Virginia and Ne

The New England settlers consisted of families who came to escape religious persecution. Meaning that each family had a minimum of five members, many of whom were children. Most Puritan settlers did not go to the New World to obtain wealth. The purpose of their journey was to start a new life with their families where they were free to worship as they pleased. Unlike the New England settlers, most of the Chesapeake settlers were single, young, white men. It also shows that the name of the ship used to transport the settlers was the "Merchant's Hope" which correlates with the settlement purpose of gaining profit and riches. Because there were not as many women in the Chesapeake colonies, the population of the region was much smaller compared to the New England colonies.

During its first year, the Jamestown settlement was too preoccupied searching for gold to implement any kind of stable government or food source. Being unable to find any gold, the Chesapeake colonies later relied heavily on tobacco to make profit. This resulted in an increased need for plantation laborers. The already male-dominated society was still not enough to handle the amount of labor needed to harvest tobacco thus later, black slaves were brought over. The New England colonies were formed very differently. There was almost no use of slaves. Some historians say the New England region was more moral in a sense because it was a Puritan dominated society. Others argue that slavery was not implemented only because the New England region had no use for more laborers due to the climate being too cold to support substantial crop growth and the land not being as arable compared to the Chesapeake region. John Winthrop writes "We must knit together in this work as one man (...) We shall be as a city upon a hill." This Puritan work-ethic meant that each person was obligated to do his or her equal share of work for the common good of the community. Because colonists assisted each others, shared resources, and grew crops needed to survive, the life expectancy was high. Colonists could expect to live to seventy years of age. Even though the New England colonies were not as wealthy as the Chesapeake colonies, they ultimately were more stable because their economy was diverse and not reliant on a single crop. The Puritan work ethic and economy indeed served as a "city upon a hill" to forthcoming colonies.

The New England settlement had a society where social class was of little importance. Political power was more evenly widespread in this region. In the Massachusetts Bay Colony, the only requirement to have a political say was if one was male, white and Puritan. Most males fit this category and were given easy access to political say. The New England region's government was structured and orderly due to strongly enforced Puritan ethics. They would not tolerate disorder and disobedience was severely punishable.