New England Colonies

• Massachusetts

• Rhode Island

• Connecticut

• New Hampshire

Rhode Island

• 1630’s, Roger Williams troubled puritans in Mass

– said land belonged to the Natives

– he believed in complete “toleration”

– believed in separation of church and state

– Williams fled from Mass. In the middle of winter and lived with the Natives

• Land purchase from Indians

• Started town of Providence

• 1644, he was given a charter for the colony of RI

• Rhode Island first to allow complete religious freedom

– Attracted Jews and Quakers (neither allowed to attend college or public services in England)

– Many new skilled workers and business men settle in town of Newport

Connecticut

• Led by Thomas Hooker in 1636.

• He and 100 settlers went down Conn. River and settled the town of Hartford.

• He was so religious that he was the judge of the Roger Williams trial to kick him out

• Given charter in 1662

• They wrote the Fundamental Orders of Conn. (similar to the Mass. Gov’t)

New Hampshire

• Coastal area north of MA was claimed by MA Bay Co. in 1641.

• In 1679, the King took it from them and made it a Royal colony.

• Meanwhile, Maine would be part of MA until it is made into a separate state in 1830 (part of Missouri Compromise)

New England Confederation

• In 1643, MA and Conn. Joined together (MA Bay, Plymouth, Hartford and New Haven) to protect themselves from the Natives, French and the Dutch.

• RI and ME outposts were ignored—considered too radical

King Charles II, begins to pay more attention and is not

pleased• 1662, he gave RI a new charter

• 1684, the MA Bay charter was revoked

• 1691 MA made a royal colony

• soldiers and royal authorities sent

– church upset by unruly behaviors

– town meetings outlawed

– MA loses cherished independence

Middle Colonies

• New York

• New Jersey

• Pennsylvania

• Delaware

New Netherland becomes New York

• NN based on Henry Hudson’s explorations

• Began in 1624

• Dutch settlers had moderate prosperity

– Smuggling big—Gave chance to trade with English

– Didn’t care who leader was as long as they made $

• Leaders were very harsh and had no patience with ideas of toleration

– Peter Stuyvesant, the last leader of NN, was forced to surrender to the English which had claimed it in 1664

– Charles II gave it to his brother the Duke of York.

Pennsylvania

• Settled by religious group called Quakers or Society of Friends

• Had strong views that disagreed with England leadership and churches

– Believed in inner life

– Did not believe in any show of excessive pride

– Did not believe in wars for possession

– Would not pay taxes

– Would not sign contracts (word was good enough)

– Would become the first to abolish slavery in the new world

Colony charter (proprietorship)

• King James owed quaker, Wm Penn money.

• Gave him land in exchange for cash in 1681

• Penn, wrote the Frame of Government for the colony

– Included a “bi-cameral gov’t” (elected advisory council and an elected assembly to make laws)

– Allowed complete religious freedom

– Insisted Indians be treated fairly, and he paid Indians for land

Three waves to Pennsylvania

• 1—Quakers that settled in Philadelphia

• 2—Pietists (Germans) a generic name for groups like the Amish

• 3—Scotch Irish—English and Scotch Presbyterians that were from Ireland

New Jersey

• Started in 1664.

• A proprietorship, granted by the Duke of York

• Quickly gained occupancy by New Englanders that had exhausted their soil.

• In separate deals in 1674 and 1702, E and W NJ were sold to Quakers.

• 1702, The crown combined them and made NJ a royal colony

Delaware

• Primarily part of Penn.

• Granted its own assembly in 1703, but stayed under the governance of Penn until the Revolution