Hudson River

The Hudson River is a 315-mile river that flows from north to south through eastern New York State and forms the border between New York City and New Jersey at its mouth before emptying into the Atlantic Ocean.

What do you know about the Hudson River? Explore the Quick US Geography Rivers and Streams Quiz.  "Check Your Answers" at the end of the page.

1. It is named for Henry Hudson, an Englishman sailing for the Dutch East India Company, who explored it in 1609.

• True or False?

2. The official source of the Hudson is Lake Tear of the Clouds in the Adirondack Mountains. However, the waterway from the lake is known as Feldspar Brook and the Opalescent River, feeding into the Hudson at Tahawus. The actual Hudson River begins several miles north of Tahawus at Henderson Lake.

• True or False?

3. Where does the Mohawk River join the Hudson River?

• Macon
• Troy
• Roosevelt

4. There is a manmade dam built across the Hudson River, near Troy, New York. The major function of the dam is to improve navigability. It is located at mile 153 of the Hudson River, measuring from the beginning of the Hudson as a Federally Navigable Waterway near the Battery in Manhattan. The location of the dam marks the northern end of the Hudson River estuary. What is the name of the manmade dam?

• Hudson River Dam
• Federal Dam
• Mile 153 Dam

5. The canal ended at the Hudson at Kingston, running southwest to the coal fields of northeastern Pennsylvania. What was the canal?

• Hard Coal and Hudson Canal
• Delaware and Hudson Canal
• New York Canal Company

6. What is NOT a notable landmark on the Hudson?

• West Point
• Vassar College
• Fort Ticonderoga

7. The original Erie Canal, opened to connect the Hudson with Lake Erie, emptied into the Hudson at the Albany Basin, just three miles south of the dam in Troy (at mile 134). When did it open?

• 1825
• 1830
• 1835

8. On September 14, 1901, then-Vice President Theodore Roosevelt was at Lake Tear of the Clouds after returning from a hike. He leaned President William McKinley had taken a turn for the worse. Where did he hike?

• Mount Marcy summit
• Mount Clarabelle summit
• Mount Teddy summit

9. A tidal strait between the New York City boroughs of Staten Island and Brooklyn, connects the upper and lower sections of New York Bay. It has long been considered the maritime "gateway" to New York City and historically has been the most important entrance into the harbor. What is the name of this tidal strait?

• The Strait
• The Narrows
• The Gateway

10. On January 15, 2009, US Airways Flight 1549 bound for Charlotte, NC made an emergency ditching onto the Hudson River beside lower Manhattan Island with 150 passengers and 5 crew members. All passengers were safely rescued, though some passengers suffered minor injuries from the initial impact with the water. It has been confirmed that multiple bird strikes on both engines were the cause.

• True or False?

Hudson River Answers

1. True
2. True
3. Troy
4. Federal Dam
5. Delaware and Hudson Canal
6. Fort Ticonderoga
7. 1825
8. Mount Marcy summit
9. The Narrows
10. True

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