'' of the family Solanaceae, and the general term for any product prepared from the cured leaves of these plants. More than 70 species of tobacco are known, but the ...
) and fur-trading colony to circumvent French and English merchants.
The
Swedish South Company
The Swedish South Company, also known as the Company of New-Sweden (Swedish, ', '), was a trading company from Sweden founded in 1626, that supported the trade between Sweden and its colony New Sweden, in North America. The colony was envisioned ...
was founded in 1626 with a mandate to establish colonies between
Florida
Florida is a state located in the Southeastern region of the United States. Florida is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the northwest by Alabama, to the north by Georgia, to the east by the Bahamas and Atlantic Ocean, and to ...
and Newfoundland for the purposes of trade, particularly along the Delaware River. Its charter included Swedish, Dutch, and German stockholders led by directors of the New Sweden Company, including Samuel Blommaert.
The company sponsored 11 expeditions in 14 separate voyages to Delaware between 1638 and 1655; two did not survive.
The first Swedish expedition to America sailed from the
port
A port is a maritime facility comprising one or more wharves or loading areas, where ships load and discharge cargo and passengers. Although usually situated on a sea coast or estuary, ports can also be found far inland, such as Ham ...
of
Gothenburg
Gothenburg (; abbreviated Gbg; sv, Göteborg ) is the second-largest city in Sweden, fifth-largest in the Nordic countries, and capital of the Västra Götaland County. It is situated by the Kattegat, on the west coast of Sweden, and has ...
in late 1637, organized and overseen by
Clas Larsson Fleming
Clas Larsson Fleming (March 1592 – 27 July 1644) was an admiral and administrator involved in the development of a formal management structure for the Royal Swedish Navy under King Gustav II Adolf and Queen Christina. He is remembered as on ...
, a Swedish admiral from Finland. Flemish Dutch
Samuel Blommaert
Samuel Blommaert (''Bloemaert'', ''Blommaerts'', ''Blommaart'', ''Blomert'', etc.) (11 or 21 August 1583, in Antwerp – 23 December 1651, in Amsterdam) was a Flemish/Dutch merchant and director of the Dutch West India Company from 1622 to 1629 ...
assisted the fitting-out and appointed
Peter Minuit
Peter Minuit (between 1580 and 1585 – August 5, 1638) was a Wallonian merchant from Tournai, in present-day Belgium. He was the 3rd Director of the Dutch North American colony of New Netherland from 1626 until 1631, and 3rd Governor of New N ...
(the former Governor of
New Amsterdam
New Amsterdam ( nl, Nieuw Amsterdam, or ) was a 17th-century Dutch settlement established at the southern tip of Manhattan Island that served as the seat of the colonial government in New Netherland. The initial trading ''factory'' gave rise ...
) to lead the expedition. The expedition sailed into
Delaware Bay
Delaware Bay is the estuary outlet of the Delaware River on the northeast seaboard of the United States. It is approximately in area, the bay's freshwater mixes for many miles with the saltwater of the Atlantic Ocean.
The bay is bordered inlan ...
aboard the ''
Fogel Grip
''Fogel Grip'' (''Bird Griffin'', Swedish: ''Fågel Grip'') was a Swedish sailing ship originally built in the Netherlands in the early 17th century. She was used on the first Swedish expedition in 1638 together with '' Kalmar Nyckel'' to establi ...
'' and ''
Kalmar Nyckel
''Kalmar Nyckel'' (''Key of Kalmar'') was a Swedish ship built by the Dutch famed for carrying Swedish settlers to North America in 1638, to establish the colony of New Sweden. The name Kalmar Nyckel comes from the Swedish city of Kalmar and nyc ...
'', which lay within the territory claimed by the Dutch. They passed
Cape May
Cape May consists of a peninsula and barrier island system in the U.S. state of New Jersey. It is roughly coterminous with Cape May County and runs southwards from the New Jersey mainland, separating Delaware Bay from the Atlantic Ocean. The so ...
and
Cape Henlopen
Cape Henlopen is the southern cape of the Delaware Bay along the Atlantic coast of the United States. It lies in the state of Delaware, near the town of Lewes, where the Delaware Bay meets the Atlantic Ocean. Off the coast on the bay side are t ...
in late March 1638
[McCormick, p. 12; Munroe, ''Colonial Delaware'', p. 16.] and anchored on March 29 at a rocky point on the Minquas Kill that is known today as
Swedes' Landing
Swedes' Landing is the warehouse road found along the Minquas Kill in Wilmington, Delaware that is close to the Delaware River. This was the site where the initial Swedish landing took place and marks the spot where the New Sweden colony began. ...
. They built a fort in Wilmington which they named
Fort Christina after their Queen.
In the following years, the area was settled by 600 Swedes and Finns, a number of Dutchmen, a few Germans, a Dane, and at least one
Estonian, and Minuit became the first governor of the colony of New Sweden. He had been the third Director of
New Amsterdam
New Amsterdam ( nl, Nieuw Amsterdam, or ) was a 17th-century Dutch settlement established at the southern tip of Manhattan Island that served as the seat of the colonial government in New Netherland. The initial trading ''factory'' gave rise ...
