Agents promise “golden Mountains, and having delivered them into the hands of the Dutch Merchants…ridicule these poor people on Account of their Simplicity and Credulity”
- A Frankfort merchant. 1752
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A view of Rotterdam Harbor. - Rijksmuseum Rijks
False Advertising
Rotterdam agents enticed potential immigrants with misleading ads. “The Ship is to be purified thrice a day-with Vinegar and Juniper Berries to cause fresh Air.” “Whoever desires Brandy shall receive the same every Morning, and such as love Tobacco shall have one Pound for their Journey at their setting out.” “Every Day one Quart of Beer (as long as it remains drinkable) and two Quarts of Water for every Whole Freight.”
English translation of a Rotterdam ad promising transport to America. The daily menu includes such delicacies as “One Pound of Flour of Wheat” on Tuesdays.
- Massachusetts Archives
What’s For Dinner?
A daily shipboard menu was advertised by Rotterdam merchants:
- Sundays:
One Pound of Beef boiled with Rice -
Mondays:
Barley and Syrup Tuesdays, One Pound of Flour of Wheat -
Wednesdays:
One Pound of Bacon with peas -
Thursdays:
One Pound of Beef boiled with Rice -
Fridays:
One Pound of Flour of Wheat, and One Pound of Butter -
Saturdays:
One Pound of Bacon, one Pound of Cheese, and six Pounds of Bread for the Whole Week
Brigadier General Samuel Waldo.
- Bowdoin College Museum of Art
Where’s Waldo?
In 1748 a group of Palatine Germans complained to the Massachusetts government about Samuel Waldo. He had promised that “two houses of thirty-five feet Square, two stories high and also a Church” would be waiting for them in Maine. He would pay for an engineer for three years, a doctor for five years, and schoolmaster for ten years, along with livestock and provisions. Instead they landed in a “Waste Wilderness”…”at the most inclement Season of the Year the Winter.” Many died.