Between 1623 and 1627, Captain
Cornelius Jacobsen May, an officer with the
Dutch West India Company and first director of
New Netherland, established
Fort Nassau, where the
Delaware River meets Big Timber Creek, which is today known as
Brooklawn. In 1633,
David Pietersen De Vries, a Dutch commander, was sailing up the Delaware River when he came across Natives in control of the fort. The settlers that had been left at the fort had decided to return to
New Amsterdam (
Today Manhattan, New York).
Wouter van Twiller, Governor of
New Netherland, restored Fort Nassau. He was accused of extravagant spending in the fort's reconstruction. The settlement subsequently sparked competition from European Settlers over control of the fur trade in the area. The fort was used by the Dutch until around 1650 or 1651 when it was decided that it was far to up the river to be of any value. The buildings and stockades were demolished and Wouter van Twiller assigned Arent Corssen to find a place for another fort.