at high tide. The Native American tribes who lived nearby are presumed to have been hunter-gatherers who used the island to hunt for fish and oysters, as well as to build transient hunting and fishing communities there. It is unlikely that the Native Americans established permanent settlements on Kioshk, since the island would have been submerged at high tide.

In 1630, the Dutch bought Kioshk as a gift for Michael Reyniersz Pauw,