New England Locations and Dates
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Free New England Research
Brief Overview of Early America Colony Names by Bobbie Hall (used with permission)
- Instead of the dreaded and unused (in their time) "British Colonial America", New England could be used as the region or 'country' if one is so inclined to name the larger entity.
- Massachusetts:
1628-1690: Massachusetts Bay Colony 1691-1776: Province of Massachusetts Bay 1776 and later: Massachusetts, or Commonwealth of Massachusetts
- or, as applicable: 1620-1690: Plymouth Colony
- Maine
- 1622-1776: Province of Maine
- 1776-1820: District of Maine, (part of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts)
- 1820 and later: Maine
- Rhode Island
- 1636-1663: Suggestions welcome: a convoluted history here as to Plantation & Colony names.
- 1663-1776: Colony of Rhode Island and Providence Plantations
- 1776 and later: Rhode Island (Officially: "The State of Rhode Island and Providence Plantations")
- Vermont
- 1534-1763: New France (ceded to Britain after a treaty in 1763)
- 1749-1776: Disputed by NY, NH and France, generally referred to as the "New Hampshire Grants")
- 1776 and later: Vermont (I assume we don't want to get into the Republic of Vermont/New Hampshire Grants from 1777-1791?)
- New Hampshire
- 1629-1776 Province of New Hampshire
- 1776 and later: New Hampshire
- Connecticut
- 1636-1776: Connecticut Colony
- 1776 and later: Connecticut
- Also eventually joined Connecticut Colony:
- 1635-1644 Saybrook Colony
- 1638-1665 New Haven Colony
New England Colonial Names and Dates of Towns and Counties by April Dauenhauer
- A Work In Progress - New England towns, alphabetically under colony
- Location Name changes according to Date
English Puritans establish "Newe-England Colony" on September 6, 1628
Connecticut Colony - 1636
- The Colonial Towns of Connecticut in the Order of their Establishment: link to The Society of Colonial Wars in the State of Connecticut, lists colonial towns with dates of founding.
- Connecticut established in 1636 with these four towns:
- Windsor; Wethersfield; Hartford; Springfield
- Colchester, established 1698, New London original county 10 May 1666 - 2014.
- Fairfield, town established 1639, Fairfield original county 10 May 1666 - 2014.
- Hartford, Connecticut Colony, established 1636 by Rev. Hooker & Company (initial group with Elder William Goodwin 1635); Hartford original county founded 10 May 1666-2013
- Killingly, Connecticut Colony, first settled, 1690-91 by Maj. James Fitch and Capt. John Chandler, a town by 1700, incorporated 1708; Hartford county founded 1666, original county; Windham county founded 1726-2013
- Litchfield, Connecticut Colony, established May 1719, part of either Fairfield or Hartford county prior to 9 October 1751, when it was made part of the newly created Litchfield County.
- Middletown, Connecticut Colony, established 1650 along the Connecticut River, part of either Hartford, New London or New Haven (all original counties) which became parts of Middlesex county 2 May 1785
- Milford, Connecticut Colony, established 1639, New Haven original county 10 May 1666-2014
- New London, "called Nameaug by the Pequot Indians. John Winthrop, Jr. founded the first English settlement here in 1646, making it about the 13th town settled in Connecticut. Inhabitants informally named it Pequot after the tribe."[1]
- Preston, New London, Connecticut, founded 1687, New London original county founded 10 May 1666 - 2014.
- Roxbury, Connecticut Colony, founded about 1713, considered part of Woodbury until incorporation in 1796. Litchfield county established 14 Oct 1751 from original counties Hartford and Fairfield.(In 1794 was briefly in Norfolk County, but was put back into Suffolk County, which was disolved in modern times).
- Springfield, Connecticut Colony, founded 1636 by William Pynchon & company, independent in the late 1630s; defected to Massachusetts Bay Colony in 1641
- Suffield, "abbreviation of Southfield," settlement began 1670; established in Massachusetts Bay Colony 1674; annexed to Connecticut Colony May 1749.
