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Colonies and colonial regions

Connecticut colony Published: March 7, 2011
The Connecticut colony, chartered by Charles II in 1662, was an outgrowth of the great Puritan migration of the 1630s.
Virginia colony Published: March 3, 2011
Jamestown was the first permanent English settlement in the Western Hemisphere (1607) and the core of what would later become the royal colony of Virginia (1624).
Ulster Published: March 3, 2011
Ulster, situated in the northeastern portion of the island of Ireland, was one of the major Irish kingdoms of the medieval period.
Republic of Texas Published: March 1, 2011
The Republic of Texas (1836–45) was a unique experiment in creating a multiethnic state in the New World.
Roanoke colony Published: February 26, 2011
The Roanoke colony, established as a business venture by Sir Walter Raleigh, was the first English settlement in the New World.
Rhode Island colony Published: February 26, 2011
From the establishment of Providence Plantation by Roger Williams in 1636, Rhode Island was known as the refuge of dissident troublemakers.
Red River colony Published: February 26, 2011
The Red River colony, established by THOMAS DOUGLAS, Lord Selkirk, in 1812, was the first farming settlement in western British North America.
Quebec Published: February 26, 2011
The Canadian province of Quebec is unique in North America in maintaining a predominantly French heritage, despite being surrounded by English-speaking areas that would eventually become the Canadian provinces of Ontario, New Brunswick, and Newfoundland and the U.S. states of Maine, Vermont, New Hampshire, and New York.
Prince Edward Island Published: February 24, 2011
Ile-St.-Jean (Isle St. John) was claimed for France by SAMUEL DE CHAMPLAIN in 1603.
Pennsylvania colony Published: February 24, 2011
Frustrated with the proprietary politics in the New Jersey colony, William Penn founded Pennsylvania in 1681.
Nova Scotia Published: February 23, 2011
The peninsula of Nova Scotia was a continual source of conflict between France and Britain from the establishment of its first settlement by France at Port Royal (1605) until France was driven completely from North America in the Seven Years’ War (1756–1763).
New York colony Published: February 23, 2011
New Amsterdam, conquered by England in 1664, was the heart of the Dutch commercial empire in North America (New Netherland).
New Jersey colony Published: February 23, 2011
Originally part of the newly conquered territory of New Netherland, in 1664, New Jersey was granted by James, Duke of York (later James II) as a proprietary colony to John, Lord Berkeley and Sir George Carteret.
New Hampshire colony Published: February 23, 2011
An early area of contention between France and England, the region of modern New Hampshire was gradually settled mainly by English immigrants and became a prime shipbuilding area for the British.
New France Published: February 23, 2011
New France was the name of the French colonial empire in North America.
Newfoundland Published: February 23, 2011
Newfoundland comprises the island of Newfoundland and the nearby coast of the mainland region of Labrador.
New Brunswick Published: February 23, 2011
Europeans first settled the New Brunswick region of Canada in 1604, when Frenchmen SAMUEL DE CHAMPLAIN and Pierre du Gua, sieur de Monts, established a fur-trading settlement on St. Croix Island.
Massachusetts colony Published: February 22, 2011
Massachusetts was first settled by English Pilgrims...
Maryland colony Published: February 22, 2011
Maryland was the sixth English colony established on the North American mainland (1634).
Louisiana Published: February 22, 2011
The watershed and mouth of the Missouri-Mississippi River system became known as Louisiana and was from the earliest days of discovery considered strategically important by many European nations.
Georgia colony Published: February 14, 2011
The Georgia colony was unique among Britain’s American colonies. It was founded in 1732 as a penal colony for the “worthy” poor in the disputed territory between the British Carolina colonies and Spanish Florida.
Delaware colony Published: February 10, 2011
The Delaware region was explored by Henry Hudson in 1609 as he searched for a passage to Asia.
Carolina colonies Published: February 8, 2011
The Carolina colony, later divided, was the gift of Charles II (r. 1660–85) to eight loyal courtiers who had followed him into exile during the English Civil War.
Barr colony Published: February 1, 2011
The Barr colony was the attempt of two Anglican clergymen to establish a British colony in 1903 in remote Saskatchewan, almost 200 miles northwest of Saskatoon.
Acadia Published: January 11, 2011
Acadia is the region of North America bounded by the St. Lawrence Seaway on the north, the Gulf of St. Lawrence on the east, and the Atlantic Ocean on the south.