The Hudson is to New York what the Seine is to Paris: a driving force without which the cityscape would be unrecognizable. It is this very river, the Hudson, that LEC has chosen to tell you about today, on the occasion of your teen language study trip to New York. Let’s take a closer look.

The Hudson, a river in New Jersey and New York State

Le fleuve Hudson, que vous prendrez soin d’appeler Hudson River lors de votre prochain séjour linguistique ado à New York, est un cours d’eau du nord-est des Etats-Unis. Contrairement au Mississippi qui, par exemple, traverse pas moins de 10 Etats, l’Hudson, lui, ne se côtoie que dans 2 Etats du pays de l’Oncle Sam :

  • New Jersey
  • New York State

The Hudson, a river stretching over 500 kilometers

The Hudson River originates in the Adirondacks, a crystalline mountain range that extends from the Appalachians, and flows into the Atlantic Ocean. It stretches for 507 kilometers; by way of comparison, this is just a little less than the length of the French territory through which the Garonne flows.

A river that flows into the Great Lakes and Canada

The Hudson River, which you’ll have plenty of opportunity to observe during a teen language study trip to New York, is connected by a canal to Lake Erie—a vast body of water bordered by the United States and Canada—as well as to the St. Lawrence River, a Canadian river that originates in Lake Ontario. Construction materials, petroleum products, and coal make up the bulk of its cargo.

The Legacy of Henry Hudson

But where, exactly, does the name of this iconic New York City river come from? The answer: it was an English explorer who named it. It was Henry Hudson—an adventurer born in London in the 16th century and who died 46 years later—who discovered the bay and strait that would bear his name.


Filed under: USA