The First Colonies
Roanoke
After years of Spanish domination in the New World, the English decided to begin settling colonies in North America. Roanoke was the first settlement founded by the English in 1585. Its leader Sir Walter Raleigh brought seven ships carrying over 100 people to what is today North Carolina with hopes of setting up a successful colony. However, within a year the colonists were running low on food and were quarreling (fighting) with nearby Native Americans. Shortly thereafter, the colonists boarded an English ship and returned to England.
Let's try this again
In 1587, John White, who was among the previous colonists who went to Roanoke, returned to try and build the colony once again. The colonists set up a farming community, but once again supplies were running low and fighting with Native American tribes was occurring. White decided to go back to England and get more supplies to help the colonists. He instructed those he left behind to carve a cross in a tree if they were attacked or if they moved, to carve the name of where they had gone. When White returns he finds nothing except the name of a nearby island, CROATOAN, carved a tree. Due to a storm in the area, the crew traveling with White refused to go investigate the island and headed back to England. The colonists who White had left behind were never found and what happened to them still remains a mystery.
For a complete and detailed story of Roanoke click here
INTERESTING FACT!! The first English child born in North America was born in Roanoke. The baby was named Virginia Dare.
Jamestown
It was almost 20years before the English attempted to set up another colony in North America. In 1606, a group of merchants received a charter to settle "that part of America, commonly called Virginia." The settlers went in search of gold and were to establish trade in fish and fur. Upon arrival in 1607, settlers built their homes on a peninsular so they could defend themselves from an attack. However, the area they chose was swampy and infested with mosquitoes which carried malaria. As a result of poor water quality and disease, many settlers died. Aside from these problems, the colonists at Jamestown also fought amongst themselves. A council of 13men had been chosen to rule the settlement, but members quarreled with one another and did little to plan for the colony's future.
Let's fix this
In 1608, Captain John Smith arrived at the colony and forced the colonists to work and farm instead of search for gold and silver. Smith also managed to improve relations with Native Americans in the area. This proved to vital to the success of the colony as the Natives showed colonists what food to grow and how to grow it in the area. Thanks to the leadership of Smith, Jamestown was beginning to grow.
Jamestown prospers
Once it was determined that there was no gold or silver in the area, colonists searched for another to make money for investors. Tobacco, though unhealthy and disgusting to some Europeans, had become popular in Europe. One Jamestown colonists, John Rolfe, learned how to grow tobacco that was more appealing to Europeans and soon after tobacco plantations were popping up all along the James River. Tobacco became the cash crop of Virginia and helped the colony grow and prosper.
A representative government forms in Virginia
As the Virginia colony grew and prospered, settlers no longer wanted to take orders fro the Virginia Company in London (the company had granted them their charter in 1606). A new governor was sent by the company who then allowed the men to elect representatives called burgesses to an assembly. The assembly, called the House of Burgesses had a right to make laws for the colony and began meeting in Jamestown in 1619.
For more about Jamestown click here
Plymouth
In the early 1600s a group of Protestants wanted to reform, or change, the Anglican Church. This group of people were known as Puritans. Another group who wanted to leave the church and found their own were known as Separatists. The Separatists were persecuted, or treated harshly, in England and fled to the Netherlands. Once there, they still did not have total religious freedom and were worried their children would lose their English heritage.
"So what did they do?"
The Separatists arranged to settle in Virginia, but had to give the Virginia Company a share of whatever profits they made. The Separatists considered themselves Pilgrims because they felt their journey had a religious purpose. Thirty-five Pilgrims, along with 67 other people looking for a better life, boarded the Mayflower in September of 1620.
"We're on a ship, now what?"
Originally those aboard the
Mayflower were to settle in the Virginia colony. However, the first land they
saw was Cape Cod and due to it being November and winter approaching, they
decided to settle there rather than continue their journey. The area they settled
was called Plymouth.
"The Pilgrims settled outside of the Virginia colony and its laws so did
they have to follow them?"
In order to provide for their new colony, the Pilgrims drew up what is called the Mayflower Compact. In it, they pledged their loyalty to England and decided to form "a civil body....for our better ordering and preservation." The signers also promised to obey the laws passed "for the general good of the colony." This meant the signers would assemble together and consult one another about laws they felt were needed for the colony. Once they agreed on the law, they promised to follow it.
"You said it was November and cold when they got their. How did they survive?"
During their first winter, many Pilgrims died of starvation, disease, and from the cold. Their houses had been hastily thrown together and provided little protection from the cold harsh winter. Once spring came, Native Americans in the area approached the settlement and befriended the colonists. One of them, Squanto, had learned to speak English while a prisoner on an English ship. Squanto and Samoset showed the Pilgrims how to grow food and where to hunt and fish. In becoming friendly with the Natives, the Pilgrims were able to survive and eventually their colony began to grow.
Back to the New England Colonies
Interested in more about the Pilgrims? Try this website.