Manhansack-aha-quash-awamock (“an island sheltered by islands”) was originally home to the Manhanset People. Their Sachem, Pogatticut, was the Grand Sachem of most of the tribes on Long Island.
Shelter Island was included in the original Plymouth Company land grant made by James I of England in 1620. On April 22, 1636, Charles I of England, told that the colony had not made any settlements yet on Long Island, gave the island to William Alexander, 1st Earl of Stirling. The grant gave Alexander all of Long Island and adjacent islands. Alexander gave James Farret power to act as his agent and attorney in colonizing Long Island. In reward Farret was allowed to choose 12,000 acres (49 km2) for his personal use. Farret chose Shelter Island and Robin's Island for his use. Farret in turn sold the islands to Stephen Goodyear, one of the founders of the New Haven Colony.[9]
In 1651 Goodyear sold the island to a group of Barbados sugar merchants for 1,600 pounds of sugar. Nathaniel Sylvester (1610–1680), one of the merchants, was the island’s first white settler.[10] He was among a number of English merchants who had lived and worked in Rotterdam (where he was born) before going to Barbados. His connections there and with the Netherlands helped him establish a far-flung trading enterprise.
On March 23, 1652, he made the purchase official by agreement with Youghco (called Poggatticut), the sachem of the Manhanset tribe. The other owners, Sylvester’s brother Constant, and Thomas Middleton, never came to Long Island. In 1673 Nathaniel Sylvester claimed ownership of Shelter Island, Fishers Island, and other parts of Long Island.[11] By that time the Manhansett had declined in number and power.[12]
See some documents about Shelter Island here and use the Timeline Button to see more:
https://encyclopedia.nahc-mapping.org/document/grant-shelter-island-nathaniel-silvester
https://encyclopedia.nahc-mapping.org/document/patent-nathaniel-silvester-shelter-island
Read more here: https://www.shelterislandtown.us/history-of-shelter-island
Maps
https://digitalcollections.nypl.org/items/4e549c70-bd6e-0133-40a8-00505686a51c - perhaps the best map to show people in 1889
https://digitalcollections.nypl.org/items/a6539e0c-ec45-fdb2-e040-e00a18061a2e
: https://mapcollections.brooklynhistory.org/map/southold-and-shelter-island-suffolk-co-l-i/
https://www.etsy.com/listing/1063686452/shelter-island-1855-greenport-ram-head
Boundary
| Name at the time | Change | Start Date | End Date | Boundary Event |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Schuil Eyland | Under nominal control of Nieuw Nederlandt | 1639-03-10 | 1640-08-15 | Shelter Island_Schuil Eyland_1639-03-10_1640-08-15 |
| Shelter Island | Under nominal control of Southold | 1640-08-15 | 1650-09-15 | Shelter Island_Shelter Island_1640-08-15_1650-09-15 |
| Shelter Island | Claimed by Connecticut by Treaty of Hartford | 1650-09-15 | 1662-04-23 | Shelter Island_Shelter Island_1650-09-15_1662-04-23 |
| Shelter Island | Claimed by Connecticut by royal charter. | 1662-04-23 | 1664-03-12 | Shelter Island_Shelter Island_1662-04-23_1664-03-12 |
| Shelter Island | Assigned to Yorkshire shire | 1664-03-12 | 1666-06-01 | Shelter Island_Shelter Island_1664-03-12_1666-06-01 |
| Shelter Island | Recognized as a town by patent. | 1666-06-01 | 1683-11-01 | Shelter Island_Shelter Island_1666-06-01_1683-11-01 |
| Shelter Island | Assigned to Suffolk County | 1683-11-01 | 1789-04-01 | Shelter Island_Shelter Island_1683-11-01_1789-04-01 |
| Shelter Island | Recognized as a town by state law. | 1789-04-01 | 1887-10-12 | Shelter Island_Shelter Island_1789-04-01_1887-10-12 |
| Shelter Island | Maritime limits extended to Shelter Island Bay & Gardines Bay | 1887-10-12 | 9999-12-31 | Shelter Island_Shelter Island_1887-10-12_9999-12-31 |
