Special Report
100 American Towns Founded Before the American Revolution
February 1, 2019 2:58 pm
Last Updated: March 13, 2020 2:40 pm
11. Portsmouth, New Hampshire
> Founded: 1630
> Population: 21,458
Portsmouth was a sanctuary for those fleeing religious persecution in Massachusetts.
12. Lewes, Delaware
> Founded: 1631
> Population: 2,955
Located on Delaware Bay, it was first settled by the Dutch.
13. Windsor, Connecticut
> Founded: 1633
> Population: 29,044
Windsor was Connecticut’s first English settlement.
14. Wethersfield, Connecticut
> Founded: 1634
> Population: 26,396
One of Connecticut’s oldest towns settled by the English. Wethersfield experienced witch-trial hysteria in the 17th century.
15. Concord, Massachusetts
> Founded: 1635
> Population: 17,668
One of the places where the Revolutionary War began, Concord was settled by English colonists.
16. Hartford, Connecticut
> Founded: 1636
> Population: 124,320
Puritans led by the Rev. Thomas Hooker created a settlement on the Connecticut River.
17. Providence, Rhode Island
> Founded: 1636
> Population: 178,851
Roger Williams, banished from the Massachusetts Bay Colony for radical views, bought land from Native Americans and founded Providence.
18. Scituate, Massachusetts
> Founded: 1636
> Population: 5,471
Scituate was settled by people from the county of Kent in England. Scituate is derived from the Native American word Satuit, meaning “cold brook.”
19. New Haven, Connecticut
> Founded: 1638
> Population: 130,405
Founded by Puritans, New Haven was one of America’s first planned towns.
20. Exeter, New Hampshire
> Founded: 1638
> Population: 9,022
Town founder Reverend John Wheelwright was an exile from Puritan Massachusetts. He bought land from Native Americans for the settlement.
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