by
Michael
Explorers
in Connecticut
Part
1
The United
States started as quite a few colonies together.
Lots of men discovered Connecticut but only one man discovered it first.
His name was Adrian Block. He
sailed along a river called Quinnenhtukqut, which meant Long River. Adrian claimed the land and he didn’t care if other people
were living on it. Quinnenhtukqut
got really hard to say so they changed it to Connecticut.
The
Settlers Arrive
Part
2
When Block had finished claming Connecticut for the Netherlands, the
Dutch went around looking for a spot to build a trading post.
When he built it in 1633 everyone called it the House of Hope.
The Dutch wanted furs to make hats and coats.
When it was winter it was hard to ship supplies because the river of
Connecticut was frozen solid. The
Indians were nice enough to give the settlers food to survive the winter.
Houses weren’t built like they are today. Most people slept in dugouts which were big holes in
the hill.
Whose
Land is This?
Part
3
The colonists were wealthy so to take land from the Indians they used
money. In 1638 the Indians
purchased New Haven for twenty-four coats, twelve spoons, twelve hatchets,
twelve shoes, twenty-four knives, twelve bowls, and some scissors.
The colonists liked selling land but the Indians didn’t so the
colonists were forced to go deeper into the wilderness.
Part
4
In no time lots of settlers came to Connecticut. (Three towns down the
Mississippi River decided to join the colony of Connecticut.) Thomas Hooker led
two settlers from Massachusetts to Hartford.
A
Charter for Connecticut
Part
5
In 1662 lots of the colonies were worried because they didn’t want New
York or Massachusetts to attack them. The governor, John Winthrop Jr. sailed to
England and asked for a charter. The
final paper gave the colonists the right to live in Connecticut.
King Charles gave the charter to the colonists and they were happy.
Making
a Living
Part
6
The colonists of Connecticut worked hard to farm, build ships, and fish.
The reason they worked so hard was because there was little money and
little money meant more work than average.
People grew things and other people bought them because the people who
sold items told the others that
their plants were fresh when, really, the
food was not always fresh. More money was charged.
To the People
and Projects
Comments? Email Mrs. Gurwicz
Last Updated: 02/07/06