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Jamestown Colony (Virginia)
This is the first permanent established English colony in Virginia. King James, I financed it to seek fortunes, find a faster route to Asia, and expand their territory. -
House of Burgesses
The creation of the first bicameral legislature created the two houses. This form of regulation of laws and governance is what influenced the layout of Congress based on population (House of Representatives) and equal (Senate) representation. The people met in the general assembly to create a way for the colonies to rule and govern over the day-to-day activities since England could not be present all of the time. -
Plymouth Colony (Massachusetts)
Pilgrims set sail for the New World in 1620 aboard the Mayflower in what is known as modern-day Massachusetts. They left England under the guise of establishing a trade route but left for their religious freedom. They originally intended to land by the Hudson River but were blown off. They ended up docking by Plymouth Rock and made their roots. Those aboard the ship signed the Mayflower Compact during their voyage, creating the structure of their government and rules due to an attempted mutiny. -
Royal Province of New Hampshire
Two different groups of settlers arrived by the Piscataqua River and created two fishing communities. The area had abundant natural resources (fish, lumber, fur, and more), plus because the location was cold, it prevented diseases from affecting them as it did with the other colonies. The colonists took advantage of the fertile land by growing wheat, corn, and rye for sustenance. Most of the settlers founded the area not for religious freedoms but rather to seek their fortune. -
Province of Maryland
The charter for the voyage was approved by King Charles I and founded by George Calvert, first Lord Baltimore. The settlers were Roman Catholic and Protestant, leaving England for their religious freedoms. The goal of establishing the colony was also to create an economic gain, which they did by cultivating tobacco and wheat. As the years went by, Protestants began to outnumber the Catholics, causing a rise in conflict of religious faiths. -
Connecticut Colony
This colony was created when the Dutch established the first trading post along the Connecticut River. The population in the Massachusetts colony had become so dense people were spilling out and needed a new area to live. Most people who made their way to the American colonies at this point did so as indentured servants. Individuals signed a contract that had their work for a set number of years. At the end of their contracts, they were then deemed "freemen" and were given land and rights. -
Providence Plantations Colony (Rhode Island)
Roger Williams, Anne Hutchinson, William Coddington, William Arnold, and Samuel Gorton all independently founded what is known as Rhode Island today. Most of the listed founders have initially been in the Massachusetts Bay colony but were banished for different reasons. The settlement believed in the separation of church and state and the right to freedom of religious expression. -
New Netherland Colony (Delaware)
The Dutch originally occupied this area to keep expanding trading posts that were being set up in the New World. With the colonies growing larger there was a need to create routes supplying the settlers with goods and services. -
Navigation Acts
The creation of English laws promoted the self-interest and self-sufficiency of the Empire that regulated ships and trade with the colonists and other countries. Colonists were forced to stop at English ports before interacting with other territories and countries. This allowed England to tax and oversee what was given to others, making it more difficult for colonists to trade effectively. -
Province of Carolina (North and South)
This area was where the mysterious settlement Roanoak disappeared around 1648. In 1663 King Charles the II rewarded eight noblemen who assisted him regain control of his reign in England with the colony. They, in turn, named it after him. -
New Amsterdam Colony (New York)
The New Amsterdam colony (New York) was originally a part of the New Netherlands colony (Delaware) but split from them due to four English warships. The original settlement was Dutch, but the English came in and threatened to take over by force. The entire area was the same, and the majority were not even Dutch, so in turn, for surrendering without a fight, the English promised they could keep their commercial rights. -
New Netherland Colony (New Jersey)
King Charles II gave the Connecticut and Delaware River lands to James, the Duke of York. The ground was then regifted to his friends Lord Berkely and Sir George Carteret. After the land was given to the friends, they renamed it New Jersey, creating a new border colony. Settlers were enticed to stay for a representative government and religious freedoms. -
King Phillip's War
King Phillip's War is also known as the First Indian War. The southern colonies and their Native allies had wanted to expand their territory due to the increased population. They fought an all-out war against the Narragansett, Wampanoag, and smaller tribes. At the end of the war, many Native were wounded, killed, or captured. Those who were caught were forced into indentured servitude or slavery. -
Bacon's Rebellion
Indentured servants were denied their promised properties after serving their contracts. If they were given properties, it was within the Native's territory or in poor condition. Nathaniel Bacon exposed the instability of the social structure of the Virginia colony and organized burning Jamestown to the ground. The elite and plantation owners were trying to legalize slavery, not to pay out those who had signed on to work for several years before becoming freemen. -
Pennsylvania Colony
King Charles II gave a land grant to William Penn, a Quaker because he had owed his deceased father money. Penn sent his cousin to help establish a new colony founded on the idea of religious freedom. Penn was a Quaker, the most radical English Protestant sect, who wanted to create a haven for other Quakers and those facing religious persecutions. -
The Glorious Revolution
