Contains the primary text of the resolutions against the Stamp Act sent to King George III.

Read the actual words of these earliest Americans and their attempt at self-government with the writing of the Mayflower Compact. Link directly to other colonial charter pages.

This site provides an extensive look into the people and events surrounding the founding of the original 13 colonies in America.

Wikipedia provides an entry about Bacon's Rebellion, an uprising in 1676 in the Virginia Colony led by Nathaniel Bacon. It was the first rebellion in the American colonies in which discontented frontiersmen took part. A similar uprising...

Students explore the role and impact religion had on the establishment of the American colonies and its continued influence throughout the formation of the American identity. Foundational literary works, speeches, and documents...

A good resource that provides the life history of Moses Austin, one of the founders of the lead industry in America. Before he died, he had a vision of establishing an American colony in Spanish controlled Texas.

The American colonies in the British empire were exploited in the name of mercantilism. The following excerpt explains the idea behind mercantilism and how it was put into practice.

From the Colonial Williamsburg website, a great summary of the crisis caused by the British attempts to enforce the Stamp Act in the American colonies.

The ideas of the Enlightenment began in Europe, but they were acted upon in the American colonies. See how the philosophies of John Locke and Rousseau influenced the thoughts and actions of Puritan clergy and political figures like...

Samuel Adams was born on September 22, 1722, in Quincy, Massachusetts. He entered Harvard College at the age of 14. During the 1760s, Adams became a leader of the Patriot resistance to the British government's attempt to tax the American...

An overview of the Great Awakening and how the Protestant Revivalism effected England and the American colonies during the eighteenth century.

A map of the Thirteen Colonies during the American Revolution. The map shows the territorial claims west of the Allegheny Mountains, and includes inset maps detailing the vicinity of Philadelphia, the vicinity of Boston, and the vicinity...

A map of the United Colonies at the beginning of the American Revolution (1776) showing colonial land claims to the Mississippi River, including the territories organized after the war. The map shows the Northwest Territory (organized in...

A map of the thirteen colonies at the outset of the American Revolutionary War, showing major cities and towns, the Great Lakes, mountains, rivers, and coastline.

This site provides the text to the several colonization laws dealing with the colonization of Texas primarily by Americans.

This site from the Indiana University analyzes the role of political cartoons in early American history. Four artists, Paul Revere, Henry Pelham, Wm. Humphreys, and Wm. Charles are highlighted.

This resource gives the text to this Ordinance and Constitution of the Virginia Company which set up a council and assembly for the first colony of Virginia. Be sure to click on "Context" to see how this fit in with the House of Burgesses.

Resistance and even rebellion of slaves resulted in colonies enacting laws regarding the actions of slaves. Read about some of the slave codes and what they prohibited.

Columbian Ground Squirrels live in large colonies, and both males and females are territorial. Males defend a small core area within their home range, trying to keep other males from access to females. Learn more about the Spermophilus...

Belding's Ground Squirrels spend almost three-quarters of their lives hibernating in large underground colonies, so they have only three months a year to forage, grow, and reproduce. Females come into estrus on a single day for a few...

Millions of Brazilian free-tailed bats spend their summers in the southwestern United States. Gigantic colonies summer in Bracken Cave, Texas; Carlsbad Caverns, New Mexico; and even within the city of Austin, Texas, under the Congress...

Black-tailed prairie dogs exhibit the most complex social behavior of all prairie dogs. Social groups called "coteries" live together in very large colonies called "towns. Learn more about the Cynomys ludovicianus, more commonly known as...

Big brown bats make their homes in rural areas, towns, and cities, sometimes choosing barns, houses, or other buildings as roosts. Males usually live alone; females gather in maternity colonies in the spring and summer to give birth and...

Sagebrush Voles usually live in colonies in semiarid, partly brushy habitat. The dominant plants where they live are sagebrush or rabbitbrush mixed with bunchgrass. Learn more about the Lemmiscus curtatus, more commonly known as a...