The New England
Colonies
Ch. 3: Colonies Take Root
(1587-1752)
Section 2
1.)
2.)
3.)
4.)
Students will describe the geography &
climate of the New England Colonies.
Students will describe the Puritan
settlement in Massachusetts.
Students will identify the new
settlements that developed in New
England as a result of Puritan religious
practices.
Students will explain the changes that
took place in the New England Colonies
in the 1600’s.
1.)
What was the climate and geography of
the New England colonies?
2.)
What was the Puritan settlement in
Massachusetts like?
3.)
What were the new settlements that
developed as a result of Puritan religious
practices?
4.)
What were the changes that took place in
the New England colonies in the 1600’s?
I. Review of England’s Early Settlements
II. The New England Colonies
A. Geography of New England
B. Puritans in Massachusetts Bay
1. The Puritans Leave England
2. The Massachusetts Bay Colony
C. New Colonies
1. Anne Hutchinson’s Dissent
2. Settling Connecticut
D. Growth and Change
1. King Phillip’s War
2. Puritan Influence Declines
Plymouth Colony survived its first
winter and began to grow slowly.
Meanwhile, new colonies were
growing up in this region, which is
presently New-England. You will now
learn about the challenges that the
new colonies faced.
•New England is made up of the following
states: Massachusetts, Connecticut, Rhode
Island, New Hampshire, Vermont, and Maine.
•Much of it is made up of hills and low
mountains. There are also large areas covered
by forests. The soil is thin and rocky, which
makes farming difficult.
•The largest river is the Connecticut river.
•New England has very fertile fishing grounds.
•Winters in New England are long and snowy.
•Summers are short and warm.
•This actually helped some of the early
colonists; the cold caused them to catch much
fewer diseases and lived longer than the
colonists in Virginia.
Why would colonists in New England have turned
to fishing rather than farming?
(A) The Connecticut River created fertile fishing areas in New England
(B) The soil in England is thin and rocky; making farming extremely difficult.
(C ) Early winters often killed planted crops before they could be harvested.
(D)
Short summers don’t give farmers enough time to grow a large harvest.
(E)
All of the above.
•Motivations for the puritans were similar to those of
the Pilgrims – conflict with the Church of England.
•They didn’t want to split off from the church; simply
change it.
•Puritans were very influential in England in the early
1600’s.
•Many were important professionals such as
landowners, merchants, or lawyers.
Puritans Leave England
•In 1630 about 900 Puritans made the voyage from
England to North America in 11 ships.
•They formed the Massachusetts Bay Company,
which received a charter to establish settlements in
what is now Massachusetts and New Hampshire.
•They were led by John Winthrop, a respected
landowner and lawyer.
•They believed this would provide a good examples
to other colonies.
John Winthrop
•Between 1639 & 1648 was voted in and out of his
position as governor with Massachusetts Bay Colony.
•Declared that the Puritan colonists emigrating to the
New World were part of a special pact with God to
create a holy community
The Massachusetts Bay Colony
•The Puritans established several settlements in their
colony.
•The best Harbor was the location of the main town,
Boston.
•By 1643, about 20,000 people lived in the colony.
•By the mid-1630’s, Massachusetts Bay had an elected
assembly called The General Court.
•Each town was responsible for sending members to
the assembly.
•Voting was limited to adult males of the Puritan
church.
The Massachusetts Bay Colony
•By the mid-1630’s, Massachusetts Bay had an elected
assembly called The General Court.
•Each town was responsible for sending members to
the assembly.
•Voting was limited to adult males of the Puritan
church.
•The General Court and the colony’s governor were
elected each year.
The Massachusetts Bay Colony
•The Irony – The Puritans had founded their colony so
they could worship as they chose; however, they did
not give Non-Puritans the same right.
•They did not believe in religious toleration
•Toleration – Recognition that other people have
the right to different opinions.
•The Salem Witch Trials were a series of hearings to prosecute
people accused of witchcraft throughout various areas in New
England between February 1692 and May 1693.
•Despite being generally known as the “Salem” witch trials,
the preliminary hearings in 1692 were conducted in a variety
of towns.
•The best known trials were conducted by the Court of Over
and Terminer in 1692 in Salem Town.
•Over 150 people were arrested and imprisoned, with
even more accused.
•At least 5 of the accused died in prison.
•All 26 who went to trial were convicted.
• The two courts convicted 29 people of the capital felony of
witchcraft. Nineteen of the accused, fourteen women and
five men, were hanged.
•One man was crushed to death after heavy stones were
placed upon his body in an attempt to obtain a conviction.
•Jail conditions for the accused were horrible; attempting to
get people to confess.
•Women were often placed in dunking tanks for hours until
they confessed in an effort to get the torment to stop.
The Initial Outbreak
•In Salem Village, 1692, Betty Parries, 9, and her cousin,
Abigail Williams, 11, daughter of Reverend Samuel Parris,
began to have “fits”. The girls screamed, threw things around
the room, uttered strange sounds, and contorted their
bodies. They also complained on being pinched and pricked.
•The local doctor could find no evidence of physical ailments.
• The first 3 people accused of affecting these girls was Sarah
Good, Sarah Osborne and Tituba.
