Thank you so much for the migration information it has answered many questions I had. I'm sure the same for many others. Now If you ever come across the names of ships that frequently transported passengers from what countries to what USA ports on a time line, WOW! well It can't hurt to ask? Thank You So much. Justin [email protected] wrote: > A contibution from Charlie to help with your search. > > THE ENGLISH > > 1. Social and economic dislocation, caused in part by pressure > on feudal system by inflation resulting from vast amount of new > gold and silver introduced through Spain. > 2. Political rivalry between a recently strengthed England and Spain. > 3. Richard Hakluyt's "Discourse of Western Planting" provides an > intellectual rationale for colonizing both in Ireland and the New World. > 4. Religious upheaval in England encourages various groups to leave. > 5. The success of Francis Drake leads englishmen to perceive of > the New World as a land of instant riches, thus serving as a catalyst > for colonization. > 6. Development of joint stock companies provides economic base > for colonization (think the Jamestown-Virginia Stock Co, pocahontas > timeframe). > 7. Failure of the Spanish Armada gives English greater confidence. > > B. THE NON ENGLISH > 1. Blacks introduced, first as indentured servants, then as slaves, > after 1619. > 2. Dutch and Swedes are incorporated as New York and New Jersey > become english colonies. > 3. Huguenots (French Protestants) permitted by English to settle > after forced to leave France. > 4. Lowland Scots settle in northern Ireland, then shortly after > 1700 come in large numbers to the English colonies, settling on > the frontier and becoming known as the "Scotch-Irish." > 5. Germans, largely from the Panatinate, settle on the frontier at > same time as the "Scotch-Irish" and become known as the > "Pennsylvania Dutch." > 6. After 1750, signficant numbers of Highland Scots are permitted > to leave Scotland to settle in the English colonies, with the promise > they will never fight against the (english) Crown. > > II. MOVEMENT OF ANCESTORS AFTER MAJOR MIGRATION > ACROSS THE ATLANTIC OCEAN > > A. Rather static habits of most settlers in the English colonies > throughout the Colonial Era. > > 1. Most colonists rarely moved more than 20 miles in their lifetime, > except for Scotch-Irish who moved often. > 2. New England religious and social attitudes discouraged much > movement, often required considerable preparation before moves > were sanctioned. > 3. Southern settlers who came from England found themselves > oriented toward England economically, socially and politically, and > by 1776 more than 85% were still within thirty miles of the Atlantic > coast. > 4. "Pennsylvania Dutch" though settling most of the frontier from > NY South, rarely moved after selecting a permanent home. > > B. Surge of interest in the West leads to settlement in Tennessee, > Kentucky, and the Ohio Valley after 1750. > > 1. Exploration shows great desirability of these areas. > 2. Establishment of military roads such as Forbes Road and > Braddocks Road opens the Ohio Valley during the French and > Indian War, after 1754. > 3. Development of Cumberland Gap and the Wilderness Road > open Kentucky. > 4. Utilization of the Indian trails of the Great Valley of the > Appalachians brings settlers from Virginia and Maryland to > Tennessee, while North Carolinians use the river valleys of the > Holston, Nolichucky and French Broad to the same part of eastern > Tennessee. > > C. Revolutionary War encourages western settlement. > > 1. Removal of indians from desired land often justified as part > of war effort. > 2. British policy which often discouraged settlement west of > Appalachians no longer operative. > 3. Individual states, especially Virginia and North Carolina, > encourage settlement to solidify their claims before 1778. > 4. Land speculation rampant. > 5. Western land utilized for land bounties given to Revolutionary > War soldiers. > 6. Treaty of Paris of 1783 ending the Revolutionary War almost > doubles the area claimed by the U.S. when Britain agrees to a > Mississippi River boundary. > > D. Western Movement escalates during the early national period. > > 1. Legislation such as the Northwest Ordinances of 1784 > (deciding that the West will be admitted as states equal to the > original 13 colonies), 1785 (providing for the surveying and orderly > sale of western land) and 1787 (providing specific steps for > establishment of territories, then states) encourages settlement. > 2. Challenges to U.S. claims to land north and west of Ohio river > by Britain, and in the far south by Spain leads to heightened > American interest in Ohio and the "Yazoo Strip." > 3. The clearing of Indian and British claims to the Ohio Country > by the Treaty of Ft. Greenville and Jay's Treaty in 1795 and Pinckney's > Treaty, in which Spain not only recognizes the American interpretation > of the Yazoo controversy, but guarantees Americans the right to > navigate the entire Mississippi River erased many of the impediments > to settlement in these areas. > 4. Eli Whitney's invention of the cotton gin 1793, making the growing > of upland cotton commercially feasible at a time when European > technological development has led to a major demand for a new > source of fibers, greatly affects the nature and level of western > settlement. > A) Southerners with land find a ready sale for it, at unheard of > prices, which gives them the funds to go elsewhere. > B) Even though land suitable for growing of cotton will usually > cost between $15 and $50 per acre, many settlers from the Old > South cling to the traditional pattern of going almost due west, > because of the great profits that can be made from raising cotton. > C) Many southerners break the traditional pattern of settling > almost straight west of where they had lived before and go instead > clear up the Ohio River Valley, settling in southern Ohio, Indiana > or Illinois. This is largely because: > 1) Slavery which almost everyone thought was dead, was revitalized > because of the need for dependable cotton cultivators, many left > the south because of an aversion to slavery; > 2) Some left because they didn't like blacks, and because the > Northwest Ordinances forbade slavery, they chose to go there; > 3) Most who left the south and went