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Europeans wanted to find a Northwest Passage, or a water route through the Americas. They needed this water route to get past the Americas to Asia. France sent explorers to look for this route, but nobody found it. The Dutch and the British also wanted to find a Northwest Passage. In 1609, the Dutch hired Henry Hudson, a British explorer, to finda route to China. In his small ship called the Half Moon, Hudson sailed across the Atlantic Ocean to North America.



Hudson found a river that would later be named after him. He sailed up the Hudson River to New York.





Hudson was disappointed because he did not find a Northwest Passage. He went back to Europe. In 1610, Hudson made another trip to North America. This time he was working for the British instead of the Dutch. In his ship Discovery, Hudson traveled to the northeastern coast of Canada. He sailed through the icy waters of the Hudson Strait. Hudson discovered a large body of clear water, which is now called Hudson Bay.



Hudson sailed around all summer looking for a Northwest Passage. When winter came, Hudson and his crew had to camp on the bay. The weather was freezing, and the group had only a small amount of food. When winter ended and the ship could sail again, Hudson wanted to keep exploring. The rest of the sailors were tired and hungry and wanted to go home.

Finally, the crew was angry enough to take over, or mutiny. They forced Hudson, his son, and a few sailors into a small boat. Then, the rest of the crew sailed away and tried to get back to England. Only a few of them made it. Henry Hudson was never heard from again.

Nobody ever found a Northwest Passage to Asia. However, Hudson and the other European explorers who search for it discovered something more important. They found large areas of land where colonies could be built. Europeans were now more interested in the Americas than in trying to get around them. They thought this land might be more valuable to them than a passage to Asia.



European leaders began to think the Americas might be a good place to start colonies. The leaders could make their empires larger by settling colonies in the large, new area. Whoever controlled the Americas would become very powerful.