English Settlers of the Chesapeake Region and New England

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English Settlers of the Chesapeake Region and New England

Although New England and the Chesapeake region were both settled largely by

people of English origin, by 1700 the regions had evolved into two distinct societies.

As English settlements in North America began to progress, social, economical, and

religious ideas divided the English immigrants. The settlers journeyed to North America

to meet their individual needs and beliefs. Whether they were fleeing to become wealthy

or to escape religious pressures; all of these settlers came attempting to improve their

lifestyles. The Chesapeake region and New England settlements proved how two English

settlements could have differing societies. English origins seemed to be their only

common trait.

Life for the earliest Chesapeake settlers was brutal and deadly. Diseases such as

malaria, dysentery and typhoid shortened life expectancy, while nearly half of the

Virginia and Maryland settlers didn’t live to see their twentieth birthday. This frail

Chesapeake region continued a slow growth primarily because a majority of the settlers

were “single men in their late teens to early twenties”(Document C). Because of the

overpopulation of men and the scarcity of women, families became sparse. However,

despite the harsh beginnings of its society, the Chesapeake region continued to endeavor

by acquiring an immunity to diseases and increasing birthrates.

The Chesapeake region also held its own economic standards. When 120 men

arrived in Jamestown on May 14th,1607 they relied on the hopes of discovering gold.

Most of the settlers’ time was devoted to searches for gold instead of the stabilization of

their...

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...regularly preached in New England schools. They also included a

religious attitude towards their economy. “This court ….in the interim recommends (that)

all tradesmen and laborers consider the religious end of their callings.(Document E)”

The Chesapeake region and New England societies differed mainly because of the

ways their settlements were first organized and developed. The Chesapeake region began

with a irresponsible development, which led to severe consequences. An overpopulation

of men with desires to strike gold, slowed the settlements growth by making gold the

only priority. New England, on the other hand, settled as families with family priorities

and values. They developed well organized towns with Puritan teachings. Also, New

Englanders used practical resources to begin the process of developing their economy.

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