Charles I of Spain to find a northern passage to the Spice Islands. In 1525 he sailed a caravel, "La Anunciada", north from Cuba to Nova Scotia. During this voyage he entered New York Harbor and the Hudson River (which he named the "San Antonio River"). [ 6 ] In 1535, Jacques Cartier , a French explorer of Breton origin became the first European to describe and map the Saint Lawrence River , sailing as far as the site of the present day city of Montreal. [ 7 ] Jacques Cartier State Park is located in Saint Lawrence County, New York on the south bank of the St. Lawrence River. On April 4, 1609, Henry Hudson , an English explorer in the employ of the Dutch East India Company, departed Amsterdam in command of the ship Halve Maen. On September 3 he reached the estuary of the river that initially was called the "Mauritius" and now carries his name. He was not the first to discover the estuary, though, as it had been known since the voyage of Giovanni da Verrazzano in 1524. Hudson sailed into the upper bay on September 11, [ 9 ] and the following day began a journey up what is now known as the Hudson River. Over the next ten days his ship ascended the river, reaching a point about where the present-day capital of Albany is located. While exploring the river, Hudson had traded with several native groups, mainly obtaining furs. His voyage was