, and he knew that the Dutch claimed the area south to the Delaware River and its bay. The Dutch, however, had pulled back their settlers from the area after several years in order to concentrate on the settlement on
Manhattan Island.
Governor Minuit landed on the west bank of the river and gathered the sachems of the
Delawares
The Lenape (, , or Lenape , del, Lënapeyok) also called the Leni Lenape, Lenni Lenape and Delaware people, are an indigenous peoples of the Northeastern Woodlands, who live in the United States and Canada. Their historical territory includ ...
and
Susquehannocks. They held a conclave in Minuit's cabin on the ''Kalmar Nyckel'', and he persuaded them to sign deeds which he had prepared to solve any issue with the Dutch. The Swedes claimed that the purchased land included land on the west side of the South (Delaware) River from just below the
Schuylkill River
The Schuylkill River ( , ) is a river running northwest to southeast in eastern Pennsylvania. The river was improved by navigations into the Schuylkill Canal, and several of its tributaries drain major parts of Pennsylvania's Coal Region. It fl ...
in
Philadelphia
Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the sixth-largest city in the U.S., the second-largest city in both the Northeast megalopolis and Mid-Atlantic regions after New York City. Sinc ...
, southeastern Pennsylvania, Delaware, and coastal Maryland. Delaware sachem Mattahoon later claimed that the purchase only included as much land as was contained within an area marked by "six trees", and the rest of the land occupied by the Swedes was stolen.
Willem Kieft
Willem Kieft (September 1597 – September 27, 1647) was a Dutch merchant and the Director of New Netherland (of which New Amsterdam was the capital) from 1638 to 1647.
Life and career
Willem Kieft was appointed to the rank of director ...
objected to the Swedes landing, but Minuit ignored him since he knew that the Dutch were militarily weak at the moment. Minuit completed Fort Christina in 1638, then sailed for
Stockholm
Stockholm () is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in Sweden by population, largest city of Sweden as well as the List of urban areas in the Nordic countries, largest urban area in Scandinavia. Approximately 980,000 people liv ...
to bring the second group of settlers. He made a detour to the Caribbean to pick up a shipment of tobacco to sell in Europe in order to make the voyage profitable. However, he died on this voyage during a hurricane at
St. Christopher
Saint Christopher ( el, Ἅγιος Χριστόφορος, ''Ágios Christóphoros'') is venerated by several Christian denominations as a martyr killed in the reign of the 3rd-century Roman emperor Decius (reigned 249–251) or alternatively u ...
in the Caribbean. The official duties of the governor of New Sweden were carried out by Captain
Måns Nilsson Kling Måns Nilsson Kling or Mauno Kling was the second governor of the 17th century colony of New Sweden (Swedish: ''Nya Sverige''), which he administrated from Fort Christina, now Wilmington, Delaware.
Biography
The first Swedish expedition to North A ...
, until a new governor was selected and arrived from Sweden two years later.
The company expanded along the river from Fort Christina under the leadership of
Johan Björnsson Printz
Johan Björnsson Printz (July 20, 1592 – May 3, 1663) was governor from 1643 until 1653 of the Swedish colony of New Sweden on the Delaware River in North America.
Early life in Sweden
He was born in Bottnaryd, Jönköping County, in the pro ...
, governor from 1643 to 1653. They established
Fort Nya Elfsborg on the east bank of the Delaware near
Salem, New Jersey
Salem is a city in Salem County, New Jersey, United States. As of the 2010 U.S. Census, the city's population was 5,146, , and Fort Nya Gothenborg on
Tinicum Island to the immediate southwest of Philadelphia. Printz also built his manor house,
The Printzhof
The Printzhof, located in Governor Printz Park in Essington, Pennsylvania, was the home of Johan Björnsson Printz, governor of New Sweden.
In 1643, Johan Printz moved his capital from Fort Christina (located in what is now Wilmington, Delaware) ...
, at Fort Nya Gothenborg, and the Swedish colony prospered for a time. In 1644, New Sweden supported the
Susquehannocks in their war against
Maryland
Maryland ( ) is a state in the Mid-Atlantic region of the United States. It shares borders with Virginia, West Virginia, and the District of Columbia to its south and west; Pennsylvania to its north; and Delaware and the Atlantic Ocean to ...
colonists. In May 1654, soldiers from New Sweden led by Governor
Johan Risingh
Johan Classon Risingh (1617 in Risinge – 1672) was the last governor of the Swedish colony of New Sweden.
Biography
Risingh was born in 1617 in Risinge, Östergötland, Sweden. After gymnasium at Linköping, he attended the University of Upp ...
captured
Fort Casimir
Fort Casimir or Fort Trinity was a Dutch fort in the seventeenth-century colony of New Netherland. It was located on a no-longer existing barrier island at the end of Chestnut Street in what is now New Castle, Delaware.
Background
The Dutch c ...
and renamed it Fort Trinity (''Trefaldigheten'' in Swedish).
