Regional Development and Political Institutions of the British Colonies

South Carolina's economy transitioned from trading furs to established rice-growing plantations worked by enslaved Africans, mirroring the culture of the West Indies.
North Carolina lacked good harbors and relied on small, self-sufficient tobacco farms rather than large plantations.
North Carolina developed a reputation for democratic views and autonomy from British control during the $18^{th}$ century.

New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, and Delaware featured fertile land, diverse European immigrants, and religious tolerance.
In $1664$ , the Duke of York (James II) took control of the Dutch colony New Amsterdam from Governor Peter Stuyvesant and renamed it New York.
New York's governor granted a representative assembly and civil rights in $1683$ following opposition to taxation without representation.
New Jersey was formed in $1664$ after the territory was split and granted to Lord John Berkeley and Sir George Carteret; it became a single royal colony in $1702$ .

William Penn founded Pennsylvania as a "Holy Experiment" to provide a refuge for Quakers (the Religious Society of Friends) and other persecuted groups.
Quakers believed religious authority was found within each person and supported equality, non-violence, and resistance to military service.
The Charter of Liberties ( $1701$ ) guaranteed freedom of worship and unrestricted immigration in Pennsylvania.
Penn designed Philadelphia with a grid pattern of streets and sought to treat American Indians fairly when purchasing land.
Delaware was granted its own assembly in $1702$ but shared Pennsylvania's governor until the American Revolution.

Chartered in $1732$ , Georgia served as a defensive buffer against Spanish Florida and a location for English debtors to restart their lives.
James Oglethorpe founded Savannah in $1733$ with strict regulations, including bans on rum and slavery.
In $1752$ , the British government took control, dropping restrictions on rum and slavery and adopting the plantation system of South Carolina.

Distance from Britain and domestic upheavals led to early colonial self-rule.
The House of Burgesses, established in Virginia in $1619$ , was the first representative assembly in America.
The Mayflower Compact ( $1620$ ) established a rudimentary form of self-government based on majority rule in New England.
New England town meetings allowed for local debate and the election of members to colonial legislatures.
Democratic participation was restricted to male property owners, excluding women, landless males, indentured servants, and enslaved people.