Introduction
New York City has a long tradition of terrorist attacks. However, the terrorist attacks have often backfired or have had unintended consequences.
Terrorist Attack No. 1: Dutch Massacre of the Algonquin Indians
Rechtanck, a village that was located at what is now the Educational Alliance, was the site of a massacre by Dutch soldiers. A lethal attack in February 1643 by Mohawk warriors on Tappans and Wecquaesgeeks near Fort Orange (present-day Albany) caused the Algonquins to flee to the environs of New Amsterdam, where they congregated at Pavonia (Jersey City) and Corlaer's Hook in what is now the Lower East Side. Dutch Governor Kieft ordered the refugees hacked to death or drowned by the Dutch soldiers on the night of February 25, 1643. The next morning, there was a wild hunt through the city to slaughter the survivors. In response, the Algonquin tribes collectively set about destroying Dutch settlements. Outlying farms and villages were burned, and the settlers who had not fled to New Amsterdam for protection were killed. A peace treaty was signed in March 1643 ending Governor Kieft's War, but the colony was little more than a smoking ruin. Stuyvesant replaced him as the governor.
Notorious Terrorist Attack. 2: White Massacre of Black Slaves
Several mysterious fires had taken place including the burning of Fort George in British New York. On the night of February 28, 1741, Mary Burton, the young servant girl of John Hughson, the shady owner of a tavern that served slaves, was arrested in connection with a robbery. Offered money and threatened with damnation, Mary spun a conspiratorial plot by the black slaves to burn the city and kill all the whites except her boss Hughson, who would be crowned "King of New York." The rumored slave revolt in flamed the white colonists, who lynched or burned alive 31 slaves.
Notorious Terrorist Attack No. 3: Confederate Plot to Burn Manhattan
By the autumn of 1864, the South was losing the Civil War. Colonel Robert Martin and seven southern agents, calling themselves "The Confederate Army of Manhattan" left Canada to secretly enter New York City. They had the approval Confederate Secretary of State Judah P. Benjamin to burn the city. The mastermind of the scheme was Jacob Thompson, leader of the Confederate raiders and spies based in Canada. On November 25, 1864, Lt. John Headley, distributed dozens of four-ounce bottles of Greek fire -- a clear liquid that bursts into flame as soon as it makes contact with the air -- to five of his agents. Nineteen hotels and Barnum's American Museum were attacked. However, the fires were put out before they could did much damage. The conspirators all managed to escape except Captain Robert Kennedy. He was hanged at Fort Lafayette, Brooklyn on March 25.1865, two weeks before the end of the Civil War.
Notorious Terrorist Attack No. 4: Bombing of J. P. Morgan Killed Bystanders
The J. P. Morgan Building, opposite the New York Stock Exchange, has not repaired the damaged marble front from an explosion that took place on September 16, 1920. A noontime bomb blast from a horse-drawn cart killed 33 and injured 400 people on the crowded sidewalk outside. Despite an $80,000 reward, those responsible were never caught and their motive never discovered. People speculated that the bomb went off before the bombers were ready or that it was the work of anarchists. If the terrorists meant to strike at the heart of capitalism, they only succeeded in killing the common people they were claiming to "enlighten."
Notorious Terrorist Attack No. 5: The Weather Underground Town House Explosion
Cathy Wilkerson hosted a splinter group of SDS (Students for a Democratic Society), called the Weather Underground, while her parents were away on vacation. On March 6, 1970, three members of the Weather Underground -- Ted Gold, Diana Oughton and Terry Robbins -- accidentally blew themselves up in an 1840s townhouse at 18 West 11th Street. Their supporters claimed they were planning to stage a series of "symbolic bombings" against state and corporate targets. They deservedly got a dose of their own medicine that they had intended for others -- death. Kathy Boudin and Cathy Wilkerson, their clothes blown of, disappeared into the subway and remained underground for years. Out of concern for her ailing father, Wilkerson emerged. She got a light sentence. Her friend Boudin became deeply involved in the activities of the Black Liberation Army which caused the death of several people. She pleaded guilty and was sentenced to twenty years to life for murder. Despite claims of rehabilitation and efforts to make her a martyr, the New York State Parole Board wisely decided against releasing her on parole in 2001.
