was extremely cold, their ftore-houfe caught fire and was confumed, with most of their provifions and lodgings. Their misfortunes were increased, soon after, by the death of their prefident. Rawley Gilbert was appointed to fucceed him.

Lord Chief Juftice Popham made every exertion to keep this colony alive by repeatedly fending them fupplies. But the circumstance of his death, which happened this year, together with that of prefident Gilbert's being called to England to fettle his affairs, broke up the colony, and they all returned with him to England.

The unfavourable reports which thefe first unfortunate adventurers propagated refpecting the country, prevented any further attempts to fettle North Virginia for feveral years after.

1609.-The London company, last year, fent Capt. Nelson, with two fhips and one hundred and twenty perfons, to James-Town; and this year Capt. John Smith, afterwards prefident, arrived on the coaft of South Virginia, and by failing up a number of the rivers, difcovered the interior country. In September, Capt. Newport arrived with feventy perfons, which increafed the colony to two hundred fouls.

Mr. Robinson and his congregation, who had fettled at Amfterdam, removed this year to Leyden, where they remained more than eleven years, till a part of them came over to New England.

The council for South Virginia having refigned their old commiffion, requested and obtained a new one; in confequence of which they appointed Sir Thomas Weft, Lord De la War, general of the colony; Sir Thomas Gates, his lieutenant; Sir George Somers, admiral; Sir Thomas Dale, high marhal; Sir Ferdinand Wainman, general of the horfe, and Capt. Newport, vice admiral.

June 8.-In June, Sir T. Gates, admiral Newport. and Sir George Somers, with feven fhips and a ketch and pinnace, having five hundred fouls on board, men, women, and children, failed from FalJuly 24. mouth for South Virginia. In croffing the Bahama Gulf, on the 24th of July, the fleet was overtaken by a violent ftorm, and feparated. Four days after, Sir George Somers ran his veffel afhore on one of the Bermudas Ilands, which, from this circumstance, have been called the Somer Islands. The people on board, one hundred and fifty in number, all got fafe on fhore, and there remained until the following May. The remainder of the fleet arrived at Virginia in Auguft. The colony was now increafed to five hundred men. Capt. Smith, then prefident, a little before the arrival of the fleet, had been very badly burnt by means of fome powder which had accidentally caught fire. This unfortunate circumftance, together with the oppofition he

3

met

met with from those who had lately arrived, induced him to leave the colony and return to England, which he accordingly did the last of September. Francis Weft, his fucceffor in office, foon followed him, and George Piercy was elected prefident.

1610. The year following, the South Virginia or London company, fealed a patent to Lord De la War, conftituting him Governor and Captain General of South Virginia. He foon after embarked for America with Capt. Argal and one hundred and fifty men, in three fhips.

The unfortunate people, who, the year before, had been fhipwrecked on the Bermudas Islands, had employed themselves during the winter and fpring, under the direction of Sir Thomas Gates, Sir George Somers, and admiral Newport, in building a floop to tranfport themfelves to the continent. They embarked for Virginia on the 10th of May, with about one hundred and fifty perfons on board, leaving two of their men behind, who chose to stay, and landed at James-Town on the 23d of the fame month. Finding the colony, which at the time of Capt. Smith's departure, confiited of five hundred fouls, now reduced to fixty, and those few in a diftreffed and wretched fituation, they with one voice refolved to return to England; and for this purpofe, on the 7th of June, the whole colony repaired on board their veffels, broke up their fettlement, and failed down the river on their way to their native country.

Fortunately, Lord De la War, who had embarked for James-Town the March before, met them the day after they failed, and perfuaded them to return with him to James-Town, where they arrived and landed the 10th of June. The government of the colony of right devolved upon Lord De la War. From this time we may date the effectual fettlement of Virginia. Its hiftory, from this period, will be given in its proper place.

