Comparing Regions of the 13 Colonies
Think about the geography and location of where you live. Is a body of water like a river, lake, or coast nearby? Perhaps you live in a place with vast open fields suitable for farming or raising livestock.
The natural environment is important when understanding how cities and towns developed. The earliest North American colonies depended on their natural environment. The type of soil, climate, length of seasons, and proximity to bodies of water all played a role in how each colony developed.
By the 1700’s, the American colonies grew into three distinct regions. The New England, Middle, and Southern regions each had different geographical and cultural characteristics that determined the development of their economy, society, and relationships to each other.
The New England Colonies included Connecticut, Rhode Island, Massachusetts, and New Hampshire. The geography of this region featured dense forests and hills.
Combined with the hard rocky land, cold climate and long winters, New England was a poor area for large farming operations. However, many colonists known as "yeoman farmers" had small family-owned farms that grew a variety of crops.
The climate and geography of the New England colonies, with rocky soil, dense forests, and long, cold winters, limited large-scale farming and shaped how people made a living.
As a result, the economy of the New England colonies depended heavily on fishing, shipbuilding, lumber, trade, and small family farms rather than plantation agriculture.
Many colonists relied on fishing and whaling off the New England coast. Others settled in small towns and became craftsmen or merchants. The forests provided excellent lumber for building boats and homes for the growing population.
Many of the settlers to the New England Colonies were Puritans, hard working, and very religious. Close families and strong communities were very important to them.
The Middle Colonies included Pennsylvania, Delaware, New York, and New Jersey. The climate and geography of the middle colonies, including fertile soil, mild weather, flat land, and navigable rivers, made the region ideal for growing crops and transporting goods. Because of these advantages, the economy of the middle colonies was one of the most diverse, combining farming, livestock, trade, manufacturing, and commerce.
Over time, cities grew and urban merchants sold and traded goods with people throughout the other colonies. Compared to other regions, the people of the middle colonies supported religious freedom and tolerance and had a diverse population with settlers arriving from many areas in Europe.
The Southern Colonies included the first English colony of Virginia, and grew to include Maryland, North Carolina, South Carolina, and Georgia. The climate and geography of the Southern colonies, with warm temperatures, long growing seasons, and rich coastal plains, supported large-scale plantation farming. The rich, fertile soil made it possible for these large plantations to produce cash crops like tobacco, rice, and indigo through enslaved labor.
The majority of these plantations operated using the forced labor of enslaved Black people. These enslaved men, women, and children had few, if any, rights and often saw their families torn apart at the whim of the plantation owner. Enslaved children were even put to work as young as age three, weeding fields, carrying drinking water, or helping in the home.
Smaller farms owned by subsistence farmers also existed across the Southern Colonies. Often, the people working these would grow crops for their families with little left over to sell or trade. Indentured servants also arrived in the South who would work for 5-7 years in exchange for their passage to North America.
The Church of England (also known as the Anglican Church) was the dominant religion in the region. Most settlers to the South did not come for religious freedom like they did in the northern colonies. Therefore, they often maintained their allegiance to the established Church of England.