Special Report
100 American Towns Founded Before the American Revolution
February 1, 2019 2:58 pm
Last Updated: March 13, 2020 2:40 pm
Source: Doug Kerr / Flickr
21. Swedesboro, New Jersey
> Founded: 1638
> Population: 2,606
A southern New Jersey town was founded by a group of Swedes and Finns.
Source: SkyF / iStock
22. Newport, Rhode Island
> Founded: 1639
> Population: 24,570
Founded by English settlers led by strong-willed Anne Hutchinson, who was driven out of Massachusetts for her religious views.
Source: Doug Kerr / Flickr
23. Guilford, Connecticut
> Founded: 1639
> Population: 22,375
Native Americans sold land to Puritans led by Henry Whitfield.
Source: WdeHaas / iStock
24. Fairfield, Connecticut
> Founded: 1639
> Population: 59,404
Fairfield one of the four earliest towns founded by the English in Connecticut in the 17th century.
24/7 Wall St.
Source: John Phelan / Wikimedia Commons
25. Braintree, Massachusetts
> Founded: 1640
> Population: 37,066
Braintree, named after the English town, was called Monoticut, an Algonquian word meaning “abundance.”
Source: stockphoto52 / iStock
26. Stamford, Connecticut
> Founded: 1641
> Population: 127,410
Founded by Puritans, Stamford became a manufacturing hub and is now home to multinational corporations.
Source: cmh2315fl / Flickr
27. Warwick, Rhode Island
> Founded: 1642
> Population: 81,881
Samuel Gorton founded Warwick after he bought the land from the Narragansett Native Americans.
Source: Smallbones / Wikimedia Commons
28. Chester, Pennsylvania
> Founded: 1644
> Population: 34,056
Originally settled in 1644 by the Swedes, Quakers led by William Penn made it a colonial settlement in 1681. Chester is the oldest city in Pennsylvania.
Source: coleong / iStock
29. Manchester-by-the-Sea, Massachusetts
> Founded: 1645
> Population: 5,136
Manchester-by-the-Sea, backdrop to many movies, was founded by English settlers. The name changed in 1990 to distinguish it from other towns named Manchester.
Source: Daniel Case / Wikimedia Commons
30. Yonkers, New York
> Founded: 1646
> Population: 199,725
Dutch founder Adrian Van der Donck was the first lawyer in New Netherlands colony that would become New York in 1644.
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