17th Century America

Back in the 17th century, the area that would eventually become the United States of America was still just the "New World." Native Americans and European settlers lived side-by-side, but populations were small and there wasn't a whole lot going on besides bare survival. Modern historians like to picture white people stepping ashore with guns blazing, when in fact early relations between European settlers and Indians was often peaceful and cooperative.

The South American scene was considerably different. Most of the first European visitors weren't there for primarily religious reasons (as was true of the Pilgrims and Puritans in North America), and the natives they encountered were more violent than their northern counterparts. The result was a lot of bloodshed and fire, and names like Cortes and Columbus are still bad words in many South American countries.

In the New England colonies, however, God was uppermost in the minds of most people. Jamestown was the first English colony in the New World, and it wasn't particularly religious, but the second one was Plymouth and it was the first American home of the Pilgrims. The Pilgrims were Puritan in doctrine but Seperatist in practice, believing that the Church of England was beyond repair and that dedicated Christians had no choice but to leave it. They did, settling first in Holland, and in 1620 founding Plymouth Plantation in what would become Massachusetts.

The Puritans came not much later. Their intention was a little more ambitious than the Pilgrim project: not content with simply fleeing the shadow of a state church, they intended to build a Christian community in which the Law of God determined the civic laws, and where there was little distinction between sacred and secular law. Modern Americans often balk at this, but the Puritans weren't concerned with human wisdom, they were wholly informed by a desire to practice holiness and godly devotion.

Don't think they were all witch-hunters and dour black-clad killjoys, either. The Puritans enjoyed life as much as the next person, and while they were susceptible to ignorance and sin just like any other group of human beings, they were continually given to thanking God for the material and spiritual blessings He'd bestowed on them.

Their influence was largely responsible for the inclusion of Christian moral standards within the U.S. Constitution, for while the Enlightenment humanism of Franklin and Jefferson is clearly present, so too is the Puritan heritage of many of the Founding Fathers. As Christians, we also can thank God and praise Him for providing such forefathers for His children in the New World.

