Researching the Dutch ship Fortuyn (Fortune) 1614

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Feb 5, 2018
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Buena Park, California
Background of early Dutch visits to New York area:
  • 1609; Henry Hudson, on board the Halve Maen (Half Moon), discovered the New York area.
  • 1611; St. Pieter, captained by Cornelis Rijsen
  • 1612; Tiger, captained by Adriaen Block and Fortuyn (Fortune), captained by Hendricks
  • 1613; Nachtegael (Nightingale) captained by Volckertsz Messel.
  • 1613; Fortuyn, different ship from the one captained by Christiansen in 1612, this one is captained by Cornelis Jocobsz Mey (sometime listed as May). This is the ship I an interested in.
  • 1614 thru 1621; The area was wide open to trading and many ships were coming and going.
  • 1621; The West India Company was granted a Ten year Chart for exclusive trading.
Additional information about Fortuyn that was Captained by Mey:
  • Fortuyn was one of the ship of the New Netherland Company. Within The New Netherland Company, the sole owners of the Fortuyn were three member of the Company from Hoorn, Netherland Peter Clementssen Brouwer, Jan Clementssen Kies, and Cornelius Volkertssen Viele (My Grandfather 9th remove, hence my interest in this ship)
  • Several references list him as Cornelius Volckertssen or Cornelius Volkertssen Seyelmaker. The family change their last name from Seyelmaker to Viele about this time.
  • He return to New Netherland after 1621 and was a trader and sailor. He gave up sailing when he married in 1638. He started the Viele clan in America

My research so far is trying to identify just the Fortuyn class:
  • Most of my research was the Viele Genealogy Records 1613-1913, compiled by Katherine Knickerbocker, several New York historical Internet sites, and early 1600 models Info. Not much information on Dutch ships of the early 1600’s. Ships names and their captains are about all I can get. The only record of class was a brief mention in the Viele Genealogy, that stated it was a Sloop. Which as far as I can tell about sloops of that time period, was that they were small and single masted. I have many doubt that Cornelius Jocobs Mey would have sailed to New Netherland in a sloop. I thought more along the line of the size of the Hudson’s ship the Half Moon, which was classed as a Yacht about 80 tons, it was a three masted square rigger. The next step up would be the Fluyt, 100-200 tons, a three masted square rigger (e.g. Mayflower enough though she was english she was classified as a Fluyt). All these class were merchant ships and lightly armed. Also looking into the Duyfken, a barque of 110 tons built in 1607.

My current plans:
  • Presently I just finishing some repair to my Scottish Maid.
  • I’m ready to start my build on the HMS Endeavor.
  • After that, I would like to do a Fortuyn build.
    • First decision scratch build or modify a kit (I will most likely be looking for recommendation on this one).
    • The Theme would be around Roman Goddess Fortuna, in the book Historic Ship Model by Wolfram zu Mondfel, page 255, there a drawing on a sail that depicts Fortuna on it. Also there's a lot of statues to use as examples. It would be nice if there was a figurehead, but most likely I will get a chance to try my hand at carving. Probably will not have to do to much decorating, the class of ships I’m looking at from the early 1600 did not have elaborate decorations. Also what classification and size to use, this most likely will be an educated guess Right now I’m looking at something between the Mayflower and the Half Moon, maybe Duyfken. Maybe use one of them as a base kit or ship drawings.
Please weight in if you have info and/or suggestion. I have found very little information for this time period and I could use some help.
 
Thanks Wayne, this is the type of direction I needed. Being a novice in this type of research This real helps. I looked up the book last night and it s seems to deal with the type of ships I am interested in. I also read that he was involved with the building of the replica Duyfken in Australia.
 
We will help you where ever we can.....I will also go through my library if I find something interesting for you.
Especialy with your family background it is a great project you are in front of you.....
 
three main books that cover this subject are

the Mayflower and other colonial vessels by William Baker

the galleon by Peter Kirsch

Cogs Caravels and Galleons Conway Maritime press

between these 3 publication you should be able to reconstruct the Fortuyn each one of these publications have excellent bibliography's that can lead you to other sources.