Sweden opened the
Second Northern War in the Baltic by attacking the
Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth
The Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth, formally known as the Kingdom of Poland and the Grand Duchy of Lithuania, and, after 1791, as the Commonwealth of Poland, was a bi-confederal state, sometimes called a federation, of Crown of the Kingdom of ...
, and the Dutch sent an armed squadron of ships under Director-General
Peter Stuyvesant
Peter Stuyvesant (; in Dutch also ''Pieter'' and ''Petrus'' Stuyvesant, ; 1610 – August 1672)Mooney, James E. "Stuyvesant, Peter" in p.1256 was a Dutch colonial officer who served as the last Dutch director-general of the colony of New Net ...
to seize New Sweden. In the summer of 1655, the Dutch marched an army to the Delaware River, easily capturing Fort Trinity and Fort Christina. The Swedish settlement was formally incorporated into Dutch New Netherland on September 15, 1655, although the Swedish and Finnish settlers were allowed local autonomy. They retained their own militia, religion, court, and lands. This lasted until the English conquest of New Netherland, launched on June 24, 1664. The Duke of York sold New Jersey to
John Berkeley and
George Carteret
Vice Admiral Sir George Carteret, 1st Baronet ( – 14 January 1680 N.S.) was a royalist statesman in Jersey and England, who served in the Clarendon Ministry as Treasurer of the Navy. He was also one of the original lords proprietor of the ...
to become a proprietary colony, separate from the projected colony of
New York. The invasion began on August 29, 1664, with the capture of
New Amsterdam
New Amsterdam ( nl, Nieuw Amsterdam, or ) was a 17th-century Dutch settlement established at the southern tip of Manhattan Island that served as the seat of the colonial government in New Netherland. The initial trading ''factory'' gave rise ...
and ended with the capture of
Fort Casimir
Fort Casimir or Fort Trinity was a Dutch fort in the seventeenth-century colony of New Netherland. It was located on a no-longer existing barrier island at the end of Chestnut Street in what is now New Castle, Delaware.
Background
The Dutch c ...
(
New Castle, Delaware
New Castle is a city in New Castle County, Delaware, United States. The city is located six miles (10 km) south of Wilmington and is situated on the Delaware River. As of the 2010 census, the city's population was 5,285.
History
New Castl ...
) in October. This took place at the beginning of the
Second Anglo-Dutch War
The Second Anglo-Dutch War or the Second Dutch War (4 March 1665 – 31 July 1667; nl, Tweede Engelse Oorlog "Second English War") was a conflict between Kingdom of England, England and the Dutch Republic partly for control over the seas a ...
.
In 1669, New Sweden was under British rule, but most of the population was still Swedish. A man named Marcus Jacobsson, posing as a member of the Königsmarck family, attempted to instigate a rebellion against the British to return New Sweden to Swedish rule. The rebellion, known as the Revolt of the Long Swede due to Jacobsson's height, failed. Jacobsson was sold into slavery in the Caribbean and the families that had supported him were fined for their participation in the revolt.
New Sweden continued to exist unofficially, and some immigration and expansion continued. The first settlement at Wicaco began with a Swedish log blockhouse located on
Society Hill
Society Hill is a historic neighborhood in Center City Philadelphia, with a population of 6,215 . Settled in the early 1680s, Society Hill is one of the oldest residential neighborhoods in Philadelphia.The Center City District dates the Free Soc ...
in Philadelphia in 1669. It was later used as a church until about 1700, when
Gloria Dei (Old Swedes') Church
Gloria Dei Church, known locally as Old Swedes, is a historic church located in the Southwark neighborhood of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, at 929 South Water Street, bounded by Christian Street on the north, South Christopher Columbus Boulevard ( ...
of Philadelphia was built on the site. New Sweden finally came to an end when its land was included in
William Penn
William Penn ( – ) was an English writer and religious thinker belonging to the Religious Society of Friends (Quakers), and founder of the Province of Pennsylvania, a North American colony of England. He was an early advocate of democracy a ...
's charter for Pennsylvania on August 24, 1682.
Hoarkill, New Amstel, and Upland
The start of the
Third Anglo-Dutch War
The Third Anglo-Dutch War ( nl, Derde Engels-Nederlandse Oorlog), 27 March 1672 to 19 February 1674, was a naval conflict between the Dutch Republic and England, in alliance with France. It is considered a subsidiary of the wider 1672 to 1678 ...
resulted in the Dutch recapture of New Netherland in August 1673. They restored the status which predated the English capture, and codified it in the establishment of three counties:
Hoarkill County,
New Amstel County,
and Upland County, which was later partitioned between New Castle County, Delaware, and the Colony of Pennsylvania.
The three counties were created on September 12, 1673, the first two on the west shore of the Delaware River and the third on both sides of the river.
The
Treaty of Westminster of 1674 ended the second period of Dutch control and required them to return all of New Netherland to the English on June 29, including the three counties which they created.
[Parry, Clive, ed. '' ]Consolidated Treaty Series
The ''Consolidated Treaty Series'' (CTS) is a collection of multilateral and bilateral treaties signed between 1648 (Peace of Westphalia) and 1918 (end of World War I) inclusive. It contains 243 volumes published between 1969 and 1980 by Oceana Pub ...