As early as the year 1608, or 1609, Henry Hudfon, an Englishman under a commiffion from the king his mafter, discovered Long Island, New York, and the river which still bears his name, and afterwards fold the country, or rather his right, to the Dutch. Their writers, however, contend that Hudfon was fent out by the Eaft-India company in 1609, to difcover a north-west paffage to China; and that having first discovered Delaware Bay, he came and penetrated Hudfon's river as far as latitude 43°. It is faid however that there was a fale, and that the English objected to it, though for fome time they neglected to oppose the Dutch fettlement of the country.

1610.-In 1610, Hudfon failed again to this country, then called by the Dutch New Netherlands, and four years after, the States-General

granted

granted a patent to fundry merchants for an exclufive trade on the 1614 North river, who the fame year, (1614) built a fort on the weft fide near Albany. From this time we may date the fettlement of New York, the hiftory of which will be annexed to a defcription of the State.

Conception Bay, on the Ifland of Newfoundland. was fettled in the year 1610, by about forty planters under governor John Guy, to whom king James had given a patent of incorporation.

Champlain, a Frenchman, had begun a fettlement at Quebec, 1608, St. Croix, Mount Manfel, and Port Royal were fettled about the fame time. These fettlements remained undisturbed till 1613, when the Virginians, hearing that the French had fettled within their limits, fent Captain Argal to dislodge them. For this purpofe he failed to Sagadahoc, took their forts at Mount Manfel, St. Croix, and Port Royal, with their veffels, ordnance, cattle, and provifions, and carried them to James-Town in Virginia. Quebec was left in poffeffion of the French,

1614,-This year Capt. John Smith, with two fhips and forty-five men and boys, made a voyage to North Virginia, to make experiments upon a gold and copper mine. His orders were, to fish and trade with the natives, if he fhould fail in his expectations with regard to the mine. To facilitate this bufinefs, he took with him Tantum, an Indian, perhaps one that Capt. Weymouth carried to Engiand in 1605. In April he reached the Ifland Monahigan in latitude 43° 30'. Here Capt. Smith was directed to stay and keep poffeffion, with ten men, for the purpose of making a trial of the whaling bufinefs, but being disappointed in this, he built feven boats, in which thirty-feven men made a very fuccefsful fishing voyage. In the mean time the captain himself, with eight men only, in a small boat, coafted from Penobscot to Sagadahok, Acocifco, Paffataquack, Tragabizanda, now called Cape Ann, thence to Acomak, where he fkirmished with fome Indians; thence to Cape Cod where he fet his Indian, Tantum, afhore and left him, and returned to Monahigan. In this voyage he found two French fhips in the Bay of Maffachutts, who had come there fix weeks before, and during that time, had been trading very advantageoufly with the Indians. It was conjectured that there was, at this time, three thousand Indians upon the Maffachusetts Islands.

In July, Capt. Smith embarked for England in one of the veffels, leaving the other under the command of Capt. Thomas Hunt, to equip for a voyage to Spain. After Capt. Smith's departure, Hunt perfidicutly allured twenty Indians (one of whom was Squanto, afterwards fo ferviccable to the English) to come on board his ship at Patuxit, and

feven more at Naufit, and carried them to the Island of Malaga, where he fold them for twenty pounds each, to be flaves for life. This conduct, which fixes an indelible ftigma upoa-the character of Hunt, excited in the breafts of the Indians fuch an inveterate hatred of the English, as that, for many years after, all commercial intercourfe with them was rendered exceedingly dangerous.

Capt. Smith arrived at London the laft of Auguft, where he drew a map of the country, and called it New-England. From this time North-Virginia affumed the name of New-England, and the name Virginia was confined to the fouthern colony.

Between the years 1614 and 1620, feveral attempts were made by the Plymouth Company to fettle New-England, but by various means they were all rendered ineffectual. During this time, however, an advantage. ous trade was carried on with the natives.

1617. In the year 1617, Mr. Robinfon and his congregation, infiuenced by feveral weighty reafons, meditated a removal to America.

