| A | B |
|---|
| Christopher Columbus | a European explorer who in 1492 landed in the Americas while searching for a new sea route to Asia. |
| Northwest Passage | a hoped-for route waterway through North America that explorers thought would connect the Atlantic Ocean and the Pacific Ocean. |
| Giovanni da Verrazano | in 1524 he lead an expedition to find the Northwest Passage. He sailed into New York Bay and became the first European to see the coast of what is now New York. |
| Jacques Cartier | in 1534 he lead an expedition for France to find the Northwest Passage. He did not find the passage but became the first European to reach inland Canada. |
| Henry Hudson | an English sea captain was hired by the Dutch to find the Northwest Passage. He became the first European to sail up the Hudson River in 1609. |
| Samuel de Champlain | In 1609 he became the first European to travel through upstate New York. |
| Slave | a person held against his or her will and forced to work without pay. |
| Colony | a settlement started by people who leave their own country to live in another land. |
| New Netherland | In 1621 the Dutch established this colony. |
| Fort Orange | A settlement in New Netherland which is now modern-day Albany. |
| New Amsterdam | A settlement in New Netherland which is now modern-day Manhattan. |
| Patroon | a landowner in the Dutch colonies. |
| Dutch West India Company | In 1621 the Dutch government gave control to the Dutch West India Company to control all fur trade in areas of North America claimed by the Dutch. They also gave the company the power to govern themselves. |
| Peter Stuyvesant | Appointed governor of New Netherland in 1647. He attempted to maintain peace with the Indians. |
| John Peter Zenger | In 1733 he published a newspaper which accused the government of corrupt acts. The governor put Zenger on trial, but Zenger won his case when his lawyer proved that his statements were true. This case established the right of the press to criticize those in power. |