- Wethersfield, Connecticut Colony, established 1633. Hartford original county founded 10 May 1666-2013
- Windham, Connecticut Colony, first settled 1686, incorporated May 12, 1692; Hartford county founded 10 May 1666, original county; Windham county founded 12 May 1726-2013
- Windsor, Connecticut Colony, established 1632. Hartford original county founded 10 May 1666-2013
- Originally known as the River Colony, Connecticut Colony was organized on March 3, 1636 as a haven for Puritan gentlemen. Thomas Hooker, a prominent Puritan minister, who led 100 people to present day Hartford in 1636, and Governor John Haynes of the Massachusetts Bay Colony, are often considered the founders of the Connecticut colony.
- Two other English colonies in the present-day state of Connecticut were merged into the Colony of Connecticut: Saybrook Colony in 1644 and New Haven Colony in 1662. The Rev. John Davenport and merchant Theophilus Eaton are considered the founders of the New Haven Colony, which would be absorbed into Connecticut Colony in the 1662. John Winthrop the Younger of New London, the son of the founder of the Massachusetts Bay Colony, played an important role in consolidating separate settlements on the Connecticut River into a single colony; and he served as Governor of Connecticut from 1659 to 1675. Winthrop was also instrumental in obtaining the colony's 1662 charter, which incorporated New Haven into Connecticut.
Massachusetts Bay Colony 1630 - 1691
- King "Charles granted the new charter on 4 March 1628/9, superseding the land grant and establishing a legal basis for the new English colony at Massachusetts".
- The four original counties of Massachusetts Bay Colony were constituted in 1643: Essex; Middlesex; Suffolk; Nantucket
- Andover, organized 1646, Essex county founded 10 May 1643-2013, original county
- Barnstable, settled in 1638 by Rev Joseph Hull and followers, New Plymouth Colony ?, Barnstable county organized 2 June 1685 - 2014
- Boston, chartered and named capital of the Massachusetts Bay Colony on 7 September 1630, Suffolk county founded 10 May 1643-2013, original county
- Cambridge, Massachusetts Bay Colony, founded 1631 (originally referred to as Newtowne), Middlesex county founded 10 May 1643-2014, original county
- Dedham, Massachusetts Bay Colony, founded 1635 by Robert Hinsdale and his sons, & company. Suffolk county founded 1643, original county; Norfolk county founded 1793-2013.
- Deerfield, Massachusetts Bay Colony, founded 1671 by Samuel Hinsdale, his father Robert, & company. (2nd establishment 1677); Hampshire county founded 1662; Franklin county founded 1811-2013.
- Dorchester, Massachusetts Bay Colony, founded 1630, Suffolk county founded 10 May 1643-2013, original county
- Hadley, Massachusetts Bay Colony, founded 1659 by Elder William Goodwin, John Crow, & company. Middlesex county founded 1643, original county; Hampshire county founded 1662-2013.
- Ipswich, Massachusetts Bay Colony, founded 1634, Essex county founded 10 May 1643-2013, original county
- Lynn, Massachusetts Bay Colony, founded 1635, Essex county founded 10 May 1643-2013, original county
- Medfield, Massachusetts Bay Colony, founded 1651 by Robert Hinsdale & company; Suffolk county founded 10 1643, original county; Norfolk county founded 26 Mar 1793-2013
- Northampton, Massachusetts Bay Colony, settled in 1654, Middlesex county (1643) until 7 May 1662 became Hampshire county.
- Roxbury, Massachusetts Bay Colony, founded 1630, Suffolk county founded 10 May 1643-2013, original county
- Rumney Marsh, Massachusetts Bay Colony, settled 1624 by Samuel Maverick; annexed to Boston 1634 and divided among 21 Boston citizens; Suffolk county founded 10 May 1643-2013, original county (modern name of Rumney Marsh is Chelsea)
- Scituate, founded 1633, Plymouth Colony; Plymouth county, Massachusetts Colony 2 June 1685
- Springfield, Massachusetts Bay Colony, founded 1636 by William Pynchon & company (first part of Connecticut Colony, joined Massachusetts Bay Colony in 1641); Middlesex county founded 1643 did not encompass Springfield, then part of the undivided Massachusetts Bay Colony, Hampshire county founded 1662; Hampden county founded 25 Feb 1812-2013
- Suffield, "abbreviation of Southfield," established in Massachusetts Bay Colony 1674; annexed to Connecticut Colony, May 1749.
