NEW JERSEY

            New Jersey is a middle colony that was first settled by the Dutch along the western banks of the Hudson River.  However, this settlement is insignificant and history states that the English was the first to occupy the colony.  The colony was populated by Indians when it was founded.  The Indians and the settlers were kind to one another and they lived together peacefully.

             New Jersey was free from Indian wars.  When the settlers arrived the Indians helped them by hunting for them, they gave them crops such as corn, squash and beans, and they provided them with shelter.  The colonists included Quakers, Puritans, indentured servants, Indians, other religions, and the Dutch.  The colonists lived peaceful terms with the Indians and kept a profitable trade of fur and hunting game.

              When England arrived the decided to take over and steal the Indian’s land.  The Indian’s and the colonists did not like this but the English power was too strong and the Indians were forced to leave New Jersey.

      The government of New Jersey was known as Concessions, which granted religious liberty to the Englishmen.  The government consisted of a governor, council, and an assembly of twelve people chosen by the people, and there were to be no taxes laid without consent of the assembly.  In 1668 the first assembly met and the code of the laws adopted indicated Puritan domination of the colony.   In 1670 the first quitrents were due and many of the settlers refused to pay rent.  They claimed that they had inherited their lands from the Indians, the real owners.  The people rebelled and elected an illegal assembly to be governor, son of Sir George, James Carteret.  The rebellious government was left in a state of anarchy that continued for a ten years.  The heirs to Carteret along with the Quakers claimed the colony.

            New Jersey has seventy-five thousand inhabitants in 1760.  The population was mostly English, but a few Dutch, Swedes, and Germans were scattered throughout New Jersey.  The western part was occupied by Quakers.  An abundance of the population was farmers.  The colony of New Jersey was guarded by New York and Pennsylvania.

            New Jersey began its industrial mark about 1794. The city’s growth eventually expanded and resources included machinery, food processing, and oil refining. The manufacturing companies were creating employment for the colonist and were processing silk, domestic goods, and cotton. New Jersey mainly had farmers of the land in the earlier days. It was a pathway between Philadelphia and New York City; what a design! Although small, New Jersey was very significant in transportation. Early wagons were used to make the journey.  It also played a very important role in the American Revolution with the training of troops, building ammunition and place for battleground.

            The first schools in New Jersey were private academies but later established public schools.  One of the leaders of public school was Clara Barton. Free public schools were established in 1871 throughout NJ.  

Fradin, Dennis B.  The New Jersey Colony. Chicago:  The Children’s Press, 1988.

“History of the United States of America,” by Henry William Elson, The MacMillan Company, New York, 1904.  Chapter VII pp. 146-149.  Transcribed by Kathy Leigh.

Post Written By Ashley Y. and Valerie R.