Review by C. Hollis Crossman
C. Hollis Crossman used to be a child. Now he's a husband and father who loves church, good food, and weird stuff. He might be a mythical creature, but he's definitely not a centaur. Read more of his reviews here.
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211 Items found Print
1621: A New Look at Thanksgiving
by Catherine O'Neill Grace
from National Geographic
for 4th-6th grade
in Pilgrims at Plymouth (Location: HISA-17PIL)
$7.00 (1 in stock)
20 Plays for U. S. History Classes
by Dean R. Bowman
Revised from Walch Publishing
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by Cheryl Harness
from National Geographic
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AIO Imagination Station Book #06
by Marianne Hering & Marshal Younger
from Focus on the Family
for 1st-3rd grade
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Daughters of the Faith
by Wendy G. Lawton
from Moody Press
Historical Fiction for 3rd-6th grade
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by Stephen K. McDowell & Mark Beliles
from Providence Foundation
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Revised from American Heritage Publishing Co.
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by Michelle Miller
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History Curriculum for 1st-5th grade
in TruthQuest History (Location: HISCUR-TQ)
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by Roger Duvoisin
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Anne Bradstreet
by Heidi L. Nichols
from P&R Publishing
Biography for 10th-Adult
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Anne Bradstreet
Christian Renegades Series
by Doug Wilson
3rd edition from Canon Press
Biography for
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$16.95
Anne of Jamestown
by Anne Price-Hardister, illustrated by Ruby Gardner
from Jamestown-Yorktown Foundation
for 2nd-6th grade
in Jamestown Colony (Location: HISA-17JA)
$3.00 (1 in stock)
Beyond Stateliest Marble
Leaders in Action Series
by Doug Wilson
from Cumberland House
Biography for
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from Franklin Watts
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$7.50 (1 in stock)
Blood on the River: James Town, 1607
by Elisa Carbone
Reprint from Puffin Books
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$8.99
Blue Birds
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Dgs from Puffin Books
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To Pledge Allegiance #2
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from American Vision Press
World History Reference for 8th-11th grade
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$22.00 (2 in stock)
Captain John Smith
Heroes of History
by Geoff & Janet Benge
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$11.99
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Hans Christian Anderson Award
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$9.00 (2 in stock)
Carving on the Tree
from Little, Brown & Company
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Cavalier and Puritan Fashions - Coloring Book
Dover Coloring Books
by Tom Tierney
from Dover Publications
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in Costume & Fashion Coloring Books (Location: COL-FAS)
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Children's Color Book of Jamestown in Virginia
by Priscilla Hunt
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$3.00 (1 in stock)
Classical Acts and Facts History Cards: New World
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$24.99
Colonial and Early American Fashions - Coloring Book
Dover Coloring Books
by Tom Tierney
from Dover Publications
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$5.99
Colonial Experience
A Basic History of the United States Volume 1
by Clarence B. Carson
from American Textbook Committee
American History Reference for 9th-Adult
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$17.00
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by Laurie Carlson
1st edition from Chicago Review Press
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$9.00 (2 in stock)
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American History by Era Volume 2
by Brenda Stalcup (editor)
from Greenhaven Press
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Colonies - Coloring Book
Educational Read & Color Books
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Daily Life in the Pilgrim Colony 1636
by Paul Erickson
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$8.50 (1 in stock)
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by Joseph Berger
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1942 Newbery Honor
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$4.50 (2 in stock)
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by E. R. Gaggin
from George G. Harrap & Co. Ltd.
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1942 Newbery Honor
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by Marie Hablitzel & Kim Stitzer
from In the Think of Things
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by Dave Stotts
from Focus on the Family
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Dover Coloring Books
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Early American History - Your Story Hour CDs
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Early American History for Intermediate Grades (really old)
by Rea Berg
from Beautiful Feet Books
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by Rea Berg & Rebecca Manor
3rd edition from Beautiful Feet Books
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$29.95
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by Rea Berg
3rd edition from Beautiful Feet Books
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Dover Coloring Books
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Eating the Plates
by Lucille Recht Penner
1st edition from Simon and Schuster
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Everyday Dress of the American Colonial Period - Coloring Book
Dover Coloring Books
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Step into Reading Level 3
by Linda Hayward
from Random House
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$4.99
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by Jean Craighead George
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$7.99
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by Olga Hall-Quest, illustrated by Christine Price
from Harper & Row
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in New World Colonization (Location: HISA-17NW)
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by Kate Waters
from Scholastic Inc.
for 1st-3rd grade
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from Hyperion/Madison Press
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$3.49 (1 in stock)
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by Increase Mather
from Back Home Industries
Historical Non-Fiction for 9th-Adult
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from Walter J. Black, Inc.
for 8th-Adult
