The New England Colonies – Political & Social Characteristics

After the success in Jamestown, the next set of English colonists arrived. They called themselves Pilgrims because they were taking a journey for religious reasons. They received grants from the Virginia Company and sailed for Virginia on a ship called The Mayflower. Instead of Virginia, they landed far north of their target. However, it was winter and very cold so they decided to go ashore at a place they named Plymouth in 1620.

When the Pilgrims landed, they knew they needed a way to keep order. Before leaving the ship, the Pilgrims all signed the Mayflower Compact, a formal document that set up a government. This was the first key step in establishing a representative, democratic government.

Another group seeking religious freedom called the Puritans, arrived in 1629 and settled near Salem and Boston. Both the Pilgrims and Puritans left England to escape religious persecution. Even though the Puritans suffered for their beliefs in Europe, they themselves had very little tolerance for different beliefs. They strictly enforced their rules to the point that some colonists left seeking to make new colonies.

A Massachusetts minister named Thomas Hooker did not like how only church members could vote or be representatives for the colony. He left Massachusetts and founded Connecticut. In 1639 they formally adopted The Fundamental Orders of In North Connecticut which was the first written constitution, or plan of America government, in North America.

Along the same lines, another minister named Roger Williams left Massachusetts and founded Rhode Island. Williams felt that the government should not have any say in how people worship. In Rhode Island there was a policy of religious tolerance where colonists could worship freely. In 1638 John Wheelright led another group of dissenters from Massachusetts to New Hampshire. New Hampshire was the last of the four New England Colonies to be formed in 1679.

Not everyone in the colonies had a voice in government. Only white men who owned property could vote. Even so, a large share of the population did take part in government in some way. In towns, people often met to talk about local issues in meeting houses. In time, town meetings turned into local governments. Taking part in local governments led colonists in many areas to believe they had the right to govern themselves.

Religion shaped much of colonial life but the family was the basis of colonial society. Men were the official heads of the family. They ran the farm or business. They represented the family in the community. Women rand their homes and cared for the children. Young unmarried women might work as a maid or cook for a wealthy family. A widow (a woman whose husband has died) might sew, teach or nurse for a living. Widows and unmarried women could run businesses and own property.

Most colonists valued education. Parents often taught their children to read and write at home. In New England people set up schools. They wanted to make sure everyone could read and study the Bible. In 1647, Massachusetts passed a public education law. It said that communities with 50 or more families must have a public school. The result of this was a high level of literacy (ability to read and write) in New England.