Jersey Ferry
 
In 1664 the Dutch lost New Netherlands when the British took control of the land and added it to their colonies. They divided the land in half and gave control to two proprietors: Sir George Carteret (who was in charge of the east side) and Lord John Berkley (who was in charge of the west side). The land was officially named New Jersey after the Isle of Jersey in the English Channel. Carteret had been governor of the Isle of Jersey.

Berkeley and Carteret sold the land at low prices and allowed the settlers to have political and religious freedom. As a result, New Jersey was more ethnically diverse than many other colonies. Primarily a rural society, the colony grew to have about 100,000 people.

Eventually, governing power was transferred back to England. For many years, New Jersey shared a royal governor with New York. The governorship was finally split in 1738 when New Jersey got its own governor, Lewis Morris.

In the years before the Revolution, anti-British feelings spread throughout the state. (For fun, play "Dunk King George.") About one-third of the people living here supported the rebels, one-third supported England, and one-third remained neutral. In 1776 New Jersey declared itself an independent state and joined the colonial side in the Revolutionary War.

New Jersey was an important state during the Revolutionary War because of its location near the center of the thirteen colonies and between New York City and Philadelphia. Because of this, more battles were fought in New Jersey than in any other state. The Americans and British fought 100 battles, both large and small, here.

Many people consider the Battle of Trenton (see next page) to be the turning point of the Revolution. Immediately after winning Trenton, General George Washington won the battle of Princeton. Having lost two battles in a matter of hours, the British fled New Jersey for New York. Washington and his troops spent the rest of the winter in Morristown, and the United States was well on its way to victory.

(Above info from: http://www.nj.gov/hangout_nj/assignment_history_ct.html)
 
 

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See "What's New" on NJGenWeb and upcoming genealogy CONFERENCES!

Eastman's Genealogy Newsletter: Calendar For New Jersey
Here are more of the smallest, loneliest cemeteries in N.J.
New Jersey Naturalization Records 1796-1991 on Family Search

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