VOICE ONE:
This is Steve Ember.
VOICE TWO:
And this is Shirley Griffith with the VOA Special Englishprogram, EXPLORATIONS. Today we tell about a famous river on theeast coast of the United States, the Hudson.
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VOICE ONE:
The first European explorer of the New World to see the mouth ofthe Hudson River was Englishman John Cabot in Fourteen Ninety-Eight.Yet it was not until Sixteen-Oh-Nine that a European explorerentered the river. He sailed north from the Atlantic Ocean as far ashis ship could go, about two-hundred-fifty kilometers. That explorerwas Henry Hudson.
Captain Hudson and his sailors – English and Dutch – were workingfor the Dutch East India Company. Like the other explorers, theywere looking for the northwest passage, a way to China and Indiathat did not exist.
VOICE TWO:
At first, Captain Hudson did not know that the water he enteredwas a river. After all, the water flowed from the ocean in the southtoward the north. The water was very salty, like the ocean. On bothsides of the river, Captain Hudson saw great hills and mountains.After sailing for two-hundred-fifty-kilometers, the ship reached thepoint on the river where the city of Albany, New York stands today.From that point to the north, the river was not deep enough for hisship to sail.
Hudson saw that the river did not provide a way to India andChina. He had failed. He turned his ship around and sailed back tothe Atlantic Ocean and then home to Holland.
When he returned to Holland, HenryHudson told about the friendly natives and how good the land wasalong the river.
VOICE ONE:
No one knows how long native Americans lived along the greatriver. The first people to settle along the Hudson were called theAlgonkin Indians. They called the Hudson “the river that runs twoways,” because it flows both north and south at its southern end.This is because the ocean tides push water up the river as it flowsdown to the south.
There were many different tribes among the Algonkins. Some of thenames of these tribes were Raritan, Hackensack, Tappan, andHaverstraw. Another tribe was called Manhattan. Today, that is thename of the most important part of New York City. Manhattan is along, thin island, with its southern end pointing into New York Bay.
When the Indians lived there, and when the Europeans first sawit, the island was green and covered with forests. They would notrecognize it today. Trees and forests have been replaced by tallbuildings and busy streets crowded with cars, trucks, buses, andmillions of people.
VOICE TWO:
For twelve years after Henry Hudson explored the river namedafter him, there was little interest in his discovery. Just a fewships came to Manhattan Island to trade with the Indians. InSixteen-Twenty-One, the government of Holland created the Dutch WestIndia Company to govern this new land. Three years later, thirtyDutch families sailed on a ship from Holland to North America. Theywere seeking religious freedom in the New World.
Some of these people settled on Manhattan Island. They namedtheir settlement Fort Amsterdam. The ship they sailed on continuedup the Hudson River, stopping where the city of Albany is today.Eighteen families settled there. They called this place Fort Orange.Now there were two communities on the river – both of them Dutch.
VOICE ONE:
The religious freedom promised by the Dutch West India Companybrought other people to the Hudson River. Among them were Huguenotsfrom France, Presbyterians from Scotland, Jews and Quakers. However,for almost fifty years – until Sixteen-Hundred-Sixty-Four – theHudson River country was Dutch. The official language of the areawas Dutch, as were the government, the politics and the customs.
Even today, many places along the Hudson River still have Dutchnames, such as Yonkers, Peekskill, Catskill, and Rensselaer(Renn-sa-LEER).
VOICE TWO:
The most famous leader of the Dutch colony in the New World wasPeter Stuyvesant. The Dutch West India Company sent him to be thegovernor of the colony. Mister Stuyvesant was a strong man who veryquickly made the settlers understand that they must obey the laws ofthe colony.
Peter Stuyvesant’s government did not last long. InSixteen-Sixty-Four, five English warships stopped at Fort Amsterdam,which was now called New Amsterdam. The commander of the shipsordered Governor Stuyvesant to surrender the colony to the king ofEngland.
The English said the land was theirs because Manhattan Island hadbeen discovered by Englishmen such as John Cabot. They also saidthat since Henry Hudson was an Englishman, everything he discoveredbelonged to the king of England. Peter Stuyvesant and the otherDutch officials returned to Holland.
VOICE ONE:
The English period now began on the river. The official languagebecame English, instead of Dutch. Also, the names of many places onthe Hudson were changed. The colony of New Netherland became NewYork, in honor of James, the duke of York. He was the brother ofEngland’s King Charles, the Second. To honor him further, thesettlement of New Amsterdam on Manhattan Island was also called NewYork.
For more than one-hundred years, the English ruled the colony ofNew York. During this time thousands of people came from Europe tolive along the river. Many were English. However, settlers came fromacross Europe – Germany, France, and Holland. Even then, it seemedthat New York and the Hudson River country were places where peopleof all nations were welcomed.
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VOICE TWO:
When the American Revolution began in Seventeen-Seventy-Six,British troops quickly seized control of New York. They wanted itbecause of its military, political, and economic importance. Duringthe seven years of fighting, no part of the thirteen Americancolonies saw as much military action as the Hudson River area. Boththe American Revolutionary Army under George Washington, and theBritish Army understood that control of the Hudson River meantvictory.
Some of the most famous battles of the American Revolutionary Warwere fought along the Hudson River. The British had more soldiers,more guns, and more bullets than the Americans did. But theAmericans fought fiercely and won.
After the treaty of peace was signed in Paris inSeventeen-Eighty-Three, General Washington moved with the newgovernment to New York City. The Hudson River now belonged to a newand free nation – the United States of America.
VOICE ONE:
One of the greatest signs of progress in the newly establishedUnited States was a new kind of ship that traveled up and down theHudson River. In Eighteen-Hundred-Seven, a steam boat called theClermont sailed north up the river from New York to Albany. Anengineer named Robert Fulton built the boat. Soon there were manysuch boats traveling up and down the river, helping industry andtrade to grow along the Hudson.
For many years, Americans dreamed that it would be possible totravel by water between the East and the West of the United States.In Eighteen-Twenty-Five, the Erie Canal opened. It was a river builtby men. It went from the Hudson River near Albany west for more thanfour-hundred kilometers to the city of Buffalo, on Lake Erie, one ofthe Great Lakes. Now, ships could carry people and products from NewYork City west to the central part of the country, opening a way tothe West.
VOICE TWO:
As Hudson River transportation grew, the population along theriver grew, especially in New York City. There, business andindustry developed with great speed. New York became the industrialand political center of the United States. It also became one of thegreat cities of the world.
The real beginning of the Hudson River is near Mount Marcy, thehighest of the Adirondack Mountains in New York State. Close toMount Marcy, melting snow feeds a little lake named Lake Tear of theClouds. From the lake, a small stream runs down the mountain. As itcontinues to flow south, other streams join it. The stream becomesthe Hudson River near the town of Newcombe.
The Hudson is wild and fast for those first two-hundred-fiftykilometers from Lake Tear of the Clouds to Albany. Then, nearAlbany, the fresh water of the river meets the salt water of theAtlantic Ocean. The ocean water has been carried up the river fortwo-hundred-fifty kilometers. At this point, the Hudson becomes awide river, the same quiet river that Henry Hudson sailed on in theyear Sixteen-Oh-Nine.
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VOICE ONE:
This Special English program was written by Oliver Chanler. Itwas directed by Paul Thompson. This is Steve Ember.
VOICE TWO:
And this is Shirley Griffith. Join us again next week for anotherEXPLORATIONS program on the Voice of America.