The written history of New Jersey started with the exploration of the New Jersey Coast by Giovanni da Verrazzano in 1524, though the region had been settled by Native Americans for centuries. At the time of European introduction into the area, New Jersey was populated by many tribes of the Lenape. The region soon came under the control of the Swedes and the Dutch resulting in a struggle in which the Dutch were victorious. However, the Dutch colony of New Netherland was seized by the English in 1664.

New Jersey is one of the original 13 colonies that joined the American Revolutionary War in 1776. It signed the Articles of Confederation in 1779 with Princeton acting as the nation’s capital for four months in 1783.

New Jersey became independent after the American Revolutionary War, in which several crucial battles were fought in New Jersey resulting in American victories. In 1787, New Jersey was the third state to ratify the newly drafted United States Constitution.

In the nineteenth century, many New Jersey cities led the United States into the Industrial Revolution and provided soldiers for many of the wars the United States fought, including roughly 88,000 soldiers for the American Civil War.

New Jersey became an intricate component of the Underground Railroad. The state’s transportation system continued to improve with the construction of canals and more rail lines that helped further develop the region.

During the early 1900s, New Jersey, as many other eastern states, prospered but weakened in the Great Depression in the 1930s. During the Second World War, as well as the Cold War, New Jersey’s shipyards and military bases played an important role in the defense of the United States.