Hudson River

The Hudson River is a river in eastern New York that flows south from the Adirondack Mountains to New York Harbor. Its tidal lower reach connects the Atlantic Ocean with the interior of the state.

Hudson River estuary: The tidal, brackish lower Hudson River, extending from New York Harbor upriver to the Federal Dam at Troy. This tidal reach makes the river navigable far inland and shapes its ecology.
Tidal river: A river whose water levels and currents are affected by ocean tides. Tides travel upriver from New York Harbor through the Hudson estuary.
Laurentide Ice Sheet: A vast ice sheet that covered much of Canada and the northern United States during the last glacial period. Glacial advances and retreat helped shape the Hudson’s valley and lower estuary.
Erie Canal: A nineteenth-century canal across New York State connecting the Hudson River at Albany to Lake Erie. The canal linked Hudson shipping to the Great Lakes and transformed inland trade.
American Revolutionary War: The war in which thirteen British colonies in North America won independence from Great Britain, from 1775 to 1783. Control of the Hudson corridor was strategically important during the war.
Hudson Valley: A long valley in eastern New York formed around the Hudson River and bounded by surrounding highlands. The valley channels the river south between the Adirondacks and the Atlantic coast.
Salt wedge estuary: An estuary in which dense seawater flows beneath less-dense freshwater, forming a wedge-shaped boundary. This circulation pattern helps explain how salt and freshwater mix in the lower Hudson.
Hudson River canyon: A submarine canyon extending from the mouth of the Hudson River across the continental shelf. The canyon records how the river once extended across exposed land during lower sea levels.
Port of Albany: A major inland port on the Hudson River at Albany, New York. Its location near the river’s tidal limit supports commercial shipping inland.
Battle of Saratoga: A 1777 American victory in the Revolutionary War that helped persuade France to support the United States. The campaign was tied to British efforts to control the Hudson and divide the colonies.

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