USA HISTORY

Detailed explanation-1: -Town meeting-the act of a group of individuals gathering together to make decisions-can be traced to the 1630s. Town meeting finds its roots in the earliest New England settlements, when towns people assembled to discuss and decide upon all matters that impacted the community.

Detailed explanation-2: -New England or ‘Open’ Town Meetings are public forums that promote participation in local governance. Town meetings allow residents to voice their opinions on public issues and deliberate and vote on laws and budgets.

Detailed explanation-3: -The dominant religion practiced in New England was Puritanism, except for in Rhode Island were many colonists were Quakers. The Puritans were a sect of Protestant religious dissidents who felt the Church of England was too closely associated with the Catholic religion and needed to be reformed.

Detailed explanation-4: -For the majority of colonists, daily life consisted of supporting the profession the family was centered around. Nearly all rural communities were supported by farming while the larger, more concentrated port cities were hubs for mercantile businesses and artisan trades.