Nicholas Dupuy (1682-1762) - PLAQUE
Smithfield Township, Monroe County, Pennsylvania
Marker Inscription
The first settler of Shawnee in 1727, purchased 3,000 acres of land, including the Island of Shawno and Manwalamink, from the Minsi Indians. He was a grandson of Nicholas Dupuy and his wife Catherine De Vos, Huguenot refugees from Antois France, who with their sons Nicholas, John and Moses arrived in New Amsterdam, in 1662. William Allen in 1750 conveyed five acres of land to Nicholas Dupuy and others for a Dutch Reformed Congregation, now the Presbyterian Church.
Erected by Pennsylvania Historical and Museum Commission
The Story
In 1727 Nicholas Dupuy became the first European settler at Shawnee on the Delaware, buying some 3,000 acres — including river islands — from the Minsi (Munsee) band of the Lenape. He descended from Huguenot refugees who had fled religious persecution in France and reached New Amsterdam in 1662. By mid-century the growing community had land set aside, through proprietor William Allen, for a Dutch Reformed congregation that endures today as a Presbyterian church.
Why it matters
The Dupuy family traces a classic American arc — European refugees seeking religious freedom who pushed onto the colonial frontier — and marks the founding of one of the earliest European settlements in the upper Delaware Valley.
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Related people
- · Nicholas Dupuy
- · William Allen
Related events
- · Settlement of Shawnee
Themes & tags
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