THE EUROPEANS WHO COLONIZED NORTH AMERICA came from many backgrounds and found themselves in many different situations. The first settlers were adventurers and pioneers, trying to make their home in an unfamiliar and often hostile land. Their children, as well as later arrivals, would generally have easier lives in established towns or villages. Yet as the colonies expanded, some settlers moved out to the frontiers, keeping the pioneer spirit alive as part of life in the New World. Where people lived—on the frontier, on a farm, on a seacoast, in a town—was just one of the factors that affected how they lived.