- Watertown, Massachusetts Bay Colony, founded 1630, Middlesex county founded 10 May 1643-2013, original county
- Woburn, Massachusetts Bay Colony, founded 1642, Middlesex county founded 10 May 1643, original county
Plymouth Colony founded 1620
- Scituate, founded 1633, Plymouth Colony; Plymouth county, Massachusetts Bay Colony 2 June 1685
- "Plymouth Colony (sometimes New Plymouth, or Plymouth Bay Colony) was an English colonial venture in North America from 1620 to 1691. The first settlement of the Plymouth Colony was at New Plymouth, a location previously surveyed and named by Captain John Smith. The settlement, which served as the capital of the colony, is today the modern town of Plymouth, Massachusetts. At its height, Plymouth Colony occupied most of the southeastern portion of the modern state of Massachusetts."[2]
- "Founded by a group of Separatists initially known as the Brownist Emigration and Anglicans, who together later came to be known as the Pilgrims, Plymouth Colony was, along with Jamestown and other settlements in Virginia, one of the earliest successful colonies to be founded by the English in North America, and the first sizable permanent English settlement in the New England region. Aided by Squanto, a Native American of the Patuxet people, the colony was able to establish a treaty with Chief Massasoit which helped to ensure the colony's success. It played a central role in King Philip's War, one of the earliest of the Indian Wars. Ultimately, the colony was merged with the Massachusetts Bay Colony and other territories in 1691 to form the Province of Massachusetts Bay."[2]
- Popham Colony founded by Plymouth Company in 1607 at mouth of Kennebec River (Maine), abandoned. [3]
Province of Massachusetts Bay 1691 - 1775
- Not to be confused with Massachusetts Bay Colony.
"The Province of Massachusetts Bay was a crown colony in North America and one of the thirteen original states of the United States. It was chartered on October 7, 1691, by William and Mary, the joint monarchs of the kingdoms of England, Scotland and Ireland. The charter took effect on May 14, 1692"
- The Province of Massachusetts Bay was formed by merging the Massachusetts Bay Colony, Plymouth Colony, Province of Maine, Nantucket, Martha's Vineyard, (and Nova Scotia which split off in 1696; at one time it included New Brunswick).
Virginia Company
- Founded Jamestown 1607 [4]
United States of America
- The State of Connecticut is the 5th state to ratify the US Constitution on January 9, 1788.
- The Commonwealth of Massachusetts is the 6th state to ratify the US Constitution on February 6, 1788.
- A new government under the US Constitution begins on March 4, 1789.
George Washington becomes the 1st President of the United States on April 30, 1789.
About the change in Calendars
- "Because the year began in March, records referring to the "first month" pertain to March; to the second month pertain to April, etc., so that "the 19th of the 12th month" would be February 19. In fact, in Latin, September means seventh month, October means eighth month, November means ninth month, and December means tenth month. Use of numbers, rather than names, of months was especially prevalent in Quaker records." [5]
- "Old Style (O.S.) and New Style (N.S.) are used in English-language historical studies to indicate either that the start of the Julian year has been adjusted to start on 1 January (N.S.) even though documents written at the time use a different start of year (O.S.), or that a date conforms to the Julian calendar (O.S.), formerly in use in many countries, rather than the Gregorian (N.S.). [6]
- The Gregorian calendar replaced the Julian in Catholic countries beginning in 1582. This change was also implemented in Protestant and Orthodox countries after a significant delay. In England and Wales, Ireland, and the British colonies, the change of the start of the year and the change over from the Julian calendar occurred in 1752 with the passage of the Calendar (New Style) Act 1750. In Scotland, the legal start of the year had already been moved to 1 January (in 1600), but Scotland otherwise continued to use the Julian Calendar until 1752. Many cultures and countries now using the Gregorian calendar have different old styles of dating, depending on the type of calendar they used before the change." [7]
Sources
New England
- History of New England, Wikipedia, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License
- Equivalent Lands, database, Wikipedia, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Equivalent_lands
Connecticut Colony
- Connecticut River: includes MAP, Wikipedia, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License
- Suffield Connecticut, database, Wikipedia, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License
- New London, Connecticut, database, Wikipedia, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License
- Windham County Genealogy, database
- Connecticut Colonial History, database,
- Connecticut Colony, database, includes MAP, Wikipedia.com, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License
Massachusetts Bay Colony
- Massachusetts Bay Colony: includes MAP, Wikipedia, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License
- Historic Northampton "In May 1653, 24 persons petitioned the General Court for permission to "plant, possess and inhabit Nonotuck." Northampton was settled in 1654 on a low rise above the rich meadowlands by the Connecticut River."
