The search for wealth drove Europeans into creating colonies in the Americas, and the lack of knowledge of the new territory made it difficult for the first colonist to even survive. Many attempts were made and many failed due to severe weather conditions and the scarcity of resources. The Europeans were able to overcome challenges and were able to expand their colonies. As their hardship began to decelerate, the troubles for the natives began to grown-up.
THE FIRST COLONIES
JAMES TOWN, VIRGINIA -1607
A project of Virginia company that came to America in hope of finding gold successfully became the 1st English colony in America.
Though there were some previous attempts made that failed, like the colony of Roanoke Island set up by Sir Walter Raleigh, where all the colonists disappeared leaving the word ‘’Croatoan’’ Carved into a tree.
Many of the colonist were goldsmiths and jewelers in search of gold but the gold did not exist and jewelers disliked farming. Capt John Smith who took over control of the island -said; ‘’They would rather starve than farm”.
HALF of the colonists died in 1st year and were replaced by 400 more. but by 1610 after gruesome winter called ‘’The Starving Time’’ the number of colonists dwindled to 65, making it harder to find new colonists.
In 1618, Virginia company hit upon a recruiting strategy called The headright system. The system offered 50 acres of land for each person that a settler paid to bring them over, this enabled the creation of a number of large estates, which were mostly worked on and populated by Indentured Servants [temporary slaves]
Servants were brought and sold and worked under command for 7 to 10 years and if they weren’t dead by then, they were given freedom dues, though the money wasn’t enough to actually own a farm of their own and be free.
The first shipment of African slaves in Virginia arrived in 1619, almost 12 years after the founding of James Town.
The colony found tobacco, which was grown in Mexico since at least 1000 BCE, but Europeans had never seen it.
King James hated smoking and called it ‘’ a custom loathsome to the eye and hateful to the nose’’, but tax revenues and selling of drugs was profitable and by 1624, Virginia was producing 200,000 pounds of tobacco per year, by 1680s it was 30 mill pounds /year
The Tobacco industry structured Virginia Society as the colonist created huge plantations of tobacco with very little in way of towns or infrastructure to hold social order together.
Most people who came in the 17th century were servants, Society was also overwhelmingly male, as male servants were more useful in tobacco fields.
The women could marry after their term of service of being servants was up. Delayed marriages caused fewer children and which in turn reduced the number of females.
Virginia was kind of a swamp of Pestilence, so husbands often died creating a small class of widows or even unmarried women who because of their special status could make contracts and own property.
MARYLAND 1632
The Second Chesapeake colony, Maryland was a proprietorship
-Massive land was granted to a single individual named- Cecilius Calvert. Calvert wanted to build a medieval feudal kingdom to benefit himself and his family.
He was not a fan of the representational institutions that were developing in Virginia.
MASSACHUSETTS -
James Town was the first but Massachusetts bay is probably the better known, largely because colonists who came there
Most English settlers in New England were Uber Protestant Puritans (they and were called Congregationalists, As they thought congregations should determine leadership and worship structures, not the bishop.
They were supposed to land in Virginia but were blown widely off course and ended up in what's now MASSACHUSETTS -Founding a colony called PLYMOUTH
-While still on board the ship Mayflower,41 of 150 plus colonists wrote and signed an agreement called the Mayflower Compact, in which they all bound themselves to follow ‘’JUST AND EQUAL LAW’ that the chosen representative would write up which is now known as the 1st written framework of government in the United States
THE FIRST THANKSGIVING
Pilgrims that landed in Massachusetts did not bring much food or animals and landed 6 weeks before winter, only reason they survived was that local Indians led by Squanto gave them food and shelter.
A year later, grateful that they had survived mainly due to the help of alliance with local chief Massasoit, and because Indian taught them to plant corn and catch fish, the pilgrims held the feast.
The pilgrims struggled until 1691 when their colony was subsumed by larger and much more successful Massachusetts Bay Colony -Chartered in 1629 by London merchants who like the founder of Virginia company hoped to make money.
The Board of Directors relocated from England to America giving a greater degree of autonomy and self-government. The Cambridge Agreement of 1629 was the pact entered into by board members that moved the control of the company to the colony. It also led directly to the founding of Boston.
New England town was governed democratically but only people who were church members could vote or hold office, and to be a church member one had to be a Visible saint(A person who has had a conversion experience, made a public profession of faith, and has the worldly success) which confirms membership in the elect.
The 1st slaves in Massachusetts were recorded in 1640.
Roger Williams was banned from colonies as he called for citizens to be able to practice any religion they want. He went on to find Rhodes Island.
Similarly, Ann Hutchinson argued that church membership should be based on inner grace and not on outward manifestation like church attendance was banished to West Chester, New York, where she and her family were killed by Indians.
The United States was not built in a day. Many were sacrificed in the process of evolving the new lands. the fight for the control of the lands of America continued for centuries.