British explorer and navigator Henry Hudson, commissioned by the Dutch East India Company to search for a northwest passage, explored the river that would be named for him. Ascending the river to present-day Albany, Hudson and his men encountered and traded with American Indians during the voyage.
Dutch colonists—both individuals and families—settled along the Hudson River, leading to the river's transformation into a major commercial waterway.
Henry Hudson (unknown–1611) was the English explorer who “discovered” the river that would named for him. In 1609, Hudson was chosen by the Dutch East India Company to search for a passage to Asia. In September of that year, Hudson landed on the shores of what would become the Hudson River and claimed the lands along it for the Dutch. In addition to exploring the river, Hudson was the first European to land on the island that would become New York. He also explored the Hudson Strait and entered the Hudson Bay, both of which also bear his...