.''; Vol. 13, p. 136; Dobbs Ferry, New York; Oceana Publications, 1969–1981. After taking stock, the English declared on November 11 that settlements on the west side of the Delaware River and Delaware Bay were to be dependent on the
Province of New York
The Province of New York (1664–1776) was a British proprietary colony and later royal colony on the northeast coast of North America. As one of the Middle Colonies, New York achieved independence and worked with the others to found the Uni ...
, including the three Counties.
This declaration was followed by a declaration that renamed New Amstel as New Castle. The other counties retained their Dutch names.
The next step in the assimilation of New Sweden into New York was the extension of the Duke's laws into the region on September 22, 1676.
This was followed by the partition of some Upland Counties to conform to the borders of Pennsylvania and Delaware, with most of the Delaware portion going to New Castle County on November 12, 1678. The remainder of Upland continued in place under the same name. On June 21, 1680, New Castle and Hoarkill Counties were partitioned to produce St. Jones County.
On March 4, 1681, what had been the colony of New Sweden was formally partitioned into the colonies of Delaware and Pennsylvania. The border was established 12 miles north of New Castle, and the northern limit of Pennsylvania was set at
42 degrees north latitude. The eastern limit was the border with New Jersey at the Delaware River, while the western limit was undefined. In June 1681, Upland ceased to exist as the result of the reorganization of the Colony of Pennsylvania, with the Upland government becoming the government of Chester County, Pennsylvania.
On August 24, 1682, the Duke of York transferred the western Delaware River region to William Penn, including Delaware, thus transferring Deale County and St. Jones County from New York to Delaware. St. Jones County was renamed
Kent County, Deale County was renamed
Sussex County, and New Castle County retained its name.
[''Pennsylvania Archives'', 2nd series, Vol. 5: pp. 739–744.]
Swedish explorer and botanist
Pehr Kalm
Pehr Kalm (6 March 1716 – 16 November 1779), also known as Peter Kalm, was a Swedish explorer, botanist, naturalist, and agricultural economist. He was one of the most important apostles of Carl Linnaeus.
In 1747, he was commissioned by the ...
visited the descendants of the early Swedish immigrants to New Sweden in the mid-18th century and documented their experiences with the Native American Indians who resided in those parts, in a book entitled ''Travels into North America''.
Significance and legacy
Historian
H. Arnold Barton
Hildor Arnold Barton (November 30, 1929 – September 28, 2016) was an American historian and a national authority on Scandinavian history, especially the history of Sweden, and of Swedes and other Scandinavians in North America.
Early life
Barto ...
has suggested that the greatest significance of New Sweden was the strong and lasting interest in America that the colony generated in Sweden, although major Swedish immigration did not occur until the late 19th century. From 1870 to 1910, more than one million Swedes arrived in America, settling particularly in
Minnesota
Minnesota () is a state in the upper midwestern region of the United States. It is the 12th largest U.S. state in area and the 22nd most populous, with over 5.75 million residents. Minnesota is home to western prairies, now given over to ...
and other states of the
Upper Midwest
The Upper Midwest is a region in the northern portion of the U.S. Census Bureau's Midwestern United States. It is largely a sub-region of the Midwest. Although the exact boundaries are not uniformly agreed-upon, the region is defined as referring ...
.
Traces of New Sweden persist in the lower Delaware valley, including
Holy Trinity Church in
Wilmington, Delaware
Wilmington ( Lenape: ''Paxahakink /'' ''Pakehakink)'' is the largest city in the U.S. state of Delaware. The city was built on the site of Fort Christina, the first Swedish settlement in North America. It lies at the confluence of the Christina ...
,
Gloria Dei Church
Gloria may refer to:
Arts and entertainment Music Christian liturgy and music
* Gloria in excelsis Deo, the Greater Doxology, a hymn of praise
* Gloria Patri, the Lesser Doxology, a short hymn of praise
** Gloria (Handel)
** Gloria (Jenkins) ...
and
St. James Kingsessing Church in Philadelphia,
Trinity Episcopal Church in
Swedesboro, New Jersey, and Christ Church in
Swedesburg, Pennsylvania. All of those churches are commonly known as "Old Swedes' Church".
Christiana, Delaware
Christiana is an unincorporated community in New Castle County, Delaware, United States, located on the Christina River, 12 miles southwest of Wilmington. It is home to the Christiana Hospital and the Christiana Mall and is the location of the ...
, is one of the few settlements in the area retaining a Swedish name, and Upland survives as
Upland, Pennsylvania. Swedesford Road is still found in
Chester
Chester is a cathedral city and the county town of Cheshire, England. It is located on the River Dee, close to the English–Welsh border. With a population of 79,645 in 2011,"2011 Census results: People and Population Profile: Chester Loca ...
and
Montgomery Counties, Pennsylvania, although Swedesford has long since become
Norristown Norristown may mean:
* Norristown, Arkansas, an unincorporated community
* Norristown, Georgia, an unincorporated community
* Norristown, Indiana, an unincorporated community
* Norristown, Pennsylvania
Norristown is a municipality with home ...
