Johan Andersson, after his arrival in New Sweden, soon garnered the surname of "Stalkofta," or "Steel Coat," because he was a soldier. He was part of the New Sweden militia, and in fact defended Captain Sven Schute at the fall of Fort Casimir. One odd little description is attributed to him and his armor: It was said he used to wear his fancy armor in town commons, where the women would see it. He apparently was quite interested in women. Anyway, the description continued in that the armor served to cover, or detract from, a certain, and unnamed, physical peculiarity. He was a gunner and constable at Fort Christina in Governor Rising's time.

The history of New Sweden and the life of Johan Andriesson Stalcup are irretrievably intertwined. So I guess it is appropriate that there be a little mystery involved also. Johan's birth is generally given as ca. 1627. I suspect that is a bit late in time as, prior to coming to America in 1641, he had reportedly been hired by Mons Klinga to plant tobacco in Upland, Sweden. This would have been before the 1638 expedition led by Peter Minuit and Mons Klinga and meant Johan was only ten years old!

I have found only one Stalcup researcher who has dared to propose a birth date of 1617 for Johan. But that date would make him 39 when he marries in 1656/7, not impossible but clearly pushing the limits since he fathered 8 children by 1677. That would make him 60 when the last was born. It would be easy to split the difference and give 1622 as his birth date but, as there is little reason to do so, I will accept 1627 as the most probable date.

Another note here; it was Finns who were brought to Upland to clear the land. These Finns were not "hired" labor. Since Johan was hired by Mons Klinga to plant tobacco, it indicates that Johan was Swedish, not Finnish, and was probably from a poor family. But we may well never know for sure.

It is known that Johan emigrated to America May 3, 1641 aboard the "Charitas" with 35 other people. Most histories say he was on board the better known "Key of Kalmar" but the most authoritative source, Stallcop Family History and Genealogy 1641-1986 (3 vols) authored by Earl E. Jones, states it was the "Charitas" that carried Johan and 35 other colonists to America. Following the six month long voyage, the "Charitas" landed at Fort Christina, where Johan worked as a servant for five years.

Then, under Governor Colonel Johan Printz, Johan joined the colonial militia. From Oct. 1, 1646 to Sept. 1, 1653 Johan served as Gunnery Sergeant for New Sweden at Tinicum. He was one of 15 officers for a contingent of probably 70 soldiers. Armor had all but disappeared by this time because it was heavy, cumbersome, and mostly ineffective. The men who fired cannons, however, found it useful to continue using the breastplate since it provided protection from the powder flash.

In 1653, Printz resigned as Governor and returned to Sweden, ending Johan's military career. However, he continued to wear his "steel coat" and never gave up his handsome gold-laced uniform. As stated above, Johan had a roving eye towards other men's wives.

In 1656, the "Mercurius" arrived with many Finnish immigrants including Christina Carlsdotter. The 1693 Census of the Swedes on the Delaware says that she was a Finn from Letstigen, Varmland. We can only image how lovely Christina was. She married our Johan Andersson soon after arriving. Since Johan was a bit of a rake, Christina must have been special. By 1677, she had given Johan at least seven children of whom we will deal with in the next part.

In 1664, New Netherlands and New Sweden were seized by the English and conveyed to the Duke of York. The English propensity for absentee landlords did not set well with the Swedes and Finns. In 1669, a Finn organized and led a revolt against English rule - the little known Long Finn Rebellion. The first of a number of rebellions leading up to the American Revolution. Johan Andresson Stalcup was one of the rebels. The plan of rebellion came to the ears of the English authorities before its execution, and the leader Marcus Jacobsen was apprehended and placed in prison to await trial. The punishment for the "simpler sorts" was requested as labor. Johan was to be secured in like manner as the lone Swede, since he was perceived as a chief instigator of this tragedy. The trial was held quickly and the prisoners were sentenced. The Long Finn was sentenced to be whipped, branded on the face, and transported from the colony. The rest of the prisoners were fined. Heading this list was Johan Andersson, whose fine was 1500 guilders.

In spite of the heavy fine, Johan continued to prosper. Johan was engaged in an assortment of business ventures. A grant of land from the Dutch vice-director and the help of two other investors provided the backing to build a grist mill between 1658-1662 at "Turtle Falls-kil". This business stayed in the Stalcop family for three generations. Many land transfers and transactions were recorded during these years for Johan. The most lucrative was the eight hundred acres of land on which Wilmington, Delaware now stands; granted by the Duke of York to Johan about 1671.