We continue our investigations into Lost Dutch Mass (See Episode 25 Niew Nederlandt). On most early maps the area of current Boston Harbor is recorded as “Vos Haven”. Vos Haven is Dutch for Fox Harbor. This was no doubt named because of the abundance of foxes which are still prevalent in Massachusetts today. As the English gradually became dominant in the region and took more territory through a series of global and local conflict they replaced Dutch names with English ones. However, the English still had a problem with names that many people were already familiar with. The Puritans may have come up with a clever solution to make a particular place “english” while preserving the moniker travelers were used to.

In order to understand this we have to plunge into the history of how Massachusetts capital got its name which on inspection starts to fall apart. The Puritan Colony capital went through a few iterations before a name was selected but it seems to have been pulled out of thin air. Stories and explanations may have been backfilled later. Listen to the episode to learn more.

Also explained in detail is exactly how the Dutch lost their massive global empire. We reference Lotharingia by Simon Winder which covers the lost European country of Lotharingia. Not only is this a good reference for our topic it also illustrates how such large territories can be erased from maps and forgotten.

Show notes, sources and more information at LostMassachusetts.com

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