Various difficulties intervened to prevent the fuccefs of their de1620 figns, until the year 1620, when a part of Mr. Robinfon's congregation came over and fettled at Plymouth. At this time commerced the fettlement of New-England.

The particulars relating to the first emigrations to this northern part of America; the progrefs of its fettlement, &c. will be given in the hiftory of New-England, to which the reader is referred.

In order to preferve the chronological order in which the feveral colo

nies, not grown into independent ftates, were firft fettled, it will be 1621 neceffary that I fhould juft mention, that the next year after the

fettlement of Plymouth, Captain John Mafon obtained of the Plymouth council a grant of a part of the prefent ftate of New1623 Hampshire. Two years after, under the authority of this grant,

a fmall colony fixed down near the mouth of Pifcataqua river. From this period we may date the fettlement of New-Hampshire.

1627.-In 1627, a colony of Swedes and Fins came over and landed at Cape Henlopen; and afterwards purchased of the Indians the land from Cape Henlopen to the Falls of Delaware on both fides the river, which they called New Savedeland Stream. On this river they built feveral forts, and made fettlements.

1628. On the 19th of March, 1628, the council for New-England fold to Sir Henry Rofwell, and five others, a large tract of land, lying round Massachusetts Bay. The June following, Capt. John Endicot, with his wife and company, came over and fettled at Naumkeag, now called Salem. This was the first fettlement which was made in Mafia

chufetts,

chusetts Bay. Plymouth, indeed, which is now included in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, was fettled eight years before, but at this time it was a separate colony, under a diftinct government, and continued fo until the fecond charter of Maffachusetts was granted by William and Mary in 1691; by which Plymouth, the Province of Main and Sagadahok were annexed to Maffachusetts.

June 13, 1633.-In the reign of Charles the First, Lord Baltimore, a Roman Catholic, applied for and obtained a grant of a tract of land upon Chefapeck Bay, about one hundred and forty miles long and one hundred and thirty broad. Soon after this, in confequence of the rigor of the laws of England against the Roman Catholics, Lord Baltimore, with a number of his perfecuted brethren, came over and fettled it, and in honour of queen Henrietta Maria, they called it Maryland.

The first grant of Connecticut was made by Robert, Earl of Warwick, prefident of the council of Plymouth, to Lord Say and Seal, to 1631 Lord Brook and others, in the year 1631. In confequence of feveral finaller grants made afterwards by the patentees to particu lar perfons, Mr. Fenwick made a fettlement at the Mouth of Con1635 necticut river, and called it Saybrook. Four years after a number

of people from Maffachusetts Bay came and began fettlements at Hartford, Wethersfield, and Windfor on Connecticut river. Thus commenced the English fettlement of Connecticut.

Rhode Island was first fettled in confequence of religious perfecution. Mr. Roger Williams, who was among thofe who early came over to Maffachusetts, not agreeing with fome of his brethren in fentiment, was

very urjuftifiably banished the colony, and went with twelve 1635 others, his adherents, and fettled at Providence in 1635. From

this beginning arofe the colony, now ftate of Rhode-Island. 1664. On the 20th of March, 1664, Charles the Second granted to the Duke of York, what is now called New-Jerfey, then a part of a large tract of country by the name of New Netherland. Some parts of New-Jerfey were fettled by the Dutch as early as about 1615.

1662. In the year 1662, Charles the Second granted to Edward, Earl of Clarendon, and feven others, almoft the whole territory of the three Southern states, North and South Carolinas and Georgia. 1664 Two years after he granted a fecond charter, enlarging their

boundaries. The proprietors, by virtue of authority vested in them by their charter, engaged Mr. Locke to frame a fyftem of laws for

the government of their intended colony. Notwithstanding these 1669 preparations, no effectual fettlement was made until the year 1669, (though one was attempted in 1667) when Governor Sayle came