History of New York City (prehistory–1664) with the ethnic and racial balance of the community. The economic activity brought in a wide variety of ethnic groups to the fledgling city during the 17th century, including Spanish, Jews, and Africans, some of them as slaves. The Dutch origins can still be seen in many names in New York City, such as Coney Island (from "Konijnen Eiland" – Dutch for "Rabbit Island"), Bowery from "bouwerij" (modern Dutch "boerderij" = "farm"), Brooklyn (from Breukelen), Harlem from Haarlem (formalized in 1658 as "Nieuw Haarlem"), Greenwich Village (from Greenwijck, meaning "pine wood quarter"), Flushing (from Vlissingen) and Staten Island (from "Staaten
Fishkill (town), New York Fishkill (town), New York Fishkill is a town in the southwest part of Dutchess County, New York, United States. It lies approximately north of New York City. The population was 22,107 at the 2010 census. Fishkill surrounds the city of Beacon. The town of Fishkill contains a village, which is also named Fishkill. The name derives from the Dutch "vis kill", meaning "fish creek". The location of Fishkill was known as "Tioranda" by the Native American peoples. The name means "The place where two waters meet". In 1683 New York City merchants Francis Rombouts and Gulian Verplanck purchased in Dutchess