The New England Colonies

Chapter 3 Section 2p. 71

Section Focus:

How did religious beliefs and dissent influence the New England Colonies?

Geography of New England

● New England is in the northeastern corner of the U.S.

● Contains: Massachusetts, Connecticut, Rhode Island, New Hampshire, Vermont, Maine

● Terrain: Hills and low mountains, forests, thin and rocky soil

● Farming was difficult and fishing was ideal

● Long, snowy winters and short, warm summers

Puritans in Massachusetts Bay

● Similar to Pilgrims, Puritans were in disagreement with the Church of England

● Rather than splitting off, they wanted to reform (change) it

● Despite their early influence in England, Puritans were later persecuted for their movement by King Charles I

The Puritans Leave England

● Due to persecution, many left England for North America

● These Puritans formed the Massachusetts Bay Company and received a charter to establish settlements in current day Massachusetts and New Hampshire

● They were led by John Winthrop, a respected landowner and lawyer

● They expected their way of life to be one that others could follow

The Massachusetts Bay Colony

● Puritans established several settlements in their colony, but the main town was Boston, located on the harbor

● By mid-1630s, Massachusetts Bay had elected an assembly, the General Court

● Each town sent representatives but voting was limited to adult male members of the Puritan church

● Even though they left so they could worship as they chose, they did not offer non-Puritans that same right

● They did not believe in religious toleration - recognition that others have the right to different opinions

● Why would colonists in New England have turned to fishing instead of farming?

● What is the comparison between Puritans and Pilgrims and the reason they left for North America.

New Colonies

● Disagreements about religion led to the founding of other colonies in New England

● A key dispute involved Roger Williams, minister of the church in the town called Salem

● This was the central location for the Salem Witch Trials

Salem Witch Trial Video

Growth and Change

● Because Puritans believed that towns and churches should manage their own affairs, the set up town meetings in help govern themselves

● A town meeting is an assembly of townspeople that decides local issues

● Membership to meetings was restricted to male heads of households

● They set local taxes and elected people to run the town

Growth and Change

● This was another piece of the beginning stages of the government we have today

● Families also earned their livelihoods by farming, fishing, and industry

● Farmers grew crops, but also made leather goods and other products

● Fishermen caught cod and other fish that were shipped to Europe

● A shipbuilding business was also taking off which provided many jobs

King Philip’s War

● By the 1670s, the Native American population was decreasing, mainly because of the diseases they had caught from Europeans

● In 1675, Metacom, the chief of the Wampanoag, who was also known as King Philip, led a charge to stop the Puritan expansion

● This led to many other Native Americans joining in

● In 1676, Metacom was captured and kill which allowed the English colonies to continue to grow and expand

● Check Your Progress● p. 76● 1-5