ABSTRACT

Current historical wisdom regarding the settlement and economic growth of seventeenth-century New England describes a colony perennially dependent on external sources of manufactured goods. In this model of scarcity, the first waves of Great Migration colonists were the primary sources of provisions, manufactured goods, cash and credit. When the regular arrival of newcomers waned, the colony shifted its dependence to a sea-based merchant fleet. These blue water traders created networks along which manufactured goods and marketable surplus circulated. Naturally, New England’s colonies would have floundered and died without those merchants. Despite ample regular food supplies provided by the farms and fields of New England, the colonies continued to require vast exports of manufactured goods from Old England to fulfill its needs. As one historian observed,

Thus, the end of the Great Migration period in 1642 brought the first phase of successful settlement to a close. At the same time, colonial officials recognized that New England would have to develop a sustainable economy on its own or it would not survive.