The Puritans: Colonies

In the 16th Century, a reformation occurred in England. This reformation changed the Church of England from Catholicism to Anglicanism. Although many were in favor of this, there was a movement that, not necessarily opposed it, but simply wanted to take it a step further. This group was called the “Puritans”. The Puritans, obviously, wanted to purify the Church of England. They believed the Anglican Church was too much like Catholicism, and wanted to reform it far beyond the changes that had already been made (truthfully, not many changes were made, that is why the Puritans felt they needed to reform it more). They believed in Reformed Theology and/or Calvinism (the truth) and wanted to see that integrated in the Anglican Church. The sad truth is, Calvinism never made its way into the Church of England, and in 1593, the “Acts of Supremacy and Uniformity” demanded that they conform to the practices and beliefs of Anglicanism, or they would imprisoned. This caused them to leave England for safety and freedom to teach and practice their views without being thrown into prison for it. The Puritans fled England and established the famous “Massachusetts Bay Colony”. This may have been one of the famous establishments of the Puritans, but they established many other colonies as well. Most of them were very similar, they all consisted of homes, a schoolhouse, some shops, and at the center was a meeting house/church. However, the three main points of all the colonies established by the Puritans were; their common living conditions (as stated above), their government, and their economy. 

When the Puritans first established the colonies, life was fairly rough. The structures in which they lived in were very bad. Many of the structures consisted of wigwams, dugouts, and huts, typically with dirt floors. Living was rough and sadly many people died. However, as time went on, their methods of construction improved. Their houses began to have plank roofs and wooden chimneys. Wealthier families would even add on to their homes, which gave them bigger kitchens, more rooms, and a sleeping loft. This was the beginning to what is now called the “saltbox” style house. Also, each town usually had a tavern, school, possibly some small shops, and a church or meeting house in the center. The meeting house was used as a church and also for civic and political use. They attended church at the meeting house on Sunday and also on Wednesday. They met there often to make decisions for the colony as well. The meeting house was where they spent most of their time.

The government of the Puritan colonies was based on the colonial charter. The colonial charter was designed for the management of a corporation, so the needs of the colonial government did not always fit well into this model. The result was the government began with a corporate organization that included a governor, a general court of its shareholders, and a council of assistants similar to a board of directors. It ended with a governor and deputy governor, a bicameral legislature that included a representative lower house and a body of freemen. This body of freemen was the adult inhabitants, who were authorized to vote in elections. The charter gave the general court the authority to make laws and elect officers for the colony. Laws were established specifying that only men who are members of the churches in the colonies were eligible to become freemen and gain the vote. The typical process in which individuals became members of one of the Puritan churches involved an intense questioning by the church elders of their beliefs and religious experiences; as a result, only individuals whose religious views accorded with those of the church leadership were likely to become members, and gain the ability to vote in the colonies. Essentially, these men ran and operated the colonies.

In the earlier years of the colonies, the economy consisted of the import and export of commodities. Trade was very popular. The economical stability of the colonies depended on the success of trade, in part because the land was not as suitable for agriculture where large plantations could not be established. Often, goods were transported to local markets over roads that were sometimes no wider than the Indian trails. Towns were required to maintain their roads or they would have to pay a penalty or fine. Essentially, trade was crucial in the colonies. Also, the government would often try to regulate the economy in multiple ways. Laws were passed regulating wages and prices of economically necessary goods. However, these laws rarely lasted. Interestingly enough, two trades were given authorization to form guilds, giving them the power to set the price, quality, and expertise level for their work. These two trades were shoemaking and barrel making (coopering). This was in some sense, their version of “free trade”. Overall, the essential part of the economy in the Puritan colonies was trade.

Therefore, although there were many things that made up the colonies established by the Puritans, the three main points of all those colonies were; their common living conditions, their government, and their economy. These three things greatly affected all the colonies in a number of ways, more so than any other element of the Puritan colonies.