New Haven Colony

New Haven Colony
1638–1664
Flag
Map of the Connecticut, New Haven, and Saybrook colonies
Status	English colony
Capital	New Haven
Common languages	English
Religion	Puritanism
Government	Self-governing colony
Governor
• 1639-1658	Theophilus Eaton (first)
• 1661-1664	William Leete (last)
Legislature	General Court
History
• Established	1638
• Merged with Connecticut Colony	1664
Currency	Pound sterling
Succeeded by Connecticut Colony Province of New York Province of Pennsylvania Province of New Jersey
Today part of	United States  ∟Connecticut  ∟New York  ∟New Jersey  ∟Pennsylvania  ∟Delaware

The New Haven Colony was a small English colony in Connecticut Colony from 1638 to 1664, with outposts in New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, and Delaware.^[1]

The history of the colony was a series of disappointments and failures. The most serious problem was that New Haven colony never had a charter giving it legal title to exist. The larger, stronger colony of Connecticut to the north did have a charter. New Haven's leaders were businessmen and traders, but they were never able to build up a large or profitable trade because their agricultural base was poor, farming the rocky soil was difficult, and the location was isolated.

Oliver Cromwell recommended that the New Haven colonists all migrate to Ireland or to Spanish territories that he planned to conquer, but the Puritans of New Haven were committed to their new land. The towns in New Haven Colony joined Connecticut Colony in 1664.^[2] It then became the city of New Haven, from which other modern towns in the New Haven region were later split off.