Colonial History

Since the history of the European in what is now the United States begins around 1600, and continues for around 175 years, one wonders why our colonial history gets so little attention relative to the remainder of American history.  In 2013, a summer intern suggested that, as well as the geographic orientation of most of our material, we ought to have a dimension according to historical eras, and this page is the first of them.  Thank you, Helen, for your insight!  We will be adding more!

While we already published a fair amount of material that relates to colonial times, we will now be devoting more attention to this particular subject matter category, particularly that which crosses geographic boundaries. 

Please check back frequently to see what new material we have added and to see links to material elsewhere in our catalog that relates to this topic.

Colonial History Currently Available:

New York State:

--Civil History of New York: Colonial Era, from Mather & Brockett’s Geographical History of New York (1848).  Please see our New York Miscellany page for more information.

--Antiquities of Long Island, by Gabriel Furman (1874).  This item is a classic compendium of the colonial history of Long Island -- its Dutch Reformed, Puritan, Anglican religious traditions; its time as a part of Connecticut; dealings with Native Americans; a little genealogy -- it's all here.  While Long Island is a melting pot today, this volume reveals how long the history of cultures meeting and mixing on Long Island has been a way of life.  274 pages, in PDF format, download now for $4.25.

Connecticut:

--Some Colonial Houses of New Haven, from the Connecticut Quarterly, Volume II (1896.  Please see our New Haven County, CT page for more information.

--Welles' Early Annals of Newington.  Please see our Newington, CT page for more information.

--Salisbury, CT  Abstract of Early Land Records  

--Salisbury, CT - the Early Years, by J. M. Sherman    

--Salisbury, CT - Land Speculation (1739 – 1761) by J. M. Sherman  

--Salisbury, CT - vital records circa 1730 - 1767 

--Salisbury, CT - vital records circa 1768 - 1800 

--The Settlement of the Connecticut Towns

--The Tories of Connecticut

Massachusetts:

--Colonial History of MA: Religious Dissenters/Founders of RI (1855) 

--The Pilgrims -- Journal of American History, Volume XV (1921) 

Rhode Island:

--Colonial History of MA: Religious Dissenters/Founders of RI (1855) 

--Governor William Coddington, by Mrs. Sarah K. Birckhead (1913)   

New Jersey:

--Genealogy of Early Settlers of Trenton and Ewing (1883), part 1  

--Genealogy of Early Settlers of Trenton and Ewing (1883), part 2  

--Genealogy of Early Settlers of Trenton and Ewing (1883), part 3  

--Genealogy of Early Settlers of Trenton and Ewing (1883), part 4  

--Genealogy of Early Settlers of Trenton and Ewing (1883), errata and index     

--Minisink & Port Jervis  

Social and Religious History:

--History of the Huguenots  written for the American Sunday-School Union (1844)

The Huguenots were a Protestant denomination in France that began around the 16^th century. They were inspired by the writings of John Calvin in the early 1500s. The Huguenot population was as much as 10% of the French population around the time of the St. Bartholomew’s Day massacre, but declined by the end of the 16^th century and even more when persecution began by Louis XIV of France. An edict in 1685 abolished legal recognition of Protestantism in France, forcing Huguenots to convert. Three-quarters of Huguenots were eventually killed or converted but roughly half a million had fled France by the end of the 17^th century. Huguenot immigrants relocated to European nations where Protestantism was either practiced or tolerated, including England, Wales, Scotland, Denmark, Sweden, and Switzerland, among several other places including the United States which was made up of British colonies at the time.

Despite the massive number of Huguenots who had left France, persecution of Protestants began to come to an end in France after the death of Louis XIV in 1715 and officially ended when the Edict of Tolerance was signed by Louis XVI in 1787. Just two years later, in 1789, Protestants gained equal rights as citizens of France. While Huguenot religious tradition is not widely practiced today, communities remain in Alsace and the Cevennes in France and some Huguenots in England as well as some French-Australians still retain the religious tradition.

We offer this 300 page volume for download.  It is in PDF format, priced at $5.00.  Click below to download and charge to your credit card or PayPal account.