in Walter J. Black Classics Club (Location: VIN-LITWJB)
History of US Book 2
History of US Book 2
by Joy Hakim
3rd Revised Edition from Oxford University
American History Reference for 5th-9th grade
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History Pockets: Life in Plymouth Colony
by Jill Norris & Sandi Johnson
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Homes in the Wilderness
by William Bradford
from Purple House Press
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$9.99
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by F. N. Monjo
First Edition from Holt, Rinehart and Winston
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Land of the Free Series
by Elsie Singmaster, illustrated by Henry C. Pitz
1st edition from John C. Winston
Historical fiction for 6th-10th grade
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If You Lived in Colonial Times
If You Were There
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from Scholastic Inc.
Non-Fiction for 2nd-5th grade
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$4.00 (4 in stock)
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If You Were There
by Ann McGovern, illustrated by J.B. Handlesman
from Four Winds Press
Non-Fiction for 2nd-5th grade
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If You Sailed On the Mayflower in 1620
If You Were There
by Ann McGovern
from Scholastic Inc.
Non-Fiction for 2nd-5th grade
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by Anne Kamma
First Edition from Scholastic Press
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in Pilgrims at Plymouth (Location: HISA-17PIL)
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Outer Banks Animals Adventure Series
by Mary Maden
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Iron Peacock
by Mary Stetson Clark
from Avyx, Inc.
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Island at the Center of the World
by Russell Shorto
from Vintage Books
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$6.00 (1 in stock)
Jamestown
Adventures in Colonial America
by James Knight
from Beautiful Feet Books
Non-fiction for Kindergarten-3rd grade
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Jamestown
Sterling Point Books
by Olga Hall-Quest
from Sterling Publishing Co.
Historical Non-fiction for 3rd-7th
in Jamestown Colony (Location: HISA-17JA)
Jamestown
Adventures In Colonial America
by James Knight
from Troll Publishing
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in Jamestown Colony (Location: HISA-17JA)
Jamestown and the Founding of the Nation
by Warren M. Billings
from Thomas Publications
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in Jamestown Colony (Location: HISA-17JA)
$5.00 (1 in stock)
Jamestown Settlement
by Nancy Egloff
from Bicast Publishing Co.
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$3.00 (1 in stock)
Jamestown, John Smith, and Pocahontas
by Judith Edwards
from Enslow
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in Jamestown Colony (Location: HISA-17JA)
Jamestown: First English Colony
by Marshall W. Fishwick
from American Heritage Publishing Co.
for 3rd-8th grade
in American Heritage Junior Library (Location: VIN-HIS)
John Alden
by Olive W. Burt
from Bobbs-Merril Co
Biography for 2nd-4th grade
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Jonathan and Sarah
by Edna Gerstner
from Soli Deo Gloria
Biography for 9th-Adult
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$10.00 (2 in stock)
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by Stephen J. Nichols
from P&R Publishing
Biography for 9th-Adult
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$16.99
Journey to the New World
Dear America
by Kathryn, Lasky
from Scholastic Inc.
Fictional historical journal for 3rd-6th Grade
in Dear America Books (Location: SER-DEAR)
$6.00 (1 in stock)
Juan Ponce de Leon
by Nina Baker; illustrated by Robert Doremus
from Alfred A. Knopf, Inc.
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Landing of the Pilgrims
Landmark Series
by James Daugherty
from Random House
Historical Non-Fiction for 5th-8th grade
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Landing of the Pilgrims
Landmark #2
by James Daugherty
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Landing of the Pilgrims
Spencer Press Landmark #2 (RH#3)
by James Daugherty
from Spencer Press
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Let's Celebrate Thanksgiving
by Peter and Connie Roop, Illustrated by Gwen Connelly
from Millbrook Press
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Letters of Samuel Rutherford
Puritan Paperbacks
by Samuel Rutherford
from Banner of Truth Trust
in Practical Christian Living (Location: XCL-PRAC)
Letters of Samuel Rutherford
Puritan Paperbacks
by Samuel Rutherford
1891 Reprint from Banner of Truth Trust
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$32.00 (1 in stock)
Liberty Letters: The Story of Pocahontas, 1613
Liberty Letters
by Nancy LeSourd
1st edition from Zondervan
Historical Fiction for 3rd-6th grade
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$6.00 (1 in stock)
Life in Colonial America - Coloring Book
Dover Coloring Books
by Peter F. Copeland
from Dover Publications
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Light and the Glory 1492-1793
by Peter Marshall, David Manuel
Revised Expanded from Revell Publishing
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Light and the Glory for Children
by Peter Marshall & David Manuel
from Revell Publishing
American History Reference for 4th-6th grade
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Lion to Guard Us
by Clyde Robert Bulla
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Realistic Fiction for 2nd-6th grade
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Lost Colony
by Jean Bothwell, illustrated by Edward F. Cortese
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Lost Colony of Roanoke
by Jean Fritz, illustrated by Hudson Talbott
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Marriage to a Difficult Man
by Elisabeth D. Dodds
from Audobon Press
Biography for 9th-Adult
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Mary of Plymouth
by James Otis
from A Beka Books
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$4.00 (17 in stock)
Mary of Plymouth
America's Children
by James Otis
from Living Book Press
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Mayflower
by Nathaniel Philbrick
from Penguin Putnam
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Mayflower II
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by Edmund J. Carpenter
2nd edition from Christian Liberty Press
Biography for 7th-10th grade
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$7.50
Mayflower Secret
Trailblazer Books
by Dave Jackson, Neta Jackson
from Bethany House
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Mayflower Secret
Trailblazer Books
by Dave Jackson, Neta Jackson
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$8.99
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by Elizabeth Payne
from Random House Books for Young Readers
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