.
Swedeland, Pennsylvania, is part of
Upper Merion Township in
Montgomery County. The
American Swedish Historical Museum
The American Swedish Historical Museum is the oldest Swedish-American museum in the United States. It is located in Franklin Delano Roosevelt Park in South Philadelphia, on part of a historic 17th-century land grant originally provided by Queen ...
in
South Philadelphia
South Philadelphia, nicknamed South Philly, is the section of Philadelphia bounded by South Street to the north, the Delaware River to the east and south and the Schuylkill River to the west.[log cabin
A log cabin is a small log house, especially a less finished or less architecturally sophisticated structure. Log cabins have an ancient history in Europe, and in America are often associated with first generation home building by settlers.
Eur ...]
, which became such an icon of the American frontier that it is commonly thought of as an American structure. The
C. A. Nothnagle Log House on Swedesboro-Paulsboro Road in
Gibbstown, New Jersey
Gibbstown is an unincorporated community and census-designated place (CDP) located within Greenwich Township, in Gloucester County, New Jersey. As of the 2010 U.S. census, the CDP's population was 3,739.[Finns Point Finns Point is a small strategic promontory in Pennsville Township, Salem County, New Jersey, and New Castle County, Delaware, located at the southwest corner of the cape of Penns Neck, on the east bank of the Delaware River near its mouth on De ...]
, Mullica Hill, and Mullica River.
A portion of these Finns were known as
Forest Finns
Forest Finns ( fi, Metsäsuomalaiset, Norwegian bokmål: ''Skogfinner'', Norwegian nynorsk: ''Skogfinnar'', sv, Skogsfinnar) were Finnish migrants from Savonia and Northern Tavastia in Finland who settled in forest areas of Sweden proper and N ...
, people of Finnish descent who had been living in the forest areas of Central Sweden. The Forest Finns had moved from
Savonia in Eastern Finland to
Dalarna
Dalarna () is a '' landskap'' (historical province) in central Sweden. English exonyms for it are Dalecarlia () and the Dales.
Dalarna adjoins Härjedalen, Hälsingland, Gästrikland, Västmanland and Värmland
Värmland () also known a ...
,
Bergslagen
Bergslagen is a historical, cultural, and linguistic region located north of Lake Mälaren in northern Svealand, Sweden, traditionally known as a mining district. In Bergslagen, the mining and metallurgic industries have been important since the ...
and other provinces in central Sweden during the late-16th to mid-17th century. Their relocation had started as part of an effort by Swedish King
Gustav Vasa
Gustav I, born Gustav Eriksson of the Vasa noble family and later known as Gustav Vasa (12 May 1496 – 29 September 1560), was King of Sweden from 1523 until his death in 1560, previously self-recognised Protector of the Realm ('' Riksför ...
to expand agriculture to these uninhabited parts of the country. The Finns in Savonia traditionally farmed with a
slash-and-burn
Slash-and-burn agriculture is a farming method that involves the cutting and burning of plants in a forest or woodland to create a field called a swidden. The method begins by cutting down the trees and woody plants in an area. The downed veget ...
method which was better suited to pioneering
agriculture
Agriculture or farming is the practice of cultivating plants and livestock. Agriculture was the key development in the rise of sedentary human civilization, whereby farming of domesticated species created food surpluses that enabled people to ...
in vast forest areas. This was also the farming method used by the American Indians of Delaware.
Forts
*
Fort Christina (1638) – at the
Brandywine Creek and
Christina River
The Christina River is a tributary of the Delaware River, approximately 35 miles (56 km) long, in northern Delaware in the United States, also flowing through small areas of southeastern Pennsylvania and northeastern Maryland. Near i ...
in
Wilmington, Delaware
Wilmington ( Lenape: ''Paxahakink /'' ''Pakehakink)'' is the largest city in the U.S. state of Delaware. The city was built on the site of Fort Christina, the first Swedish settlement in North America. It lies at the confluence of the Christina ...
, later renamed Fort Altena (1655)
*Fort Mecoponacka (1641) – in
Chester
Chester is a cathedral city and the county town of Cheshire, England. It is located on the River Dee, close to the English–Welsh border. With a population of 79,645 in 2011,"2011 Census results: People and Population Profile: Chester Loca ...
, near Finlandia or Upland in
Delaware County, Pennsylvania
Delaware County, colloquially referred to as Delco, is a County (United States), county in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. With a population of 576,830 as of the 2020 census, it is the List of counties in Pennsylvan ...
*
Fort Nya Elfsborg (1643) – between present-day Salem Creek and
Alloway Creek
Alloway Creek is a U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline dataThe National Map , accessed April 1, 2011 tributary of the Delaware River in Salem County, New Jersey in the United States. The name is a derivati ...
near
Bridgeport, New Jersey
*Fort Nya Gothenborg (1643) – on
Tinicum Island near the site of
The Printzhof
The Printzhof, located in Governor Printz Park in Essington, Pennsylvania, was the home of Johan Björnsson Printz, governor of New Sweden.