King James II, who was a Catholic, was overthrown by Protestants William III of Orange and Mary II, daughter of King James II. Parlament was established as the ruling government shifting from absolute monarchy to constitutional monarchy. The creation of the English Bill of Rights -
Salem Witch Trials
Primary Source: Court Papers during Salem Witch Trials From February 1692 to May 1963, Massachusetts and the other colonies were wrapped up in the fear and hysteria of witchcraft. The colonists at this time have a rising resentment against their neighbors and a fear against outsiders. Twenty people senselessly died over the year while people falsely accused one another left and right. Spores in the hay were later found to have caused hallucinations. -
Separation of North Coarolina and South Carolina Coloies
North and South Carolina colonies were officially divided, but in 1729, they became a royal colony under King George II. It was sold to him by seven of the eight Lords who originally owned the territory. John Carteret, the descendant of Sir George Carteret, was the only one of the eight lords who retained 1/8th ownership, but he had no say in government proceedings. -
Carolina Colony (Georgia)
Settlers from South Carolina traveled further south to trade with the Natives of the area. The English explorer, Henry Woodward, made his way to the Chattahoochee falls in the 1670s, in the center of the Creek Nation. Woodward and the Creek Nation allied to kick the Spanish out of the territory. The area was later abandoned in 1727 and was then re-established as a colony in 1732, officially being adopted into the 13 colonies. -
Debt Recovery Act
This act allowed creditors to acquire property, land, or personal (which included enslaved people), of the colonists. This was done to appease the British merchants, who were owed a large sum of money from the colonists. -
Catalyst of the First Great Awakening
Primary Source (transcribed to an article):Sinners at the Hands of an Angry God In Massachusetts, preacher Jonathan Edwards used fear as a motivational tool to keep Puritans in line when they were starting to stray away from their faith. His sermon went on to tell the Puritans that their God is an angry and vengeful one and that sinners will receive a punishment unfathomable in the afterlife. -
Seven Years War (French Indian War)
From 1754 to 1763, the North American British colonies were fighting against the French and their Native allies. This came from land disputes of territories, control of fur trade, and the balance of power in Europe. -
Treaty of Paris of 1763
This treaty marked the end of the French and Indian Wars between England and France, but it came at a price to the colonists. France gave all of their territories to England (except for New Orleans), there was now an established boundary of England territories, and debts were required to be paid before the war. To hopefully avoid future conflict over territory and expansion disputes, King George III forbade colonists from expanding West. -
Sugar Act of 1764
There was an increase in taxation on sugar and molasses imported to the colonies from other territories and countries. Colonists used these ingredients were used to create rum which had been disrupted. The colonists chose to boycott British goods and become more self-sufficient. -
Stamp Act of 1765
A tax was put on all printed goods such as newspapers, magazines, and legal documents. This affected more affluent colonists but still angered them just the same. The British Empire was trying to control what materials the colonists used. -
Quartering Act of 1765
British parliament required that colonial authorities provide food, drink, shelter, and transportation to the British forces at the colonist's expense. -
Townshend Acts of 1767 and 1768
There were multiple acts passed and placed on the colonists towards British imports as indirect taxes. Such goods included: glass, lead, paints, paper, and tea. Colonists protested these acts, and England responded by sending troops to enforce the taxation and quell the protests. -
Boston Massacre
A group of colonists protesting confronted a British sentry group. In the confusion of the rising tension and escalating, violent shots were fired into the crowd. Three people died in this event, which sparked outrage that the British are now attacking colonists. -
Tea Act of 1773
This act allowed the direct sale of tea from the British East India Company to the colonists. It undermined the businesses from colonial merchants and was a way for Britain to get support from the colonists even though England was the one that increased the taxation. -
Boston Tea Party
This event was a mercantile and political protest enacted by the Sons of Liberty. These men snuck aboard three different tea ships in the Boston Harbor dressed up as Mohawk Natives. They dumped 342 chests of tea into the harbor as a form of protest. Their chant became, "no taxation without representation." -
Intolerable Acts or Coercive Acts of 1774
These five acts were put in place as a response to the Boston Tea Party: Boston Port Act (March 31, 1774), Massachusetts Government Act (May 20, 1774), Administration Justice Act (May 20, 1774), Quartering Act of 1774 (June 2, 1774) Quebec Act 1774 (June 22, 1774). -
First Continental Congress of 1774
Twelve of the thirteen colonies sent delegates to Philadelphia to discuss resistance to the Coercive Acts placed upon them by the British. Georgia could not attend this meeting because they depended on British supplies and fought with the local people. The meeting was about equality of representation and the ability to debate freely. In the end, they created the Declaration of Rights, stating they were still loyal to the crown but disputing Parliament taxation. -
American Revolution 1775 to 1783
There is now a shift from Colonial America to the War of Independence. -
Second Continental Congress of 1775
This time all thirteen colonies set delates to Philadelphia to discuss the next steps the colonies needed to take against the British Empire. The initial meetings were about creating a peaceful separation from the Empire. As discussions went on, the delegates discussed the creation of the Continental Army, establishing government, and making foreign alliances.