New Amsterdam Town Hall (1950)

New Amsterdam (Nieuw Amsterdam in Dutch), located in the East Berbice-Corentyne Region, 62 miles from the capital, Georgetown, is one of the largest towns in Guyana. It is located four miles upriver from the Atlantic Ocean mouth of the Berbice River, on its eastern bank, immediately south of the Canje River (6°15′N, 57°31′W). New Amsterdam's population is approximately 33,000. Image File history File links No higher resolution available. ... Image File history File links No higher resolution available. ... First of all, the Regions here are not correct as they are called in Guyana. ... This article or section does not adequately cite its references or sources. ... The Berbice River located in eastern Guyana. ... The Canje River, located in northeastern Guyana, is the main tributary of the Berbice River. ...

New Amsterdam has its origins in a village which grew up alongside Fort Nassau in the 1730s and 1740s. The first Nieuw Amsterdam, as it was called then, was situated about 56 miles up the Berbice River on the right bank. The first Nieuw Amsterdam, as it was called then, was situated about 56 miles up the Berbice River on the right bank. Before the 1763 uprising it comprised a Court of Policy building, a warehouse, an inn, two smithies, a bakery, a Lutheran church and a number of houses, among other buildings. Built in 1740 by the Dutch New Amsterdam was first named Fort Sint Andries. It was made seat of the Dutch colonial government in 1790. In 1803 it was taken over by the British. The name Fort Nassau was used by the Dutch in the 17th century for several fortifications, mostly trading stations, named for the House of Orange-Nassau. ... Events Pope Clement XII elected September 17 - Change of emperor of the Ottoman Empire from Ahmed III (1703-1730) to Mahmud I (1730-1754) Anna Ivanova (Anna I of Russia) became czarina Births April 16 - Henry Clinton, British general (d. ... Events May 31 - Friedrich II comes to power in Prussia upon the death of his father, Friedrich Wilhelm I. October 20 - Maria Theresia of Austria inherits the Habsburg hereditary dominions (Austria, Bohemia, Hungary and present-day Belgium). ... Events May 31 - Friedrich II comes to power in Prussia upon the death of his father, Friedrich Wilhelm I. October 20 - Maria Theresia of Austria inherits the Habsburg hereditary dominions (Austria, Bohemia, Hungary and present-day Belgium). ... Year 1790 (MDCCXC) was a common year starting on Friday (link will display the full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar (or a common year starting on Monday of the 11-day slower Julian calendar). ... 1803 was a common year starting on Saturday (see link for calendar). ...

The little township was a pioneer in several by-laws; it boasted the first sanitation regulations on record (no privies near the public path, drains to be dug and places kept weeded) and the first price controls in the only hostelry in town. The serious imbibers in this society would be happy to learn that many of these applied to alcoholic beverages, including madeira, genever (Dutch gin), kilthum (the forerunner of rum) and even a drink made by the Amerindians. Of course, alcohol was not considered an indulgence in those days, but rather a necessity, since it was erroneously believed that it warded off diseases like malaria, which it was claimed came from exposure to 'miasmas'.

In March 1763, Coffy made the Court of Policy building in the little town his headquarters, and he placed two cannon - which had been repaired for him by Prins, the blacksmith - on either side of its doorway. When the revolutionaries were forced to retreat upriver in 1764, Nieuw Amsterdam was torched under the supervision of Prins, and only the brick Lutheran church survived. After the uprising was crushed, he was charged with arson and executed. 1763 was a common year starting on Saturday (see link for calendar). ... Coffy , Jack Hills 1973 movie about an African American woman vigilante, catapulted Pam Grier to stardom as one of blaxploitations biggest icons. ... 1764 was a leap year starting on Sunday (see link for calendar). ...

