Ryan Fairchild DBQ #1 The Chesapeake and New England regions contrast so greatly because the types of people that settled them were different types of people. The New England region was settled by the Puritans, and was colonized for religious reasons. The Chesapeake region was colonized for farming and profit. Since both regions developed based on two different reasons there was contrast between them.
The Chesapeake region was mainly made of farmers. The Chesapeake region lacked women, very few went to America as indentured servants (Doc. C). This led to the lack of family communities and instead many independent people, unlike the Puritans. They were independent but they also were unsupportive of each other. An example of this is people like Berkeley corrupting the House of Burgesses and Bacon's Rebellion. The main focus of the people in this region was making profit off of farmland. The farmers became very wealthy because of the tobacco crops, the English were addicted to it and this helped with the growth of the Chesapeake economy.
Chesapeake
Chesapeake Executive Council Annual Meeting
Chesapeake Executive Council Annual MeetingWith the growth of the economy indentured servants and slaves were used frequently. Slaves became the main source of labor after Bacon's Rebellion, because they were less likely to rebel. The Chesapeake region had the House of Burgesses, but as stated earlier it became quickly corrupted by men like Berkeley. It was very disorganized at first, it became better after Bacon's Rebellion, and this is when it actually started to allow individual freedom.
The New England region was mainly made of the Puritans. The Puritans wanted to move to America to have more religious freedom. They were supposed to settle in Virginia but mistakenly ended up in New England. One main difference that the New England had from the farmers of the south was that it was very bad for farming. Since, the north was so bad for farming the farmers would not live in the north. This helped distinguish the two regions because the Puritans had no reason to move once settled and the farmers would never move north. When the Puritans came over, their main purpose was to establish a "City upon a hill"�, as quoted by John Winthrop. They wanted to set an example for everybody else to follow. Before they came over they made the Mayflower Compact, to establish set of rules they would abide by. They also, made other agreement that allowed for everyone to have land and that the people elect a minister that they see fit (Doc. D). They also stated that they needed to vote on taxes annually to adjust them accordingly, this contrasts to when Berkeley elected his corrupt friends who would unjustly collect taxes as they saw fit (Doc. E). The Puritans were kinder to the Indians than the southerners were. Even though there was conflict, the Puritans made an effort to convert the Indians and accept them into their community. They also had different views on the use of slaves in the north; which eventually led to the Civil War. This philosophy of theirs was in direct contrast to the south. They were group oriented and supportive of each other, they were a community. So, if it had not been for the Puritans colonizing in New England, the south would have had more of a family/group environment and probably more organized.
The New England and Chesapeake regions formed into two different regions because of the types of people that settled them. The south was made of independent farmers and the north consisted mostly of Puritan communities. Also, they two regions geographically were separated. The south had corrupt officials and very disorganized government. The north was very organized and had agreements made by the communities to make everyone's rights equal. Another factor that separated the two regions was the view on slavery and Indians. The south was in favor of using slaves and disposing of Indians. Whereas, the north was not I favor of slavery and they tried to convert the Indians. However, they would use force against the Indians when needed. The difference between the two regions amounted to the south being independents and the north being religious groups.
Chesapeake Executive Council Annual Meeting