to the Ohio Valley probably did > so because they were guaranteed that they could obtain what they > considered to be exceptional fertile land at no more than $1.25 per > acre. > > 5. Abrupt departure of many people from New England between > 1800 and 1810. > a) Appeal of rich land in upstate NY, now free of most Indian claims. > b) Appeal of land in Ohio Valley, especially northern Ohio, Indiana > and Illinois. > c) People moving from New England to Ohio Valley begin raising > sheep and agri products, making it difficult for New Englanders > with their generally poor soil, to compete. > d) Embargo Act of 1807 destroys the New England shipping > industry and the New England economy sags considerably. > e) Much of the traditional New England resistance to individual > distant settlement is fading. > f) The introduction of steamboats, whch make upriver navigation > of the Mississippi and Ohio rivers practical, further enhances the > economy of the area west of New England. > 6. The LOUISIANA PURCHASE of 1803 almost doubles the land > of the United States, establishes new opportunities for Americans > in the far west, and entices many young men to settle, grow cotton, > trade, trap and explore. > > E. ADDITIONAL FACTORS LEADING TO THE TREMENDOUS > SETTLEMENT OF THE FIRST 50 YEARS OF THE 19th CENTURY. > > 1. Canal boom of the 1820s, especially the extremely successful > Erie Canal which drastically lowers the cost of east-west shipping. > 2. Changing Indian policy which by 1816 encourages each Indian > head of family to select 640 acreas on which to live or move west > of Mississippi River and by 1826 tells all Indians east of Mississippi > they must remove, thus making much land available, especially for > cotton production in the south. > 3. The Adams-Onis Treaty in 1819 gives the U.S. Spain's claim to > Florida, but also to the land north of the 42nd parallel (the northern > border of California). > 4. American settlement of Texas, beginning in 1823, which leads > to Texas independence in 1836, admission to the Union in 1845. > 5. Development of the railroad as a means of transportation and > of encouraging westward movement. > 6. American interest in Oregon soars after 1841, with rapid > settlement of the Willamette River Valley. > 7. Mormons, dispossessed from their homes in Missouri and > Illinois, go first to Iowa, then make a major migration to the Salt > Lake Valley in 1847, quickly expanding throughout the Great Basin. > 8. The War with Mexico ends with the Treaty of Guadelupe Hidalgo > giving the Southwest to the U.S. > 9. The discovery of large amounts of placer gold in California > leads to a major rush there in 1849 and statehood in 1850. > 10. The Pacific Railway Act and Homestead Act in 1862 lead to a > further, effective settlement of the west. > 11. The CENSUS of 1890 OFFICIALLY declares that there is no > longer a frontier in the U.S. > > III. IMPORTANT FACTS THAT MAY HELP YOU FIND WHERE > YOUR FAMILY CAME FROM OR WENT. > > A. RULE OF THE HARVEST. Before the 1850s (and McCormick's > reaper) families rarely planted more than they could harvest, > which was between 15-25 acres per able bodied person who > could help with the harvest. Finding out how many acres your > family cultivated will help you know how many many people > were in the household. > B. IMPORTANCE OF HARDWOOD TREES. In both the North > and the South, conventional wisdom (and you thought it was > a '90s soundbite!) indicated that land covered with hardwood > trees was the best, while grassland was to be avoided. Despite > the great difficulty of clearing land covered with oaks and maples, > that was the land most likely selected by your ancestors prior > to the 1820s. > C. FAMILIES WHO MADE THEIR LIVING PIONEER FARMING > rarely moved unless they had enough means to live on for at > least 2 years, or had someone who would provide for them this > long. This is due to the fact that it took 2 years to go through the > process of converting a hardwood forest into an economically > viable farm. If your family moved, it usually meant they had > enough money to survive for 2 years without much add'l income, > or enough $ to buy an already improved farm. Few poverty stricken > people (PSP)moved west, but a fair number of PSPs moved east. > D. MOST SETTLERS BEFORE 1800 at least in the North, moved > west during the winter, usually in January and early February. > Expect your families to have moved then, not in the summer. > E. With a new notable exceptions, your ancestors MOVED ALMOST > DUE WEST, rarely deviating more than a few degrees up or down. > F. IF YOUR ANCESTORS WERE IN NEW ENGLAND PRIOR TO > 1700, expect them to stay very close to the same site until 1800. > By 1810, they will most likely be in upstate New York, by 1820 in > northern Ohio, Indiana or Illinois, and by 1850 perhaps in Iowa, > Oregon, California or Utah. > G. TOWNS SETTLED BY NEW ENGLANDERS usually had streets > running north-south and east-west, while towns settled by > Southernors often placed less emphasis on grid patterns. > > TRAVEL ROUTES. > > COLONIAL ROADS TO 1750. As one of the earliest east-west > wagon roads, the Lancaster road linked Philadelphia to Harrisburg > before 1730. A connection from Lancaster to Winchester, Virginia, > in the early 1740s, created what was either called the Philadelphia > Wagon Road or the Great Valley Road. The Fall Line Road crossed > Virginia and the Carolinas, and eventually into Georgia. By 1746, > the Pioneer's Road had connected Alexandria to Winchester, > Virginia, joining with the Great Valley Road. By 1748, the Upper Road > became an important wagon route for migrations into the Carolinas. > > THE WAY WEST, 1775-1795. Daniel Boone's Wilderness Road was > the route for thousands of settlers into Kentucky. Meanwhile the > western Pennsylvania routes provided an overland access to the > Ohio River. After the Revolutionary War, western migrations on > these routes continued to increase. > > ________________________________________________________________ > YOU'RE PAYING TOO MUCH FOR THE INTERNET! > Juno now offers FREE Internet Access! > Try it today - there's no risk! For your FREE software, visit: > http://dl.www.juno.com/get/tagj. > > ============================== > The RootsWeb WorldConnect Project: > Tens of millions of individuals... and counting. > http://worldconnect.genealogy.rootsweb.com/