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New England Colonies
A Brief History
Within decades of the settling of Plymouth in 1620, several other
colonies took root in New England. These colonies sprung up for
religious freedom as did the Pilgrims before them. One religious group
was the Puritans, a well educated middle-class people founded the
Massachusetts Bay Colony. By the summer of 1630 more than
1,000 Puritans had settled in or nearby the city of Boston. By 1640 that
number had increased to 20,000. In time New Hampshire, Maine,
Rhode Island and Connecticut would join Massachusetts to make
up the New England Colonies.
New England Society
Religion governed the lives of many Puritans both socially and
politically. Because Puritans wanted all of their members to be able to
read the Bible, education was extremely important. Harvard, the
oldest college in the US was founded by Puritans. Puritans had strict
rules about behavior though, (games and dancing was considered by
many to be sinful) and the Puritan ministers had tremendous influence
over the colonial governments.
Puritan laws were quite strict. Those found guilty of a crime were
punished in ways considered quite cruel today. New England is known
by many for the Salem Witch trials, where in 1691 and 1692 many
men and women were put to death accused of witchcraft. Less serious
crimes also faced harsh punishment. If someone lied he or she would
be forced to sit with his hands and legs clamped to a board called the
stocks. Other may have to stand on a platform with their hands
locked in a wooden frame known as a pillory.
Even though Puritans settled the Americas in hopes of religious
freedom, they were not so open-minded to other religions. Settlers
who were not of the Puritan faith could only live in the colony if they
obeyed Puritan rules and paid taxes toward the Puritan church. In
time many individuals would come to challenge the strict practices of
the Puritan faith and the Puritan faith would lose its influence over the
New England colonies.
Slavery was legal in the New England colonies, but by 1700 fewer than
1,000 slaves lived in New England. Slaves were treated quite well in
comparison to other colonial groups. Often times they were educated
and were not asked to work on Sunday. More free Africans lived in
New England than any other colonial group.
The New England Economy
Most people lived on small farms. Communities sprung up all over New
England. Most communities built an area known as a common,
which was an open field where cattle grazed. Around this common,
people constructed churches, schools and a town hall. Homes and
gardens were also built around the large land area.
Most small farms created enough crops to sustain the family. Goods
were often produced to support the family as well. Harsh weather
conditions, hilly land, rocky soil and thick forests made farming quite
difficult. Many colonists turned to fishing. The geography of the area
was ideal for establishing protected harbors with some of the richest
fishing grounds in America. Whaling had also become of profitable
trade for many New Englanders. The growth in fishing led to a growth
in other trades. Shipbuilding, lumbering and barrel making all
flourished. Apprenticeships were quite common as a means to help
younger people learn a trade in hopes that they would start their own
business some day. They would work for several years, without pay, to
learn from a master of that particular trade.
Middle Colonies
A Brief History
The Middle Colonies were considered by many to be some what of a
“melting pot”. Not all the colonies were of British origin. New York
and Pennsylvania were founded by the Dutch and Delaware was
founded by settlers from Sweden. As a matter of fact, religion was
probably more varied in this region than any other colonial region.
William Penn, a prominent religious leader, was a member of the
Quaker religion. His strong leadership enacted a belief system that
people of all faiths were welcome in the colony. He helped to form the
Pennsylvania Colony. In time New York, New Jersey and
Delaware would join Pennsylvania to make up the Middle Colonies.
The Middle Colonial Society
As stated before, the Middle colonies attracted all kinds of settlers from
many different nationalities: German, Welsch, Scottish, French and
Jewish. Unlike the New England colonies, the Middle Colonies became
home to many religions. For the most part, the Dutch and Quakers
believed in religious toleration which meant people were free to
practice whatever faith they believed in. Men and women were seen
more as equals within this colonial group as well.
Slavery did exist in the Middle Colonies, but the Quaker religion did
not believe in the institution of slavery, nor did farming of wheat
demand a large labor force as it did other crops produced in the South.
By 1688, Quakers in Germantown, Pennsylvania drew up earliest
American protest of slavery in the colonies. Indentured servitude was
perhaps more freely accepted than slavery.
The Middle Colonial Economy
The climate was ideal for farming. Unlike the small farms of the New
England, Middle colonies were made up of larger farms. Wheat,
barely, rye and other grains were the main crops produced.
Eventually farmers grew more grains than they needed and sold them
off as cash crops. By 1760, New York farmers were exporting
(sending out) 80,000 barrels of wheat flour a year, which led the
Middle Colonies to be nicknamed the “breadbasket colonies.”
Southern Colonies
A Brief History
Early settlers were English Catholics who fled for fear of persecution
by the Church of England. More than not people settled in the
South for economic reason rather than religious ones. In time
Virginia, North Carolina, South Carolina and Georgia would
join Maryland to make up the Southern Colonies.
The Southern Colonial Society
Southern society could be divided into three groups: planters, small
farmers and tenant farmers and poor farmers. Planters were rich
land owners who typically ran large plantations. Only a small
percentage of the farms were in fact plantations. Small land owners
made up the middle class of the South owning just a few slaves, if any.
Tennant farmers were settlers who could not afford to own land, so
they worked on land that others owned.
Plantation Life
Most plantations were close to rivers but far from cities given the
amount of space they required. As a result, plantations were selfsufficient-able to produce all the goods that were needed. Plantations
consisted of a “great house” where the owners of the plantation
lived, small cabins for slaves were nearby including usually a black
smith shop, stables and other small building. Teachers from England
would travel to the plantations offering to teach children. Children in
smaller farms or from tenant farmers had little chance to learn to read
or write.
The Southern Colonial Economy
This region’s warm climate was ideal for growing crops like tobacco,
rice and indigo, a plant used to produce blue dye. These crops were
very popular, but also tended to wear out the soil. For this reason, land
owners had to keep buying more land and expanding their farms.
These large farms were known as plantations. Plantations demanded
a large labor force. Since slavery was a relatively cheap form a labor, it
was in high demand among the planters of the South. By 1765 almost
350,000 African slaves lived in the Southern Colonies.