The first settlers in what became New Amsterdam were James Riley and Jacob Youstler. Starting in 1815, they lived in New Amsterdam for several years before relocating further north. The town was formally platted on September 19, 1815, by Jacob Funk and Samuel McAdams.
The town relied on the Ohio River for its growth, as it was the main transportation route for migrating settlers as well as traders up and down river. Steamboats were active on the river during the 19th century and contributed to the growth of waterfront towns. In the 1860 census, New Amsterdam was the largest town in Harrison County.
Passages that mention New Amsterdam, cut from the printed page as they were published.
Anneke Jans Bogardus and her New Amsterdam estate, past and present1924 · page 71Read the page →
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and they were drawn up on August 27th, 1664, as between the New Netherlander s and the British, and they were signed at the Governor’s Bowery, New York City, the town of New Amsterdam having been named New York City, after the cap- 71
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Anneke Jans Bogardus and her New Amsterdam estate, past and present1924 · page 16Read the page →
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(now New York City) and took Manhattan Island, and the town of New Amsterdam, awav from the Dutch government and Peter Stuyvesant, who was the Director General at that time.
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Anneke Jans Bogardus and her New Amsterdam estate, past and present1925Read the page →
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to the year 1673, while England, France and Holland were at war in the Old Country, the Dutch in America took advantage of the opportunity that they had, and they re-captured New Amsterdam, which was done on July 29, 1673. (See page 98 of “Anneke Jans Bogardus and Her New Amsterdam Estate Past and Present,” by Wikoff).
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Scans and text from the Internet Archive. Books published in 1930 or earlier, which are in the public domain.
By decade
No old photos in the archives yet
Weddings on Main Street, storms, parades, school pictures, the old store. If it’s in your family album, it belongs here.
Be the first to add onePhotograph a print flat, in daylight, no flash.
Every edition of the U.S. Geological Survey’s map of New Amsterdam. Tap a year, or press play to watch the town change.
1950Alton sheet · 1:62,500
U.S. Geological Survey historical topographic maps (public domain), via Esri’s collection of the scans. The red ring marks the center of New Amsterdam.
People over time
New Amsterdam, census by census
Between 12 and 200 people in every census since 1880.
15 censuses, 1880–2020.
U.S. Census Bureau decennial counts, from the census table on New Amsterdam’s Wikipedia page.
Famous people
Famous people close to New Amsterdam
Nobody well known was born in New Amsterdam itself, so here are the best known from just nearby.
Founding dates: Wikidata, Wikipedia, the U.S. post office records of Blevins & Helbock (CC0) and the Census. Homes by year built: Census ACS 2020–24. National Register of Historic Places: National Park Service (list of May 22, 2026). Old photos, postcards and papers: Wikimedia Commons, the Library of Congress and other public archives, credited on each item’s page. Maps: U.S. Geological Survey historical topographic maps (via Esri) and Sanborn fire-insurance maps (Library of Congress). History text and census tables: Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0). Places that used to be: USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021). How TownRatings grades history →
From Wikipedia, U.S. Geological Survey historical maps, U.S. Census counts (via Wikipedia), the US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock), the USGS Geographic Names Information System and old county and town histories (Internet Archive). Archive images are copied here with their credits and licenses, shown on each photo’s page. Refreshed monthly.