•Sarah Good was very poor and known to beg for food and
shelter from her neighbors; Sarah Osborne was known as
promiscuous and rarely attended church meetings. Tituba
was of mixed race and a natural target for accusations.
The Initial Outbreak
•These women were all brought before local magistrates and
interrogated for days before they were finally sent to jail.
•Testimony from Sarah Good’s 4 year old daughter was used
in her trial and was ultimately what led to her conviction.
•These three women were societal outcasts; or people whom
everyone else expected to be guilty of witchcraft.
•It wasn’t until upstanding church goers and members of the
clergy began being accused that people became so frightened
of these accusations.
Impact of the Salem Witch Trials
• RELIGIOUS CONTEXT – Puritans believed that their religion
was the only right one; even though they had come to the
America’s to escape the same persecution that they were
inflicting upon others.
•ECONOMIC CONTEXT – Individuals had the possibility for
monetary gain by accusing people of witchcraft.
•SOCIAL CONTEXT – People were afraid to get around anyone
outside their family; if someone didn’t like you, all they had to
do was accuse you of witchcraft
The Court of Over and Terminer, 1692
Sarah Good – Walking to Execution
Local Officials Apprehending a “Witch”
A Hanging – 1692
Why did the Puritans go to North America?
(A) To be able to practice their religion freely;
(B) To establish a colony based solely on religion;
(C ) To serve as an example for others;
(D)
All of the above
•Disagreements about religion led to the formation of
other colonies in New England.
•One key dispute involved Roger Williams, minister in
of a church in the town of Salem.
•He believed that Puritans should split entirely
from the Church of England
•Also criticized Puritans who seized Native
American lands; thought they should pay them
•He was forced to leave Massachusetts Bay in 1635;
he moved to what is now Rhode Island, buying land.
•In 1635, Williams founded the town of Providence.
•In 1644, the colonists in Rhode Island received a
charter from the king to govern themselves.
•They decided that Rhode Island would have no
established church; making a huge step for
religious toleration. People could worship as they
saw fit.
•Followers of the Jewish faith found religious
freedom here.
•She was expelled from Massachusetts in 1638 after
being put on trial for questioning some of the Puritan
teachings.
•She then established a settlement on what is now
part of Rhode Island.
•In 1642, she traveled farther south into what is New
York State.
•Left Massachusetts in 1636 with about 100 followers.
•Settled in what is today, Connecticut.
•There he founded the town of Hartford.
•Soon new settlements developed after more Puritans
followed him.
•In 1639 the colonists drew up the Fundamental
Orders of Connecticut, which established a
government with an elected legislature and governor.
•In 1662, Connecticut received an official charter from
the king, granting it self-government.
•Was also forced to leave Massachusetts for agreeing
with some of Anne Hutchinson’s views.
•Him and some followers moved to New Hampshire;
where they established the town of Exeter.
•It was not made a separate colony until 1680.
Why did Roger Williams and Anne Hutchinson
leave the Massachusetts Bay Colony?
(A) They did not agree with Puritan teachings
(B) They thought that they could make more money somewhere else
(C) They changed their religion to Jewish
(D) None of the Above
•Puritans believed that towns and churches should
manage their own affairs
•Also believed that people should work hard and live
in strong, stable families.
•Each Puritan town governed itself by setting up a
town meeting. This was an assembly that decided on
all local issues
•Membership was restricted to male heads of
household.
•They set local taxes and elected people to run
towns.
•People earned their living in many different ways:
•Farmers – grew crops, made leather products and
other objects
•Fishers – Caught Cod and other types of fish that
were shipped to buyers in Europe
•Shipbuilding industry provided many jobs
•By the 1660’s more than 300 ships from New
England were fishing off the coast or moving
products across the Atlantic Ocean.
•By the 1670’s there was a drastic decline in Native
American population, primarily because of disease.
•By 1670 there were only 12,000 native American’s in
New England; one tenth of their population 100 years
earlier
•In 1675 a major conflict erupted; led by Metacom,
chief of the Wampanoag. (King Phillip)
•His mission was to stop Puritan expansion.
•Many other Native American groups joined the war.
•The fighting lasted about a year and many lives were
lost.
•The Natives destroyed 12 English towns
•The uprising ended in 1676 when Metacom was
captured and killed
•The end of the war left English colonies free to
expand.
Metacom – King Phillip
•By the 1670’s there was a drastic change in the
outlook of people in New England; the generation
born in the “New World” had lost some of the
religious fervor of their parents.
•People concentrated on growing farms and making
money; successful merchants in places like Boston
became the towns leaders.
•The towns were doing quite well but religious rules
of the original founders had less influence.
Why did Metacom declare war on the Puritans?
(A) He did not like their clothes;
(B) He wanted to prevent them from expanding;
(C ) He had gotten into an argument with their leader
(D)
All of the above
I.
The New England Colonies
A. Geography of New England
B. Puritans in Massachusetts Bay
1. The Puritans Leave England
2. The Massachusetts Bay Colony
C. New Colonies
1. Anne Hutchinson’s Dissent
2. Settling Connecticut
D. Growth and Change
1. King Phillip’s War
2. Puritan Influence Declines