In 1643, Johan Printz moved his capital from Fort Christina (located in what is now Wilmington, Delaware) ...
in
Essington
Essington is a village and civil parish in South Staffordshire, England, located near the city of Wolverhampton and towns of Walsall, Bloxwich, Cannock and Brewood. The villages of Cheslyn Hay, Great Wyrley, Coven, Penkridge and Featherston ...
,
Delaware County, Pennsylvania
Delaware County, colloquially referred to as Delco, is a County (United States), county in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. With a population of 576,830 as of the 2020 census, it is the List of counties in Pennsylvan ...
*Fort Nya Vasa (1646) – at
Kingsessing
Kingsessing is a neighborhood in the Southwest section of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States. On the west side of the Schuylkill River, it is next to the neighborhoods of Cedar Park, Southwest Schuylkill, and Mount Moriah, as well as the ...
, on the eastern-side of
Cobbs Creek
Cobbs Creek is an U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline dataThe National Map, accessed April 1, 2011 tributary of Darby Creek in Delaware County, Pennsylvania, in the United States. It forms an approximat ...
in
Philadelphia
Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the sixth-largest city in the U.S., the second-largest city in both the Northeast megalopolis and Mid-Atlantic regions after New York City. Sinc ...
*Fort Nya Korsholm (1647) – on the
Schuylkill River
The Schuylkill River ( , ) is a river running northwest to southeast in eastern Pennsylvania. The river was improved by navigations into the Schuylkill Canal, and several of its tributaries drain major parts of Pennsylvania's Coal Region. It fl ...
near the
South River in
Philadelphia
Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the sixth-largest city in the U.S., the second-largest city in both the Northeast megalopolis and Mid-Atlantic regions after New York City. Sinc ...
*
Fort Casimir
Fort Casimir or Fort Trinity was a Dutch fort in the seventeenth-century colony of New Netherland. It was located on a no-longer existing barrier island at the end of Chestnut Street in what is now New Castle, Delaware.
Background
The Dutch c ...
(1654) – also known as Fort Trinity (in Swedish, ''Trefaldigheten''), located at the end of Chestnut Street near Harmony & 2nd streets in New Castle, Delaware.
Permanent settlements
*Christina (1638 and 1641; modern
Wilmington, Delaware
Wilmington ( Lenape: ''Paxahakink /'' ''Pakehakink)'' is the largest city in the U.S. state of Delaware. The city was built on the site of Fort Christina, the first Swedish settlement in North America. It lies at the confluence of the Christina ...
)
[Johnson, Amandus. ]
The Swedish settlements on the Delaware, 1638–1664.
'. Swedish Colonial Society, 1911.
*Finland, Finlandia, or Chamassungh (1641 and 1643; modern
Marcus Hook, Pennsylvania
Marcus Hook is a borough in Delaware County, Pennsylvania. The population was 2,397 at the 2010 census. The current mayor is Gene Taylor. The borough calls itself "The Cornerstone of Pennsylvania". The 2005 film ''One Last Thing''... was set an ...
)
*Upland or Uppland (1641 and 1643; modern
Chester, Pennsylvania
Chester is a city in Delaware County, Pennsylvania, United States. Located within the Philadelphia Metropolitan Area, it is the only city in Delaware County and had a population of 32,605 as of the 2020 census.
Incorporated in 1682, Chester is ...
)
*Varkens Kill (1641; modern
Salem County, New Jersey
Salem County is the westernmost county in the U.S. state of New Jersey. Its western boundary is formed by the Delaware River and its eastern terminus is the Delaware Memorial Bridge, which connects the county with New Castle, Delaware. Its co ...
)
*Printztorp (1643; modern Chester, Pa.)
*Tequirassy (1643; modern
Eddystone, Pennsylvania
Eddystone is a borough in Delaware County, Pennsylvania. The population was 2,410 at the 2010 census.
History
The area at the mouth of Ridley Creek was first called "Tequirassy" by Native Americans. The land was owned by Olof Persson Stille, ...
)
*Tenakonk or Tinicum (1643; modern
Tinicum Township, Delaware County, Pennsylvania
Tinicum Township, more popularly known as "Tinicum Island" or "The Island", is a township in Delaware County, Pennsylvania. The population was 4,091 at the 2010 census, down from 4,353 at the 2000 census. Included within the townships boundarie ...
)
*Provins, Druweeÿland, or Manaiping
(1643; modern southwest Philadelphia, on Province Island on the
Schuylkill River
The Schuylkill River ( , ) is a river running northwest to southeast in eastern Pennsylvania. The river was improved by navigations into the Schuylkill Canal, and several of its tributaries drain major parts of Pennsylvania's Coal Region. It fl ...
)
*Minquas or Minqua's Island (1644; modern southwest
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the sixth-largest city in the U.S., the second-largest city in both the Northeast megalopolis and Mid-Atlantic regions after New York City. Sinc ...
)
*Kingsessing (1644; modern southwest
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the sixth-largest city in the U.S., the second-largest city in both the Northeast megalopolis and Mid-Atlantic regions after New York City. Sinc ...
