upon Chefapeek Bay, about one hundred and forty miles long and one hundred and thirty broad. Soon after this, in confequence of the rigor of the laws of England against the Roman Catholics, Lord Baltimore; with a number of his perfecuted brethren, came over and fettled it, and in honour of queen Henrietta Maria, they called it MARYLAND.

The firft grant of Connecticut was made by Robert, Earl of Warwick, prefident of the council of Plymouth, to Lord Say and Seal, to 1631 Lord Brook and others, in the year 1631. In confequence of feveral fmaller grants made afterwards by the patentees to particu lar perfons, Mr. Fenwick made a fettlement at the mouth of Con1635 necticut river, and called it Saybrook. Four years after a num

ber of people from Maffachusetts Bay came and began fettlements at Hartford, Wethersfield, and Windfor on Connecticut river. Thus commenced the English fettlement of CONNECTICUT.

Rhode Island was firft fettled in confequence of religious perfecution. Mr. Roger Williams, who was among thofe who early came over to Maffachusetts, not agreeing with fome of his brethren in fentiment, was

very unjustifiably banifhed the colony, and went with twelve others, 1635 his adherents, and fettled at Providence in 1635. From this be

ginning arose the colony, now ftate of RHODE-ISLAND.

1664.] On the 20th of March, 1664, Charles the Second granted to the Duke of York, what is now called NEW-JERSEY, then a part of a large tract of country by the name of New-Netherland. Some parts of New-Jerfey were fettled by the Dutch as early as about 1615.

1662.] In the year 1662, Charles the Second granted to Edward, Earl of Clarendon, and feven others, almoft the whole territory of the three South

ern States, North and South Carolinas and Georgia. Two years 1664 after he granted a fecond charter, enlarging their boundaries. The

proprietors, by virtue of authority vetted in them by their charter, engaged Mr. Locke to frame a fyftem of laws for the government of their intended colony. Notwithstanding these preparations, no 1669 effectual fettlement was made until the year 1669, (though one was

attempted in 1667) when Governor Sayle came over with a colony, and fixed on a neck of land between Ashley and Cooper Rivers. Thus commenced the fettlement of CAROLINA, which then included the whole territory between the 29th and 36th degrees north latitude, together with the Bahama Islands, lying between latitude 22° and 27° north.

1682

1681.] The Royal charter for Pennfylvania was granted to William Penn on the 4th of March, 1681. The firft colony came over the next year, and fettled under the proprietor, William Penn, who acted as Governor from October 1682 to Auguft 1684. The firft affembly in the province of Pennfylvania was held at Chefter, on the 4th of December, 1682. Thus William Penn, a Quaker, justly celebrated as a great and good man, has the honour of laying the foundation of the prefent populous and very flourishing STATE of PENNSYLVANIA.

The proprietory government in Carolina, was attended with so many inconveniencies, and occafioned fuch violent diffentions among the fettlers, that the Parliament of Great-Britain was induced to take the province under their immediate care. The proprietors (except Lord Granville)

accepted

accepted of £.22,500 fterling, from the crown for the property and jurif

diction. This agreement was ratified by act of Parliament in 1729 1729. A clause in this act referved to Lord Granville his eighth

fhare of the property and arrears of quit-rents, which continued legally vefted in his family 'till the revolution in 1776. Lord Granville's fhare made a part of the prefent ftate of North-Carolina. About the year 1729, the extenfive territory belonging to the proprietors, was divided into North and South Carolinas. They remained feparate royal governments until they became independent States.

For the relief of poor indigent people of Great-Britain and Ireland, and for the fecurity of Carolina, a project was formed for planting a colony between the rivers Savannah and Alatamaha. Accordingly applica

tion being made to king George the Second, he iffued letters patent, 1732 bearing date June 9th, 1732, for legally carrying into execution

the benevolent plan. In honour of the king, who greatly encouraged the plan, they called the new province GEORGIA. Twenty-one trustees were appointed to conduct the affairs relating to the fettlement of the province. The November following one hundred and fifteen perfons, one of whom was General Oglethorpe, embarked for Georgia, where they arrived, and landed at Yamacraw. In exploring the country, they found an elevated pleafant fpot of ground on the bank of a navigable river, upon which they marked out a town, and from the Indian name of the river which paffed by it, called it Savannah. From this period we may date the fettlement of GEORGIA.

1754.] Kentucky was firft difcovered by James Macbride, and fome others who were in company with him, in the year 1754. Col. 1769 Daniel Boon explored it in 1769.

1773.] Four years after Col. Boon and his family, with five other families who were joined by forty men from Powle's valley, began the fettlement of KENTUCKY, which is now one of the most growing colonies, perhaps, in the world, and will doubtlefs be erected into an independent ftate, as soon as the new government fhall have been properly organized.

