John Colman (died September 6, 1609) was a crew member of the '' Half Moon'' under

Henry Hudson Henry Hudson ( 1565 – disappeared 23 June 1611) was an English sea explorer and navigator during the early 17th century, best known for his explorations of present-day Canada and parts of the northeastern United States. In 1607 and 16 ...

who was killed by Native Americans by an arrow to his neck.

Biography

On September 6, 1609, only five days after the arrival of the first Dutch and English sailors, John Colman was reportedly killed by attacking Native Americans by an arrow to his neck. Colman was an "accomplished sailor" and served as second mate on Henry Hudson's ship. The '' Half Moon'' sailed into

New York Harbor New York Harbor is at the mouth of the Hudson River where it empties into New York Bay near the East River tidal estuary, and then into the Atlantic Ocean on the east coast of the United States. It is one of the largest natural harbors in ...

and was anchored between

Coney Island Coney Island is a peninsular neighborhood and entertainment area in the southwestern section of the New York City borough of Brooklyn. The neighborhood is bounded by Brighton Beach and Manhattan Beach, Brooklyn, Manhattan Beach to its east, L ...

and

Sandy Hook Sandy Hook is a barrier spit in Middletown Township, Monmouth County, New Jersey, United States. The barrier spit, approximately in length and varying from wide, is located at the north end of the Jersey Shore. It encloses the southern ...

. Colman was part of a 5 man crew that was aboard a rowboat that was scouting the area. Allegedly, two

Lenape canoes Lenape canoes were dugout canoes of Lenapehoking. Tree trunks used were primarily of the American tulip tree ( del, mùxulhemënshi, "tree from which canoes are made”), and also of elm, white oak, chestnut or red cedar. Birch bark canoes were ...

filled with Native Americans attacked and fired a volley of arrows, killing Colman and wounding two others. The survivors of the attack returned to the ''Half Moon'' at 10 a.m. on September 7, 1609 with Colman's body. He was buried that day either at what is now

Staten Island Staten Island ( ) is a Boroughs of New York City, borough of New York City, coextensive with Richmond County, in the U.S. state of New York (state), New York. Located in the city's southwest portion, the borough is separated from New Jersey b ...

Keansburg, New Jersey Keansburg (, Felzenberg, Alvin''Governor Tom Kean: From the New Jersey Statehouse to the 9-11 Commission'' p. 5. Rutgers University Press, 2006. . Accessed July 25, 2012. "In 1884, after congressman and future U.S. senator John Kean, Tom Kean's ...

. The forgotten location was then named Colman's Point. A contemporary account of his death was written in the journal of Robert Juet, the first mate of the ''Half Moon.'' The most likely point of Coleman's burial may have been Sandy Hook, or "Coleman's Point". "He was shot in the throat by an arrow: and as he had been a companion of Hudson's in his Polar adventures, having burind him on the beach, he named Sandy Hook "Coleman's Point," in honor of him" -Excerpt from "The Catskill Mountains and the Region Around" 1867

Legacy

The murder of John Colman was the basis for a poem by

Thomas Frost Thomas Frost (born March 7, 1925) is a multiple Grammy Award-winning classical music producer, who won many of his awards for producing the albums of Vladimir Horowitz. Frost is the father of producer David Frost."Like Father, Like Son", ''Billbo ...

, "The Death of Colman", where he writes:

Then prone he fell within the boat,
A flinthead arrow through his throat
And now full many a stealthy skiff
Shot out into the bay;
And swiftly, sadly, pulled we back
To where the Half Moon lay;
But he was dead our master wept
He smiled, brave heart, as though he slept.

His death is commemorated by a mural at the Hudson County Courthouse in

Jersey City Jersey City is the second-most populous city in the U.S. state of New Jersey, after Newark.New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...

has called it "the first recorded murder in what became metropolitan New York". People of the Hudson Highlands area believed that Colman's spirit became the Dwerg, Heer of Dunderberg, a goblin who dressed in Dutch clothing, who raise storms to sink ships at World's End (the area just north of West Point where the Hudson is over 200 feet deep.) The Heer appears in writings by Washington Irving. Evan Pritichard, author of "Henry Hudson and the Algonquins of New York" speculates the attack on Colman occurred because he strayed too near a wampum making outpost, provoking a preemptive strike by wary Native peoples living near Manhattan.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Colman, John Year of birth unknown 1609 deaths English sailors People murdered in New York (state) Male murder victims People of New Netherland 16th-century English people 17th-century English people 16th-century births

Biography

Legacy

See also

References