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The first
people to live on the land now known as New Jersey were the Delaware
Indians. They lived here starting at least 10,000 years ago. Anywhere from
8,000 to 20,000 Delaware Indians lived in the area when the first Europeans
arrived. Their name means "original people" or "genuine people." They spoke
an Algonquian dialect.
Though they
were considered one tribe, the Delaware Indians didn't act as one unified
group. Instead, they lived in small communities made up mostly of extended
family members. The men would hunt or fish during the day. Depending on the
season they might search for clams off the Jersey shore or hunt in the
woods. The women worked in the gardens. They grew squash, beans, sweet
potatoes, and corn.
When the
first explorers came, the Delaware Indians lived in parts of Delaware, New
Jersey, and eastern Pennsylvania. Europeans called them the Delaware
Indians. (For more information on the Delaware Indians, visit their
official web site.)
Colonial Times
in New Jersey.
Around 1524,
Giovanni de Verrazano became the first European to explore New Jersey. He
sailed along the coast and anchored off Sandy Hook. The colonial history of
New Jersey started after Henry Hudson sailed through Newark Bay in 1609.
Although Hudson was British, he worked for the Netherlands, so he claimed
the land for the Dutch. It was called New Netherlands. (Meet some of the
explorers with Professor Foulkii in the Cartoon History.)
Small trading
colonies sprang up where the present towns of Hoboken and Jersey City are
located. The Dutch, Swedes, and Finns were the first European settlers in
New Jersey. Bergen, founded in 1660, was New Jersey's first permanent
European settlement.
In 1664 the
Dutch lost New Netherlands when the British took control of the land and
added it to their colonies. They divided the land in half and gave control
to two proprietors: Sir George Carteret (who was in charge of the east side)
and Lord John Berkley (who was in charge of the west side). The land was
officially named New Jersey after the Isle of Jersey in the English Channel.
Carteret had been governor of the Isle of Jersey.
Berkeley and
Carteret sold the land at low prices and allowed the settlers to have
political and religious freedom. As a result, New Jersey was more ethnically
diverse than many other colonies. Primarily a rural society, the colony grew
to have about 100,000 people.
Eventually,
governing power was transferred back to England. For many years, New Jersey
shared a royal governor with New York. The governorship was finally split in
1738 when New Jersey got its own governor, Lewis Morris.
The Revolution
and New Jersey.
In the years
before the Revolution, anti-British feelings spread throughout the state.
(For fun, play "Dunk
King George.") About one-third of the people living here supported the
rebels, one-third supported England, and one-third remained neutral. In 1776
New Jersey declared itself an independent state and joined the colonial side
in the Revolutionary War.
New Jersey was
an important state during the Revolutionary War because of its location near
the center of the thirteen colonies and between New York City and
Philadelphia. Because of this, more battles were fought in New Jersey than
in any other state. The Americans and British fought 100 battles, both large
and small, here.
Many people
consider the Battle of Trenton (see next page) to be the turning point of
the Revolution. Immediately after winning Trenton, General George Washington
won the battle of Princeton. Having lost two battles in a matter of hours,
the British fled New Jersey for New York. Washington and his troops spent
the rest of the winter in Morristown, and the United States was well on its
way to victory.
The Battle of
Trenton, New Jersey.
In November of 1776 the British
gained control of New Jersey and forced Washington to flee into
Pennsylvania. They thought no one would fight during winter, so the
British and Hessian soldiers in New Jersey divided into camps to stay
until spring. Trenton was considered the most desirable post, and it went
to the Hessian soldiers as a reward for their good service. The Hessians
used the Old Barracks in Trenton as a headquarters.
The British
didn't chase Washington across the Delaware River because it was full of
blocks of ice that made it dangerous to cross. The Hessians didn't patrol
along the river because they thought Washington couldn't cross back. But in
December, Washington and his men decided to cross. Washington's men had to
push away blocks of ice from the boat's path while paddling hard to fight
the strong current. (If you like, play a fun game called
Washington Crosses the Delaware.)
Once across,
Washington decided to separate and surprise the Hessians in Trenton from two
sides. The plan worked, and the patriots captured 900 prisoners while only
four American soldiers were wounded. For maps and more information about the
Battle of Trenton, visit "10
Crucial Days" on the Old Barracks Museum Web site
Early Statehood
of New Jersey.
In 1787, New
Jersey became the third state to ratify the U.S. Constitution and the first
state to sign the Bill of Rights. In 1790, Trenton officially became the
state capital of New Jersey. William Livingston became New Jersey's first
state governor.
New Jersey grew
and prospered during the early 1800s. New factories sprung up throughout the
state. Paterson became a textile center and later became known for producing
trains and silk. Trenton produced clay products, iron, and steel. Camden,
Elizabeth, Jersey City, Newark, and Passaic all became major manufacturing
centers in the 1800s.
New canals
and railroads helped industry grow. Europeans came by the thousands to New
Jersey to work in the factories.
South Jersey
remained rural for the most part, growing the crops to feed the urban areas
nearby. Railroads were important in helping the South Jersey seashore areas
expand. In 1850, New Jersey's population of nearly half a million and the
industries in which most of those people worked were concentrated in the
north.
During the
Civil War, New Jersey provided 31 regiments (groups of soldiers), including
cavalry (soldiers on horseback) and infantry (soldiers on foot). Over 25,000
New Jersey men fought for the Union, and New Jersey soldiers participated in
almost every major Eastern battle.
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