In the early 1600s, Henry Hudson sailed on four separate voyages to find the elusive Northwest Passage. The first two journeys ended earlier than planned because his ship was nearly trapped in the Arctic ice. His last voyage ended with his mutinous crew leaving him in Hudson Bay. But his third voyage was different because he sailed along an eastern section of North America and sailed for the Dutch.
On this third voyage, Hudson didn’t find the Northwest Passage, but he did find a tidal river that sailed north through the continent. When it ended near what is known today as Albany, New York, he was disappointed; there was no Northeast Passage. He met some Natives, exchanged items, and went home with beaver pelts.
Once the Dutch read Hudson’s ship logs and saw the beaver pelts, they knew the area near the Hudson River would be a profitable place to settle, so they established the Dutch Colony of New Netherland in the area Hudson had sailed.
Today, this river is called the Hudson River, named after Henry Hudson. But, when the Dutch first settled there, they called the Noort River because it flowed north. After Catalyntje reached New Netherland, she sailed up this river. At the northernmost part of it was Fort Orange, where she and her husband, Joris, worked hard and established a homestead there.
Do you know the history of a place you live near?
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