New England Case

Although New England and the Chesapeake were settled by explorers of the same ethnicity by the 1700's, the regions had become very distinct . Many things varied between the settlements such as the economy, religion, climate, but most importantly the reasons why the settlers had decided to come to the New World.

Many important factors motivated the the development of the regions. Settlers in New England came for religious purposes, while the Chesapeake was motivated by the prospects of gold. Many of the founding settlers of New England had come with their families in order to raise their children what they felt was the right way, which in the long run led them to a slower population growth . (doc B) The Puritans in New England wanted to set themselves up as an example to all other settlements of the right way to live, the right way in God's eyes, a "city upon a hill". They believed that if they followed God they would prosper and if they defied God they would fail.(doc A)

The development of the Chesapeake was mainly for the purpose of bettering the economy. Many of the people who came over from England were men and very few women, their ratio was 6:1. In contrast with New England, this led to a very slow population growth. (doc C). Gold was the goal in the Chesapeake. If you weren't speaking of gold, what you were saying had no relevance. Due to gold being the main focus the "starving time" resulted and many men died. (doc F)

In New England the Puritans believed in equality. The Puritans felt as though everyone should be able to live comfortably, no matter how rich or poor. Inhabitants were given a house lot and also a share of meadow or planting ground . (doc D) This led to very little controversy in New England. Unlike New England, the Chesapeake was found not to be as generous when it came to land. Due to the fact that less land was being given, a rebellion against the Chesapeake government arose. (doc H)

Climate also played a role in the development of both regions. New England had rocky soil and long winters forcing them to become more industrial which included lumber, fishing and shipbuilding. On the other hand, the Chesapeake had hot summers and fertile land resulting in large amounts of corn , wheat and most importantly tobacco.

The New England and the Chesapeake regions were developed with a different emphasis and for different purposes. The differences were based on reasons for settlement, climate and the varied conditions of the land.