This defensive Dutch wall that couldn’t stop a single British soldier created Wall Street 139 years later

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Wall Street’s Dutch Origins

The Dutch built a wall in 1653 where Wall Street now runs. They called it “Het Cingel,” meaning “the Belt,” not “de Waal Straat” as many believe today.

Director General Peter Stuyvesant ordered its construction during the First Anglo-Dutch War. He feared English colonists from New England would attack the settlement…

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