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This Day in History, 1639
Dec. 3rd, 2004 08:21 amI suppose I could have gone with the anniversary of the world's first heart transplant, but I found another interesting New York City one:
JONAS BRONCK PURCHASES HIS FARM
Danish farmer Jonas Bronck purchases 500 acres of land just north of Manhattan. He establishes his farm about where 132nd Street and Lincoln Avenue in Mott Haven is today, thus becoming the first European settler in the area. Years later, the Bronck's farm becomes a favorite place for people to getaway for a picnic or for touring on horseback. Soon, they begin refering to the area as "going to the Bronx." Later, the whole county is named The Bronx.
Personal connection: my grandfather, Rabbi Abraham Burstein, was also a writer, and one of his books was a YA novel called "Adventure on Manhattan Island," about the first Jewish family to settle in New York City. One of the characters they meet is Jonas Bronck.
JONAS BRONCK PURCHASES HIS FARM
Danish farmer Jonas Bronck purchases 500 acres of land just north of Manhattan. He establishes his farm about where 132nd Street and Lincoln Avenue in Mott Haven is today, thus becoming the first European settler in the area. Years later, the Bronck's farm becomes a favorite place for people to getaway for a picnic or for touring on horseback. Soon, they begin refering to the area as "going to the Bronx." Later, the whole county is named The Bronx.
Personal connection: my grandfather, Rabbi Abraham Burstein, was also a writer, and one of his books was a YA novel called "Adventure on Manhattan Island," about the first Jewish family to settle in New York City. One of the characters they meet is Jonas Bronck.
