About the author
Edward A. St. Germain created AmericanRevolution.org in 1996. He was an avid historian with a keen interest in the Revolutionary War and American culture and society in the 18th century. On this website, he created and collated a huge collection of articles, images, and other media pertaining to the American Revolution. Edward was also a Vietnam veteran, and his investigative skills led to a career as a private detective in later life.
1. Massachusetts was founded as a Puritan model society
Puritans were a type of devout Protestant Christians who believed in strict adherence to religious moral codes, and wanted to “purify” the Church of England of what they perceived as Catholic influences.
Puritans were in the minority in England, so they took the opportunity to come to Massachusetts in the 1620s to start their model society.
2. Quakers, Catholics, and Jews were excluded by law from Massachusetts
Quakers for example were specifically barred from Massachusetts until the British forced the colonial government to become more tolerant in the 1660s. Catholics and Jews remained banned for most of the early colonial era, with punishments including hanging for those that broke the rules.
Mary Dyer, a Quaker missionary, was executed in Boston in 1660 for repeatedly entering the Massachusetts Bay Colony.
3. Massachusetts used to contain New Hampshire and parts of modern-day Maine
New Hampshire was governed by Massachusetts from 1641 to 1679, when it became a royal province.
Massachusetts asserted jurisdiction over southern and central Maine in 1652, before purchasing the territory from the original proprietor, Sir Ferdinando Gorges, in 1677.
Maine remained part of Massachusetts until 1820, when it became its own state.
4. The first American college, Harvard, was founded in Massachusetts in 1636
The college’s original purpose was to train church ministers – it existed as a religious institution.
5. Massachusetts printed the first book in British North America
The text in question was the Bay Psalm Book, first printed in Cambridge in 1640.
6. The population of Massachusetts Bay Colony was estimated at 506 in 1630, 39,752 in 1680, 114,116 in 1730, and 268,627 in 1780
Massachusetts was the largest colony by population in 1730, but was overtaken by Virginia, Pennsylvania, and North Carolina by 1780.
7. In 1692, 19 people were executed as witches in Salem, Massachusetts
After a period of increased tension in the colony due to poor harvests and disease, three people were accused of being witches after a number of children fell ill in 1692. This led to an extensive witch hunt throughout the village, with hundreds of people accused of witchcraft.
As well as the 19 executed, many more died in prison due to illness, or in the case of Giles Corey, as a result of torture due to refusing to enter a plea.
8. Massachusetts was a major exporter of beef
Though the colony had poor soil and a short growing season, farmers made significant profits from exporting beef and other products such as leather.
Cattle were first brought to the colony from Europe as early as the 1620s.
9. Massachusetts had the best literacy rates of any of the Thirteen Colonies
The Puritans heavily prioritized education to ensure that the populace could read and study the Bible, resulting in above-average literacy rates compared to other American colonies.
10. Massachusetts had the longest-running official state church of any of the Thirteen Colonies
The Puritan Congregational Church was only disestablished in Massachusetts in 1833. Many other colonies, such as Pennsylvania and Rhode Island, never had an official church.
