History
The first time there was a European contact with the what is known today as Staten island was in 1524. This was done by Giovanni da Verrazzano, who sailed to Staten Island from Europe. In 1609, Henry Hudson established Dutch trade in the area and named the island Staaten Eylandt after the Staten-Generaal, the Dutch parliament.
Even though the first Dutch settlement of a New York City colony was made on nearby Manhattan in 1620, Staten Island remained uncolonized by the Dutch for many decades. From 1639 to 1655, the Dutch made three separate attempts to establish a permanent stay on the island, but each time their efforts were stopped due to conflicts between the Dutch and the local tribes. In 1661, the first permanent Dutch settlement was established near South Beach, by a small group of families.
As of 2000 the population represented several European ancestries:
- Italian: 37.7%
- Irish: 16%
- German: 6.3%
- Polish: 4.1%
- Russian: 2.8%
- English: 2.2%
Data provided via Wikipedia
