ENGLAND’S AMERICAN DREAM: MOTIVES FOR SETTLEMENT “There are those, I know, who will reply that the liberation of humanity, the freedom of man and mind, is nothing but a dream...they are right. It is the American Dream.” —Archibald Macleish

The American Colonies

WHO CAME? AND WHY DID THEY COME? WOULD YOU HAVE COME? Imagine that you were living in England between 1607 and 1775. Would you have ventured across the 3,000-mile ocean for any of the four motives below? Economic Opportunity Social Mobility Political Freedom Religious Liberty

THE AMERICAN DREAM: FREEDOM

WHY? For what reasons did individuals come to America?

Colonizing America Wealth (economic opportunities) Better living Owning land

Colonizing America Religious freedom Social mobility Political freedom

Types of Colonies Royal Colonies King Ruled by royal governor appointed by the king

Types of Colonies Proprietary King gifted land to individuals or groups to colonize and govern them He claimed a percentage of their profits

Types of Colonies Charter or corporate King gave charters to joint stock companies to found and govern colonies for profit Colonies governed themselves Joint Stock Companies financed early British colonial expeditions to the “New World” Joint Stock Companies were groups of investors who pooled their financial resources together in order to subsidize voyages. If the colonization voyage made money, they shared the profit. If it lost money, they shared the loss.

The “Lost Colony” First founded by Sir Walter Raleigh in 1585 in Roanoke Colony in North Carolina but later abandoned Second group of colonists to settle were led by John White in 1587 White went back to England for supplies, but due to tensions between Spain and England wasn’t able to return for 3 years When he came back, the settlers had vanished No one knows what happened to the settlers England’s first attempt at colonization of the New World was disastrous. Sir Walter Raleigh first attempted to colonize the North Carolina coast in 1585, calling the settlement “Roanoke”. The colony was later abandoned. Two years later, a second group of colonists were sent by Raleigh to the settlement, this time led by John White. Soon after White and the colonists landed, Virginia Dare, the first child born of European settlers, was born. White went back to England to pick up more supplies. However, increasing tensions between the British and Spanish delayed White’s return for nearly three years. When White came back to the settlement, he found it abandoned. No trace of the settlers was ever found, and historians have debated since over what happened. Some historians believe that the settlers were simply absorbed by a nearby Indian tribe through intermarriage. Others believe that a violent storm or Indian attack wiped out the settlers. The only clue to what may have happened to the settlers was the word “CROATOAN” carved into a tree.

The First Colonies Jamestown (1607) - private venture established for mercantilist reasons, eventually became a royal colony (government bail-out) Plymouth (1620) - private venture established for religious reasons, like Jamestown, not a commercial success. Massachusetts Bay (1630) - colony was well-financed, established to be a colony, not for purely economic reasons. Of the first three colonies, easily the most successful.

The first successful English colony Jamestown, 1607 The first successful English colony In April, 1607, three ships outfitted by the Virginia Company and carrying nearly 150 passengers, landed at what they would eventually call “Jamestown” in honor of King James I.