Patterns of Development in New England and Virginia, 1605-1776

The English colonists that began to arrive in America at the beginning of the 17^th century settled along the Atlantic coast of the continent as far north as New Brunswick and as far south as South Carolina. As a result, they faced diverse climates and diverse native neighbors, both of which influenced the development of the colonies. However, these were not the only factors at the foundation of each of the original colonies. Some colonists came for economic reasons, others came as refugees from religious and political persecutions. Colonists driven by economic reasons tended to settle in the south, where better climate allowed profitable farming. Those that fled persecution, such as the Puritans, generally settled in the north, and each colony produced distinct economic, cultural, and political traits. Two such examples were New England and Virginia.

In New England, the two oldest and largest communities of settlers were in Plymouth and Boston. Both formed in the 1620s by the Puritans who left England because they considered the Church of England to be corrupt.[1] As a result, the early settlements in New England were built on the principles of godliness, family, and community. They also relied heavily on trade for their survival.

The harsh climate of the Northeast did not allow for sizable agriculture. As a result, New Englanders depended economically on the gifts of the land and the ocean, such as furs, fish, and lumber, and used them for trade. Fishing was the most active economic enterprise because it found ready markets in Spain and Portugal.[2] For this, the New Englanders were able to import wine, sugar, molasses, textiles, and iron goods, none of which they could produce themselves.[3] The situation improved somewhat throughout the 17^th century and 18^th centuries, as the commerce between the colonies developed, but by 1776, New England still relied heavily on its overseas trade. It also had virtually no black slaves as they concentrated mostly in the middle colonies and the south.

Culturally, the New England colonies were community-oriented and limited greatly in what they were allowed to do by the Puritan extremism. Piety, social propriety, female virtue, and fidelity in marriage were strictly enforced, and the offenders were often expelled from the community. In fact, the entire state of Rhode Island was populated by the heretical outcasts.[4] These strict laws slowed the development of literature, theater, and other arts because they often violated cultural norms, and few people wanted to risk punishment for exercising their artistic tendencies. Education, however, was strongly encouraged, establishing the tradition of strong colleges.

Since early days of New England colonies, the settlers were self-governing. Every white male member of the community could vote for town officials, and all decisions were determined by unanimous consent. This democratic practice allowed the New England governments to evolve into strong representative and responsive institutions. By 1776, the central government of each colony consisted of a governor and a legislature that was split into upper and lower houses, and free white males elected officials annually.[5]

Unlike New England, the first Virginian settlement at Jamestown was started as a commercial venture by the Virginia Company of London. Agriculture, namely tobacco, was to be the colony's main output. Because of this, Jamestown, and later Virginia as a whole, developed in ways different from the ones that prevailed in New England.

Economically, Virginia initially relied solely on tobacco. As a result, the colonists neglected to grow food, which resulted in starvation that, combined with disease, killed 80 percent of the entire white population by1624.[6] As tobacco boom declined, more attention was given to growing crops and cattle, which improved the food situation. The economy relied heavily on indentured workers while "gentlemen" colonists grew rich. There was a small step from indentured workers to slaves, and as more white colonists bought themselves out of indenture, blacks that began to arrive from Africa replaced them. By 1776, slavery was firmly established.

Virginia had very few cultural traditions early in its history. First settlers were almost all men. This did not promote the principles of family, community, and education, but it did improve interactions with the Indians and resulted in many intermarriages, the most famous of which was that of John Rolfe, a tobacco planter, and Pocahontas, the daughter of Powhatan, the chief of the Chesapeake Indians until 1617.

Politically, Virginia developed a strong representative government similar to New England in its structure. The only difference was that rich Virginia planters exerted considerable political influence on legislative decisions.

Political similarities of New England and Virginia played a role in both colonies becoming parts of the United States after the Revolutionary War. Economic differences, however, were at the base of the future disagreements that led to the Civil War.

BIBLIOGRAPHY

Davidson, J.W., Gienapp, W.E., Heyrman, C.L., Lytle, M. and Stoff, M.B.
Nation of Nations: A Concise Narrative of the American Republic. Boston:
McGraw-Hill College, 1996.

Graebner, W. and Richards, L. The American Record: Images of the Nation's Past.
Boston: McGraw-Hill College, 1996.

[1] William Graebner, Leonard Richards, The American Record: Images of the Nation's Past, p. 55

[2] James Davidson, William Gienapp, Christine Heyrman, Mark Lytle, Michael Stoff, Nation of Nations: A Concise Narrative of the American Republic, p. 72

[3] ibid

[4] ibid, p. 73

[5] Davidson, Gienapp, Heyrman, Lytle, Stoff, p. 71

[6] Graebner, Richards, p. 34