Henry Hudson was the first person to land there. He was a Dutch explorer. He was sailing on the Dutch ship, the half moon.Hudson was looking for the northeast passage. He explored some parts of Canada before coming down to New Jersey. However, Giovanni da Verrazzano was the first person to sight the coast. Verrazano was an Italian explorer that was also looking for the northeast passage. He was under the command of the King of France .Lord Berkely and Sir George Carteret were the official founders of the colony of New Jersey. Peter Stuyvesant was the Dutch governor in 1665. Lewis Morris was the governor that took his place in 1738.