All colonial genealogists learn that Britain and its colonies changed from the old style (Julian) calendar to the new style (Gregorian) calendar on January 1,1752. If you do colonial New York research, however, you also have to know that in Holland this change occurred 170 years earlier, in 1582, and the new style or Gregorian calendar therefore was used in the Dutch colony of New Netherland.
Under the old calendar in use prior to 1752 in Britain and its colonies, the year began on March 25, and March was the first month, February the twelfth. Dates in January, February, and the first 24 days of March were often "double-dated" to indicate both the past and incoming years. For example, what we would call February 24, 1714 would then have been February 24, 1713, but could also be written February 24, 1713/14.
The Quakers, who formed a significant part of colonial New York’s population, opposed the use of the traditional names of the months and days of the week. Instead, they always referred to months and days by number, so that instead of Sunday they would say “First day,” and instead of January 1 they would say “the first day of the first month,” or before 1752, “the first day of the eleventh month.”
When the new calendar was adopted, eleven days had to be dropped, and this was done by declaring that the day after September 2, 1752 was September 14, 1752.
The colony of New Netherland, which preceded New York, operated according to the laws and customs of the Netherlands province of Holland, where the new calendar had been in use since Pope Gregory introduced it in 1582. Therefore New Netherland records are dated as we would date them today, with the year beginning January 1 and no double-dating.
After the English conquered New Netherland in 1664, and except for the brief return of Dutch rule in 1673-74, the old (Julian) calendar was used in official documents, but the Dutch often continued using the Gregorian calendar (or some aspects of it) in their church and family records.
Some genealogists have tried to convert all old style and Quaker dates to their modern equivalents, and have published only the modern forms, just as we say George Washington was born February 22, 1732, when at the time he was born the date was February 11, 1731/2. Unfortunately, too many genealogists have interpreted the old dates incorrectly, forgetting particularly that before 1752 the English did not number the months as we do today. In the case of colonial New York, they may have converted a date correctly according to English rules, ignoring the fact that the record was a Dutch one that did not require any conversion.
It is recommended practice to show dates exactly as you find them in the records, and not attempt to "modernize" them. If you find a date between January 1 and March 24 where a double year is not indicated, you may be able to determine which calendar was being used, and the actual year, by studying the source as a whole, and not just looking at the single record of interest.
by Harry Macy Jr., FASG, FGBS
Vetted for accuracy July 2011
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