Learn local history by land and sea

MIDDLETOWN — Three hundred fifty years ago, explorers from Long Island sailed across Raritan Bay, seeking to buy land from the Native Americans.

A program examining the historical context of that quest will be held at 9 a.m. Dec. 7 at Old First Church in Middletown. “Searching for Land and Religious Freedom in Monmouth County, Dec. 5-11, 1663” will begin at 9 a.m. at the church, located at 69 Kings Highway. The symposium is sponsored by the Navesink Maritime Historical Association. Registration at www.navesinkmaritime.org is requested.

The symposium will focus on the reasons for the exploration and its lasting significance. Following the free morning symposium, attendees will have the option of taking the regularly scheduled Seastreak ferry to New York, tracing the route from Gravesend to Highlands. During the boat trip, speakers will discuss points of historical interest in Raritan Bay and New York Harbor. The roundtrip ferry ride costs $26 per person, and patrons should pack a lunch for the trip.

Speakers at the morning symposium will discuss a broad array of topics. Because most of the explorers to Monmouth County were either Quakers or Baptists, speakers will discuss these religions and the laws on religious freedom in New Netherland, New England and England. Other topics include the local Native American communities in Monmouth County, the wars between the Dutch and the English, the process of purchasing land from Native Americans, and the feudal land-ownership practices of the time.