)
*Mölndal (1645; modern
Yeadon, Pennsylvania
Yeadon is a borough in Delaware County, Pennsylvania. It borders the city of Philadelphia. The population was 11,443 at the 2010 census.
Geography
Yeadon is located in eastern Delaware County at (39.932862, -75.251540). It is bordered on the sou ...
)
*Torne (1647; modern
West Philadelphia
West Philadelphia, nicknamed West Philly, is a section of the city of Philadelphia. Alhough there are no officially defined boundaries, it is generally considered to reach from the western shore of the Schuylkill River, to City Avenue to the nort ...
)
*Sveaborg (c. 1649; modern
Swedesboro, New Jersey)
*Nya Stockholm (c. 1649; modern
Bridgeport, New Jersey)
*Sidoland (1654; modern Wilmington, Del.)
*Översidolandet (1654; modern Wilmington, Del.)
*Timmerön or Timber Island (1654; modern Wilmington)
*Strandviken (1654; modern Wilmington)
*Ammansland (1654; modern
Darby, Pennsylvania
Darby is a borough (Pennsylvania), borough in Delaware County, Pennsylvania, United States. The borough is located along Darby Creek southwest of Center City, Philadelphia, Center City Philadelphia. The borough of Darby is distinct from the near ...
)
Rivers and creeks
*
Delaware River
The Delaware River is a major river in the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic region of the United States. From the meeting of its branches in Hancock (village), New York, Hancock, New York, the river flows for along the borders of N ...
: "South River" (''Södre Rivier''; as opposed to the
Hudson
Hudson may refer to:
People
* Hudson (given name)
* Hudson (surname)
* Henry Hudson, English explorer
* Hudson (footballer, born 1986), Hudson Fernando Tobias de Carvalho, Brazilian football right-back
* Hudson (footballer, born 1988), Hudso ...
), "Swedish River" (''Swenskes Rivier''), "New Sweden River" (''Nya Sweriges Rivier'')
*
Schuylkill River
The Schuylkill River ( , ) is a river running northwest to southeast in eastern Pennsylvania. The river was improved by navigations into the Schuylkill Canal, and several of its tributaries drain major parts of Pennsylvania's Coal Region. It fl ...
: "Schuyl Creek" (''Schuylen Kÿl'')
meaning hidden river
*
Brandywine Creek: "Fish Creek" (''Fiske Kÿl'')
*
Christina River
The Christina River is a tributary of the Delaware River, approximately 35 miles (56 km) long, in northern Delaware in the United States, also flowing through small areas of southeastern Pennsylvania and northeastern Maryland. Near i ...
: "Susquehanna" (''Minquas'') or "Christina Creek" (''Christina Kÿl'')
*
Raccoon Creek: "Narraticon" ''(
Lenape
The Lenape (, , or Lenape , del, Lënapeyok) also called the Leni Lenape, Lenni Lenape and Delaware people, are an indigenous peoples of the Northeastern Woodlands, who live in the United States and Canada. Their historical territory includ ...
)'' meaning Raccoon
*
Salem River
The Salem River is a tributary of the Delaware River in southwestern New Jersey in the United States.
The course and watershed of the Salem River are entirely within Salem County. Tributaries of the Salem include Game Creek, Mannington Creek ...
: Varkens Kill (''Hogg Creek'')
*
Mullica River
The Mullica River is a U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline dataThe National Map, accessed April 1, 2011 river in southern New Jersey in the United States. The Mullica was once known as the ''Little Egg Ha ...
, named for an early Finnish settler,
Eric Pålsson Mullica
Eric Pålsson Mullica (or ''Mullikka'', 1636/37 – before 1704) was an early Finnish settler to New Sweden. He and his family were the source of the name of several geographic features and places in New Jersey.
Background
Eric (or "Erkki", orig ...
See also
*
C. A. Nothnagle Log House
*
Swedish emigration to North America
*
European colonization of the Americas
During the Age of Discovery, a large scale European colonization of the Americas took place between about 1492 and 1800. Although the Norse had explored and colonized areas of the North Atlantic, colonizing Greenland and creating a short ter ...
*
Possessions of Sweden
*
Swedish American
Swedish Americans ( sv, svenskamerikaner) are Americans of Swedes, Swedish ancestry. They include the 1.2 million Swedish immigrants during 1865–1915, who formed tight-knit communities, as well as their descendants and more recent immigrants.
...
*
Upland Court
Upland Court was the governing body of the New Sweden colony following Dutch West India Company annexation from Swedish colonial rule. In 1655, Peter Stuyvesant, governor of the Dutch colony, allowed the colonists to remain an independent Swedis ...
*
Finnish American
Finnish Americans ( fi, amerikansuomalaiset, ) comprise Americans with ancestral roots from Finland or Finnish people who immigrated to and reside in the United States. The Finnish-American population numbers a little bit more than 650,000. Man ...
*
American Swedish Historical Museum
The American Swedish Historical Museum is the oldest Swedish-American museum in the United States. It is located in Franklin Delano Roosevelt Park in South Philadelphia, on part of a historic 17th-century land grant originally provided by Queen ...
