La Duphine visited an island in New York in 1524 and it is believed that Henry Hudson sailed up the New York bay in 1609, naming the Hudson River after himself. The British took control of the colony in 1664 and the Erie Canal connecting New York to the Great Lakes was completed in 1825, leading to increased immigration to New York. The Statue of Liberty, a gift from France, was erected in New York Harbor in 1886 and has since been restored.