The First New York Hustle
Three hundred and eighty-one years ago today the world witnessed its first New York-style con job.
The "City That Never Sleeps" may have cleaned its act in the past decade or so. We can walk the streets safely. Corner cafes have replaced the corner drug dealer. The Big Apple is now known as the safest big city in America.
Of course, that wasn't always the case.
For most of its history, New York was a city of crime, a place where only the strong could survive, and where seemingly everyone had an angle or a scheme going. The Five Points was once the world's most dangerous slum, a place where gang violence was made it even more treacherous than the Wild West. Later, as immigrants from other parts of Europe came to the City, we saw the rise of La Cosa Nostra, Murder, Inc., and other notorious crime syndicates. The sickness spread to the outer boroughs as well, turning places like Bedford-Stuyvesant into frightening neighborhoods. By the seventies, the northernmost borough became so notorious, phrases like "Fort Apache" and "Ladies and Gentlemen, the Bronx is burning," became known throughout the country.
And all of that was before the crack era, when things got worse.
The first New York con, the first hustle, took place before our country was born. In fact, it took place before the land was even called New York.
On May 24, 1626, Peter Minuit bought Manhattan island from the natives. He made the purchase with tools and supplies worth approximately 60 guilders. Thinking he just fooled the ignorant natives, I'm sure Peter Minuit felt pretty good about himself. After all, the supplies and such were replaceable. The land, however, was not.
Yet five years later Minuit was suspended from his post and ordered back to Europe from New Amsterdam to explain his reasoning. 60 guilders is roughly the equivalent to 14 American dollars, according to economic experts. Yet, $14 dollars in 1626 would have been quite a lot of money. Doing a very conservative estimate of 3% inflation each year over the 381 years, Peter Minuit spent roughly $1,089,208 for the purchase of New Amsterdam.
And here's where the real hustle took place. Minuit negotiated this deal with the Canarsie tribe. The Carnarsies were natives of southwestern Long Island (part of what is now Brooklyn). They had been passing through Manhattan on a hunting trip when they met up with the Dutch.
So, basically, they conned the Europeans out of the equivalent of $1 million worth of goods for a phony real estate deal.
Only in New York.
The "City That Never Sleeps" may have cleaned its act in the past decade or so. We can walk the streets safely. Corner cafes have replaced the corner drug dealer. The Big Apple is now known as the safest big city in America.
Of course, that wasn't always the case.
For most of its history, New York was a city of crime, a place where only the strong could survive, and where seemingly everyone had an angle or a scheme going. The Five Points was once the world's most dangerous slum, a place where gang violence was made it even more treacherous than the Wild West. Later, as immigrants from other parts of Europe came to the City, we saw the rise of La Cosa Nostra, Murder, Inc., and other notorious crime syndicates. The sickness spread to the outer boroughs as well, turning places like Bedford-Stuyvesant into frightening neighborhoods. By the seventies, the northernmost borough became so notorious, phrases like "Fort Apache" and "Ladies and Gentlemen, the Bronx is burning," became known throughout the country.
And all of that was before the crack era, when things got worse.
The first New York con, the first hustle, took place before our country was born. In fact, it took place before the land was even called New York.
On May 24, 1626, Peter Minuit bought Manhattan island from the natives. He made the purchase with tools and supplies worth approximately 60 guilders. Thinking he just fooled the ignorant natives, I'm sure Peter Minuit felt pretty good about himself. After all, the supplies and such were replaceable. The land, however, was not.
Yet five years later Minuit was suspended from his post and ordered back to Europe from New Amsterdam to explain his reasoning. 60 guilders is roughly the equivalent to 14 American dollars, according to economic experts. Yet, $14 dollars in 1626 would have been quite a lot of money. Doing a very conservative estimate of 3% inflation each year over the 381 years, Peter Minuit spent roughly $1,089,208 for the purchase of New Amsterdam.
And here's where the real hustle took place. Minuit negotiated this deal with the Canarsie tribe. The Carnarsies were natives of southwestern Long Island (part of what is now Brooklyn). They had been passing through Manhattan on a hunting trip when they met up with the Dutch.
So, basically, they conned the Europeans out of the equivalent of $1 million worth of goods for a phony real estate deal.
Only in New York.
posted by E-Luv at 9:41 AM
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