*
Rambo apple
The origins of the Rambo apple cultivar are unknown. It may date back to the American colony of New Sweden, when in 1637 Peter Gunnarsson Rambo, a Swedish immigrant, arrived on the '' Kalmar Nyckel''. Swedish natural historian Pehr Kalm, who w ...
*
Kalmar Nyckel
''Kalmar Nyckel'' (''Key of Kalmar'') was a Swedish ship built by the Dutch famed for carrying Swedish settlers to North America in 1638, to establish the colony of New Sweden. The name Kalmar Nyckel comes from the Swedish city of Kalmar and nyc ...
*
Laurentius Carels Laurentius Carels (1624–1688) was one of the first settlers of Delaware County, Pennsylvania and one of the first Church of Sweden, Swedish Lutheran clergyman in New Sweden. As was typical among Swedish ministers, he generally used a Latinized ver ...
, Swedish American Lutheran pastor
*
Olof Persson Stille
Olof Persson Stille (1610–1684) was a pioneer settler of New Sweden, a colony along the lower reaches of the Delaware River in North America claimed by Sweden from 1638 to 1655. Stille served as the first chief justice of the Upland Court, the g ...
, first chief justice of the
Upland Court
Upland Court was the governing body of the New Sweden colony following Dutch West India Company annexation from Swedish colonial rule. In 1655, Peter Stuyvesant, governor of the Dutch colony, allowed the colonists to remain an independent Swedis ...
*
Wedge (border)
The Wedge (or Delaware Wedge) is a tract of land along the borders of Delaware, Maryland and Pennsylvania. Ownership of the land was disputed until 1921; it is now recognized as part of Delaware. The tract was created primarily by the shortcomin ...
*
New Sweden Farmstead Museum
The New Sweden Farmstead Museum was an open-air museum in Bridgeton, New Jersey, United States. A recreation of a 17th-century Swedish farmstead, it was located in City Park, and served as a historical remembrance of the history of the Swedish an ...
*
Old Swedes' Church
*
Lower Swedish Cabin
Lower Swedish Cabin is a historic Swedish-style log cabin on Creek Road in the Drexel Hill section of Upper Darby, Pennsylvania, along Darby Creek. The cabin may be one of the oldest log cabins in the United States and is one of the last cabin ...
*
Flag of Philadelphia
References
Notes
Bibliography
*
Barton, H. Arnold (1994). ''A Folk Divided: Homeland Swedes and Swedish Americans, 1840–1940''. Uppsala: Acta Universitatis Upsaliensis
*
Benson, Adolph B. and Naboth Hedin, eds. (1938) ''Swedes in America, 1638–1938''. The Swedish American Tercentenary Association. New Haven, Connecticut: Yale University Press
* Jennings, Francis, (1984) ''The Ambiguous Iroquois''. New York: Norton
*
Johnson, Amandus (1927) ''The Swedes on the Delaware''. Philadelphia: International Printing Company
*
* Munroe, John A. (1977) ''Colonial Delaware''. Wilmington, Delaware: Delaware Heritage Press
*
Shorto, Russell (2004) ''The Island at the Center of the World''. New York: Doubleday
* Weslager, C. A. (1990) ''A Man and his Ship, Peter Minuet and the Kalmar Nyckel''. Wilmington, Delaware: Kalmar Nyckel Foundation
* Weslager, C. A. (1988) ''New Sweden on the Delaware 1638–1655''. Wilmington, Delaware: Middle Atlantic Press
* Weslager, C. A. (1987) ''The Swedes and Dutch at New Castle''. Wilmington, Delaware: Middle Atlantic Press
Further reading
*
Jameson, J. Franklin (1887) ''Willem Usselinx: Founder of the Dutch and Swedish West India Companies''. New York: G.P. Putnam's Sons.
* Mickley, Joseph J. (1881) ''Some Account of William Usselinx and Peter Minuit: Two individuals who were instrumental in establishing the first permanent colony in Delaware''. The Historical Society of Delaware.
* Myers, Albert Cook, ed. (1912) ''Narratives of Early Pennsylvania, West New Jersey, and Delaware, 1630–1707''. New York: Charles Scribner's Sons
* Ward, Christopher (1930) ''Dutch and Swedes on the Delaware, 1609–1664''. Philadelphia: University of Pennsylvania Press
External links
The Finns in American Colonial HistoryThe American Swedish Historical Museum a
The Swedish Colonial SocietyThe New Sweden Centre – museum, tours and reenactorsNew Swedenat the FamilySearch Research Wiki
{{coord, 39, 44, 12, N, 75, 32, 19, W, region:US-DE_type:landmark, display=title
Colonization history of the United States
Colonial settlements in North America
Former Swedish colonies
17th century in Sweden
Economic history of Sweden
History of Philadelphia
Wilmington, Delaware
States and territories established in 1638
Finnish-American history
Swedish-American history
European colonization of North America
Former colonies in North America
1638 establishments in North America
1655 disestablishments in North America
1655 disestablishments in the Swedish colonial empire
1638 establishments in the Swedish colonial empire
States and territories disestablished in 1655