New Jersey's Founding: An English Proprietary Colony (1664)

England — specifically, King Charles II granting the territory to his brother James, Duke of York (future James II).

The 1664 Grant

• Context: Second Anglo-Dutch War; England seized New Netherland (New Amsterdam → New York)
• Grant: June 24, 1664 — Charles II gave James all land between Delaware & Hudson Rivers
• Sub-grant: James conveyed to Lord Berkeley (John) & Sir George Carteret — "New Jersey" after Carteret's defense of Isle of Jersey (Channel Islands)
• Proprietary colony: Owned by proprietors, not Crown — distinct from royal colonies

Two Jerseys Emerge

• East Jersey (Carteret) — Newark, Elizabethtown; Puritan/Quaker settlers from New England, Long Island
• West Jersey (Berkeley → Quakers: Fenwick, Byllynge, Penn) — Burlington, Salem; Quaker dominance
• 1676 Quintipartite Deed: Formal division line (Keith Line — still visible in property boundaries)

Unification & Royal Control

• 1702: Proprietors surrender governance → Crown unifies as Royal Colony of New Jersey
• Shared governor with NY (1702–1738) — Lewis Morris first separate NJ governor (1738)
• 1776: Provincial Congress adopts constitution → statehood

Why It Matters

• Proprietary roots: Land titles, governance structures, religious diversity (Quaker tolerance) trace to Berkeley/Carteret
• Naming: Only state named for a Channel Island (Jersey) — Carteret's pride
• Border legacy: NY/NJ disputes (Ellis Island, Staten Island, Hudson River) originate in 1664 grant ambiguity

New Jersey: English by charter, Dutch by precedent, proprietary by design, royal by necessity, American by revolution.