While the village was rebuilt afterwards, by the 1770s it was already becoming apparent that it had ceased to be the centre of the colony. The planters had begun to move to the more fertile soils of the lower river, leaving the township somewhat isolated upstream. At first the Dutch authorities had some grandiose plans to construct imposing government buildings there - plans which can still be seen in the State Archives in The Hague. However, eventually they had to recognize that such development would be futile in a context where Berbice's economic activity was centred on the lower river, and in 1785 they took a decision to relocate the town to the mouth of the Canje. Events and Trends For more events, see 18th century United States Declaration of Independence ratified by the Continental Congress (July 4, 1776). ...

As is often the case with bureaucrats, nothing happened immediately. However, by June 1790, the authorities were ready for private residents, and in January of the following year they published an ordinance laying down the conditions for the granting of house lots in the present New Amsterdam. Each resident had to empolder his land and dig drainage ditches, and anyone who had not built a house within six months of the government being transferred from upstream, was to lose his lot.

Five years later, Berbice's capital fell into British hands, although not all its early visitors from that quarter of Europe were impressed by its appearance. Gradually, however, it acquired a character of its own, and to its credit it still boasts (among many other advantages) what is arguably the best example of Cesar Castellani's architecture extant, namely, the New Amsterdam Public Hospital. (It might be remembered that the powers-that-be allowed the Palms, the best example in Georgetown, to fall into such a state of disrepair that the building had to be demolished.) Berbice is the Second largest of the three counties in Guyana and is known as the ancient county. ... Cesar Castellani (? - 2 August 1905) was an architect. ... New Amsterdam Public Hospital (1950) The New Amsterdam Public Hospital, in New Amsterdam, Guyana, is outstanding example of timber architecture, and one of the two surviving architectural masterpieces designed by Cesar Castellani, an architect employed in the Public Works Department of British Guiana. ...

In 1831, New Amsterdam lost its status as a capital, when the two colonies of Berbice and Essequibo/Demerara were combined into one to become British Guiana. British Guiana and its boundary lines, 1896 Flag of British Guiana British Guiana was the name of the British colony on the northern coast of South America, now the independent nation of Guyana. ...

View of The Strand (1920s)

The present town is fairly small, consisting of three main roads with about a dozen cross streets. It has a Mayor and a thriving market. From New Amsterdam you can get to Crabwood Creek (about 45 miles away) via the Corentyne or to the East Canje area of Berbice. A road also leads up the Berbice River bank to the town of Mara about 25 miles south. Image File history File links No higher resolution available. ... Image File history File links No higher resolution available. ... Crabwood Creek is a small community of about 10,000 on the Corentyne River in the East Berbice–Corentyne region of Guyana. ...

New Amsterdam serves as a port and has a government-run hospital. The town has many old colonial buildings, some dating back to the time of Dutch colonisation. Mission Chapel has been designated a National Heritage Site. Seaport, a painting by Claude Lorrain, 1638 The Port of Wellington at night. ... New Amsterdam Public Hospital (1950) The New Amsterdam Public Hospital, in New Amsterdam, Guyana, is outstanding example of timber architecture, and one of the two surviving architectural masterpieces designed by Cesar Castellani, an architect employed in the Public Works Department of British Guiana. ... The Mission Church was first located at Fort Nassau some sixty-five miles up the Berbice River. ...

The main schools in New Amsterdam are Berbice High School, Berbice Educational Institute, Vryman's Erven Secondary, Tutorial Academy, and New Amsterdam Multilateral High School (opened in 1975). The Berbice High School for Boys was established On 5 September 1916, on the ground floor of the residence occupied by Rev. ... 1975 (MCMLXXV) was a common year starting on Wednesday. ...

The Esplanade is the name of an open public ground west of Esplanade Road and immediately opposite The Gardens. It evokes many pleasant memories of the time when it was immensely popular as a picnic resort and rendezvous for the people of Berbice. The bandstand there saw many splendid and well attended performances of the British Guiana Militia Band.

There are several hotels in the town - Church View Guest House, Astor Hotel, and Little Rock. However the Parkway Hotel is by far the biggest hotel in the town.

New Amsterdam has two television stations - DTV-8, located in the heart of the town, and LRTVS, located in Vryman's Erven.