Opening from On This Site - Native Long Island

Oyster Bay and Glen Cove: Colonial Patents and Native Land

English governor Edmund Andros claimed town-wide authority for Oyster Bay in 1677 while acknowledging Native land within its boundaries that had not yet been purchased. Separate agreements and resource rights show why this region cannot be explained as one completed sale. The patent itself acknowledged Native land that had not been purchased. Naming the English government and settlers behind the claim makes visible how colonial authority could spread beyond particular agreements, without treating a map outline as proof of Native consent or disappearance. A small agreement did not transfer a whole region Oyster Bay is both a harbor on Long Island Sound and the name of a much larger modern town extending toward the South Shore. Glen Cove is now a separate city on Hempstead Harbor. The earlier 1653 Oyster Bay agreement is interpreted in its own map chapter. This wider regional chapter...