Plymouth Plantation & The Massachusetts Bay Colony

Founding & History of Plymouth Plantation

• Plymouth Plantation– In 1620, a group of Protestant Separatists

who were living in exile in the Netherlands made a deal with the Virginia Company to settle in Virginia in exchange for giving the Company a share of their profits– 102 passengers (including 35 of the Separatists)

boarded the Mayflower– The Mayflower reached Cape Cod in November,

1620 and made an attempt to sail to the Hudson River (the northern-most part of the Virginia Colony)

– In the process, the Mayflower entered an ocean rip and rough waters- only to be saved by a change in the winds

– With winter upon them they decided to settle at Cape Cod instead of continuing to Virginia

– After skirmishing with the Nauset natives near Provincetown, the Pilgrims sailed north and settled a land that they called Plymouth Plantation (the natives called it Patuxet)

Founding & History of Plymouth Plantation

• Plymouth Plantation• Nearly 50% of the settlers in Plymouth died the

first winter from cold, disease, and hunger• In the spring, the native Samoset made contact

with the settlers• In 1621, a peace treaty was signed between the

Plymouth settlers and the Wampanoag natives led by Sachem Massasoit

• In 1621, a native named Squanto, who had been kidnapped, brought to Europe, and returned home, helped the Plymouth settlers• Taught them how to fish (eel traps, shellfish digging,

etc.)• Taught them where to hunt• Taught them how to grow corn, beans, and squash• Taught them how to fertilize farmland by using fish

• That fall, in celebration for the great improvement and great fortune, as well as a good harvest, a three-day celebration between the Pilgrims and natives occurred. This is considered by many to be the First Thanksgiving.

Founding & History of the Massachusetts Bay Colony

• In 1628, another colony in New England was approved, the Massachusetts Bay Colony

• Land purchased from Plymouth was used as a settlement for another group of religious non-conformists led by John Endicott

• The Massachusetts Bay Colony took hold and settled Salem, Massachusetts

Founders of Plymouth and Massachusetts Bay Colony

• John Carver– First Governor of Plymouth Colony

• William Brewster– Church elder

• William Bradford– Second Governor of Plymouth and key

colonist• Edward Winslow

– Key negotiator with natives and key colonist

• Myles Standish– Military expert and trainer

• Natives:– Massasoit– Samoset– Squanto

• John Endicott– Founder of Massachusetts Bay Colony

• John Winthrop– First Royal Governor of Massachusetts

Reasons for the Founding of the Plymouth Colony and Massachusetts Bay Colony

• Both Plymouth and Massachusetts Bay Colonies were established for Religious purposes

• In Plymouth, Separatists sought a clean break from the Church of England, and throughout Massachusetts, Puritans and Separatists practiced their Calvinist beliefs

• The settlements in New England were for the purpose of establishing new communities where they could worship as they pleased

The First Charters of New Plymouth Colony and

the Massachusetts Bay Colony• New Plymouth Charter• Date: 1629• Between: King Charles I

of England and William Bradford

• Massachusetts Bay Charter– Date: March 4, 1629– Between: King Charles I of

England & John Endicott

The Economy, Major Industries & Occupations in Plymouth and

Massachusetts Bay Colony• Agriculture– Corn– Grain– Cattle

• Fishing & Whaling• Trading– Furs– Lumber– Shipbuilding

Religion in the Plymouth & Massachusetts Bay Colonies• The settlers of Plymouth were Separatists who believed that the practices of

the Church of England were heretical to the principles of their Calvinist beliefs• The settlers of Massachusetts Bay Colony included Separatists and Puritans.

The Puritans desired reforms to the Church of England whereas the Separatists wanted to completely break away from the Anglican Church

• Puritans fined, banished, persecuted, and imprisoned those who did not follow the rules of their faith or worship the Puritan way. This discouraged non-Puritans from settling in New England. It was not a society based on freedom of religion.

Government in Colonial Massachusetts

• The Mayflower Compact– Because those aboard the Mayflower

were not authorized to settle Plymouth, they came to an agreement, called the Mayflower Compact, and agreed to form a civil body politic and laws for the better ordering of their new society

• Town Meetings– Certain male church members were

granted a vote in the government of their new towns in a form of democracy very similar to the town meetings that still exist to this day

• Massachusetts Colonial Government– (1) Royal Governor appointed by the

King;– (2) Governor’s Council appointed by

the King; and– (3) Assembly or house of

representatives elected by the people

Major Cities & The Status of Slavery in Colonial

Massachusetts• Major Cities in Early Massachusetts:

– Plymouth– Salem– Boston– Newtown (Cambridge)– Dorchester

• Status of Slavery in Colonial Massachusetts– Slavery was legal in colonial Massachusetts– It is believed that the first slaves existed in

Massachusetts in 1624-1629– The slave trade took hold in Massachusetts

in 1644 when merchants importing West African slaves for sale in Boston became routine

– Slaves filled shortages in labor– In 1676, there were fewer than 200 slaves in

Massachusetts; 500 in 1708; and 2,000 by 1715

– Slaves were concentrated in the industrial and seaside towns

Bibliography (Internet Sources)

• http://www.celebrateboston.com/history/massachusetts.htm

• http://www.pilgrimhall.org/plgrmhll.htm• http://www.slavenorth.com/massachusetts.ht

m• http://www.sail1620.org/history/articles/122-

plymouth-jamestown.html