The New England Colonies
Geography of New England
• Massachusetts,
Connecticut, Rhode
Island, New Hampshire,
Vermont, and Maine
make up New England
• Soil is thin and rocky,
makes farming difficult
• Long jagged coastline
perfect for fishing
• Large forests
• Long snowy winters
Puritans in Massachusetts Bay
• Similar to the Pilgrims,
the Puritans wanted to
reform the C of E
• Puritans were
persecuted in England
• Led by John Winthrop,
the Puritans receive a
charter to settle their
colony Massachusetts
Bay Colony
The Massachusetts Bay Colony
• The Puritans established
several settlements
including Boston
• The colony set up a
General Court where each
town sent representatives
(limited to male Puritan
Church members)
• Puritans did not believe in
religious toleration
New Colonies
Growth and Change
• Each Puritan town
governed itself by setting
up a town meeting
• This encouraged the
growth of democratic
ideas
• Puritans earned their
livelihood through
farming, fishing,
shipbuilding, and leather
goods
King Philip’s War
• In 1675, a Wampanoag
chief named Metacom
(King Philip) led a
resistance against
Puritan expansion
• Many natives joined
and thousands died by
1676
• His defeat allowed the
colonists to expand
freely