The tract of country called VERMONT, before the late war, was claimed both by New-York and New-Hampshire. When hoftilities commenced between Great-Britain and her Colonies, the inhabitants confidering themselves as in a state of nature, and not within any legal jurifdiction, affociated and formed for themfelves a conftitution of civil government. Under this conftitution, they have ever fince continued to exercise all the powers of an independent State. Although Vermont has not been admitted into union with the other ftates, nor her jurisdiction acknowledged to be legal by the ftate of New-York, yet we may venture to

date her political exiftence as a feparate government, from the 1777 year 1777, becaufe, fince that time, Vermont has, to all intents and purposes, been a fovereign and independent State. The extenfive tract of country lying northweft of the Ohio River within the limits of the United States, was erected into a separate temporary government by an Ordinance of Congrefs paífed the 13th of 1787 July, 1787.

Thus I have given a fummary view of the firft difcoveries and progref

five

five fettlement of North America in their chronological order. - The fol lowing recapitulation will comprehend the whole in one view.

Territory N. W.

of Ohio river,

}

1669 By Governor Sayle.

By William Penn, with a colony of
Quakers.

Erected into a feparate government,
fettled before by the English.

1732 By General Oglethorpe.
1773 By Col. Daniel Boon.

4777

{ By emigrants from Connecticut and other parts of New-England.

{

1787 By the Ohio and other companies.

The above dates are from the periods, when the first permanent fettle ments were made.

NORTH.AMERICA comprehends all that part of the western continent which lies north of the Ifthmus of Darien. This vast extent of country is divided between Spain, Great-Britain, and the Thirteen United States. Spain claims all the land weft of the Miffiffippi, and East and West Florida. According to the treaty of 1783, all the country north of the northern boundary of the United States, and caft of the river of St. Croix, belongs to Great-Britain. The remaining part is the territory of the Thirtcen United and Independent States.

United States.

Province of Quebec,

750 200

46.55

4,56 E. Quebec.

690

N. N. E.

Great-Britain.

Nova-Scotia,

250

44,56

14,29 Ε. Halifax.

925

Ν. Ε.

E. and W. Floridas

600

130

29,51

6,30 W. Auguftine.

1146

S. S. W.

Spain.

(34)

miles.

Length 1250
Breadth 1040 S

SITUATION and EXTENT.

Between

{31° and 46° North Latitude.

8° E. and 24° W. Long. from Philadelphia.

Boundaries.] IN the treaty of peace, concluded in 1783, the limits of the United States are thus defined. "And that all difputes which might arife in future on the subject of the boundaries of the faid United States may be prevented, it is hereby agreed and declared, that the following are and fhall be their boundaries, viz. From the northweft angle of Nova-Scotia, viz. That angle which is formed by a line drawn due north from the fource of St. Croix River to the Highlands, along the faid Highlands, which divide thofe rivers that empty themselves into the river St. Lawrence, from those which fall into the Atlantic Ocean, to the north-westernmost head of Connecticut river; thence down along the middle of that river to the forty-fifth degree of north latitude; from thence by a line due weft on faid latitude, until it ftrikes the river Iroquois or Cataraquy; thence along the middle of the faid river into Lake Ontario, through the middle of faid Lake, until it ftrikes the communication by water between that lake and Lake Erie; thence along the middle of faid communication into Lake Erie, through the middle of faid lake, until it arrives at the water communication between that lake and Lake Huron; thence through the middle of faid lake to the water communication between that lake and Lake Superior; thence through Lake Superior northward of the Ifles Royal and Phillipeaux to the Long Lake; thence through the middle of faid Long Lake, and the water communication between it and the Lake of the Woods to the faid Lake of the Woods; thence through the faid lake to the moft northwestern point thereof, and from thence, on a due weft course, to the River Miffiffippi; thence by a line to be drawn along the middle of faid River Miffiffippi, until it fhall interfect the northernmoft part of the thirty-firft degree of north latitude. South, by a line to be drawn due east from the determination of the line laft mentioned, in the latitude of thirty-one degrees north of the equator, to the middle of the River Apalachicola, or Catahouche; thence along the middle thereof to its junction with the Flint River; thence ftrait to the head of St. Mary's River; and thence down along the middle of St. Mary's River to the Atlantic Ocean; caft, by a line to be drawn along the middle of the River St. Croix, from its mouth in the Bay of Fundy, to its fource; and from its fource directly north, to the aforefaid Highlands, which divide the rivers that fall into the Atlantic Ocean, from those which fall into the River St. Lawrence, comprehending all islands within twenty leagues of any part of the fhores of the United States, and lying between lines to be drawn due eaft from the points where the aforefaid boundaries between Nova-Scotia on the one part, and Eaft-Florida on the other, fhall refpectively touch the Bay of Fundy and the Atlantic Ocean, excepting fuch iflands as now are, or heretofore have been, within the limits of the faid province of Nova Scotia."

The