Compare And Contrast Chesapeake And New England Colonies

The extent of British colonization in the 1700s was vast. The eastern coast of what is now the United States was littered with the beginning of a new country. Although the New World was settled by travelers of many different countries, large English settlements were common on the Northeast coast. Two particular regions of North America, New England and Chesapeake, were relatively close in distance, but were very unique in their characteristics. The particular differences that stand out are the differences in motives to settle, economic activities, and residing population.
Although the Chesapeake and New England regions began developing around the same time, the reasons for this expansion from England is different for each location. The Chesapeake colonies, consisting of Virginia and Maryland were of economic enterprises. For example, Jamestown was initially settled by the Virginia Company with the expectation to find gold or other valuable resources for England. These settlers were so determined to make money, many neglected daily work to search for gold. The New England colonies, consisting of Massachusetts, Rhode Island, Connecticut, and New Hampshire, …show more content…
Chesapeake settlers were usually young men, as they were the ones looking to settle. In New England, men brought their wives or perhaps their families with them as they fled religious persecution. As the Chesapeake colony continued to develop and embrace tobacco farming as a source of income, the farmers were in an labor deficiency. Due to this and lack of indentured servants, the Chesapeake Bay area began to grow a very large amount of African slaves. New England, with not very labor intensive practices, continued to have a majority white, family based population. Each region started with different intentions and grew in their own directions as the circumstances would

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Compare And Contrast Chesapeake And New England Colonies