Which as far as I can tell about sloops of that time period, was that they were small and single masted. I have many doubt that Cornelius Jocobs Mey would have sailed to New Netherland in a sloop

never know the Vikings sailed across the north sea in a one mast open boat
 
Thanks Didit, I will check out your recommendation. On the subject of the Vikings, they were a little crazy, but if they had a choice between a longboat and a galleon which do you think they would chosen?
 
Hallo again,

Hint 1)
do you know the painting "Departure of a Dignitary from Middelburg (1615)" by Adriaen van de Venne ?

Departure_of_a_Dignitary_from_Middelburg_(1615)_Adriaen_van_de_Venne.jpg

https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/...om_Middelburg_(1615)_Adriaen_van_de_Venne.jpg
Description at wikipedia:
Nederlands: Mogelijk is het vertrek van Elisabeth Stuart, koningin van Bohemen, de ‘Winterkoningin’, voorgesteld, 12 mei 1613.[3]; vertrek van Robert Sidney in 1616, J.H. Kluiver, 'Adriaen van de Venne's 'Gezicht op de Haven van Middelburg' geïdentificeerd als het vertrek van Robert Sidney in 1616', Oud Holland 109 (1995), p. 121-142

Directly on the web-page of the Rijksmuseum you get a better resolution photo of this vessel.....it is showing the typical hull form of the dutch ships beginning of the 17th century

https://www.rijksmuseum.nl/en/collection/SK-A-1775

Hint 2)
Maybe you know also the so called "Peller Modell" which is the oldest (prooved) ship model in Germany, showing a merchant ship arround 1600 built in Lübeck.
The model is dated with 1603....
There is a book written by Werner Jaeger: Das Peller-Modell von 1603. Geschichte Beschreibung und Aufmaß des Modells mit Rekonstruktion der Takelage. VEB Hinstorff Verlag, Rostock 1973

https://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Peller-Modell

Hint 3)
Next to visiting the Rijksmuseum directly you also can search a little bit on this web-page, which is a listing of the models etc. they have in (as I understood) museums in Netherland - I searched only for models "scheepsmodellen" but you can widen this easily (also easier if you can speak dutch)

http://www.maritiemdigitaal.nl/inde...odellen&shipname=&invno=&museum=&startrow=141

The search will go on ......
 
Thanks Uwe and Didit, great info. Uwe, your info going to take me some time, since I don't know Dutch. My translator app going to get a work out. Didit, great dissertation on the Fluyt, it really increased my knowledge. It's going be great reference if I go with the Fluyt as the base ship for the Fortuyn, which I'm leaning to right now. Can you re-post the article a bit smaller some of the info is cut off, some time on the left some time on the right.
 
Can you re-post the article a bit smaller some of the info is cut off, some time on the left some time on the right.

it is not the size of the file posted it is because the original book is bigger than the scanner I could rescan the pages in 2 sections.

rather than rescan the pages in pieces and stitch them back together if you have any question about the text just ask and i can look at the original and tell you want is missing
 
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Dave I too am interested in Dutch ships and hopping a X Section, could be done as a kit along side A british ship from the same era. Don
 
there was a wreck studied of a ship built in North America by Rene Robert Cavalier La Salle. Here is a wood cut of the ship under construction, looking at the round stern it looks like a Fluit this was built around 1670ish and the Dutch were well established in North America at this time. There is a thesis on this wreck and several plans drawn.
One thing I noticed is the palm tree odd because the ship was built in upper New York the wreck studied was in Lake Huron, Canada best to my knowledge palm trees do not grow in Canada.

HOWEVER the wood cut was published in nouvelle Decouverte d'um tres grand pays situe' dans l'amerique 1697 so that is like almost 30 years after the building so father Hennepin who traveled with La Salle, maybe the good Father confused details from the travels "understandable"

griff.JPG
 
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