Plymouth Colony
- Plymouth Company, database, Wikipedia.com, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License
- Plymouth Colony, database, Wikipedia.com, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License
Province of Massachusetts Bay
- Province of Massachusetts Bay: includes MAP, Wikipedia, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License
Virginia Colony
- Jamestown, database, Wikipedia.com, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License
United States
- Outline of United States History, Wikipedia, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License
Genealogy
- The Handybook for Genealogists, 10th Ed., (Draper, Utah, Everton Publishers, 2002)
- Old Style and New Style Dates, database, Wikipedia.com, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License
Surnames
- Hinsdale genealogy - descendants of Robert Hinsdale of Dedham, Medfield, Hadley and Deerfield, database, Internet Archive, entry for Robert Hinsdale; extracted from Sanford C. Hinsdale, Herbert Cornelius Andrews, book of the same name (Lombard Illinois: A. H. Andrews, 1906), page 59-62.
Footnotes
- ↑ New London, Connecticut, database, Wikipedia, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 Plymouth Colony, database, Wikipedia.com, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License
- ↑ Plymouth Company
- ↑ Virginia Jamestown
- ↑ Connecticut State Library
- ↑ Old Style and New Style Dates, database, Wikipedia.com, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License
- ↑ Old Style and New Style Dates, database, Wikipedia.com, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License
Memories: 2
Enter a personal reminiscence or story.
Darlene (Scott) Kerr
April, Thank you so much for doing this. What a lot of work! It's funny, I have tried to use the appropriate name place always in the past on my ancestry.com trees when it seemed like the entire rest of the world used US or USA for everything at all times. When I got to WikiTree it looked like US or USA was the convention here too and I'm happy to see it isn't. I'll have to go back and slowly change what I've entered. I always felt that the USA was not the USA until at the very least the signing of The Declaration of Independence when we began fighting, but really not until some sort of government was established with the Articles of Confederation & they weren't complete until I believe 1780 or 1781. It was a process. It didn't happen overnight & I don't think people realize many things including names of places that sometimes were complimentary to the crown of England & now offensive to the people fighting for their freedom from that same crown changed too. Good for you for undertaking this huge project and sharing it with us. I keep having to look things up & this is a very handy tool.
posted 20 Feb 2014 by Darlene (Scott) Kerr
[thank Darlene]
I remember when I labeled any place that fell into the current boundaries of the United States as "USA". That 'small' historic/geographic error has cost me no small amount of time to correct my family tree. As someone once said, "The impetuous learn from their own mistakes; the wise learn from the mistakes of others".
posted 9 Dec 2013 by April (Dellinger) Dauenhauer
[thank April]
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Great reference list ! I was reading the following webpage States by Order of Entry https://www.infoplease.com/history-and-government/us-history/states-order-entry-union. It says the 'Thirteen Colonies' became 'Colonies' when they gained their independence from Britain in 1776, previous to 1776, they were British Territories in North America: "The original 13 Colonies were a group of British Territories in North America. They were founded in the 17th and 18th centuries and became The Thirteen Colonies in 1776, when they declared independence. The 13 Colonies became States of the new nation in 1788, when New Hampshire became the ninth and final necessary State to ratify the United States Constitution. The date each State joined the Union is shown in the table below. [View table of Statehood dates on webpage link]. Five States were added during the 20th Century. Alaska and Hawaii were the last States to join the 'Union' both in 1959." So, Previous to State of the Union, all States would have been a 'Territory' (?) A Map to Clarify this would be Helpful !
This will help with Massachusetts people. Could you possibly add more to the Vermont section though? I still get confused when trying label it. I have more ancestors from Vermont than Massachusetts so if you could do that I would love you forever
wish this had a map, or series of maps - rel nice list though
This list is focused on the locations found in my family tree - it is not intended to cover all locations. Since most of the towns here were settled by early immigrants, the list may be helpful to other descendants of the pilgrim great migration, etc.
Any suggestions for additions and/or improvements are welcome.
Why didn't I know about this page sooner? Great list.