Hudson, Henry

[person]

(1560?-1611?) An English sea explorer and navigator in the early 17th century. While searching for the Northwest Passage to India, he explored and mapped the region around what is now New York City, and named Hudson Bay and Hudson River after himself. Hudson made four voyages in search of alternate routes to India, in 1607, 1608, 1609, and 1610. On his last voyage, his ship became trapped in ice in James Bay in the fall of 1610, and had to winter over. Hudson wanted to continue exploring when the spring thaw freed the boat, but his crew mutinied. Hudson, his son, and six others were cast adrift in a small, open boat, never to be heard from again.