#ststes

· Virginia:

Year Colony Was Founded - 1607

Year Of Statehood - 1788

* First of the colonies to be established. A group of colonists called the Virginia Company founded the first English settlement in North America on May 14, 1607. It was named Jamestown for its location on the banks of the James River. Virginia ratified the Constitution on June 25, 1788, becoming the tenth (10th) state in the Union.

· Massachusetts:

Year Colony Was Founded - 1620

Year Of Statehood - 1788

* The first Massachusetts colony was established when the Pilgrims landed at Plymouth Rock in 1620. There were originally two (2) colonies in Massachusetts; the Plymouth Colony or the Old Colony established by Pilgrims and the Massachusetts Bay Colony settled by a group of Puritans in 1630. The two (2) colonies, (as well as the colony in Maine), were merged by charter in 1691. Massachusetts ratified the Constitution on February 06, 1788 and became the sixth (6th) state.

· New Hampshire:

Year Colony Was Founded - 1623

Year Of Statehood - 1788

* It was unofficially established as a fishing settlement in 1623. A land grant in the area was subsequently given the official name if New Hampshire in 1629. New Hampshire became the ninth (9th) state to ratify the Constitution, doing so just before Virginia, on June 21, 1788.

· New York:

Year Colony Was Founded - 1624

Year Of Statehood - 1788

* The first permanent settlement in New York was established by the Dutch in 1624. New York ratified the Constitution and became the eleventh (11th) state on July 26, 1788.

· Delaware:

Year Colony Was Founded - 1631

Year Of Statehood - 1787

* The first European settlement in Delaware, at the town now called Lewes, was established by the Dutch in 1631. Delaware was the first (1st) state to ratify the U.S. Constitution on December 07, 1787.

· Connecticut:

Year Colony Was Founded - 1633

Year Of Statehood - 1788

* Connecticut was founded by European settlers from Massachusetts in 1633. It ratified the Constitution and became the fifth (5th) state on January 09, 1788.

· Maryland:

Year Colony Was Founded - 1634

Year Of Statehood - 1788

* The charter for the colony of Maryland was granted in 1632 and the first expedition landed in 1634. Maryland ratified the U.S. Constitution and became the seventh (7th) state on April 28, 1788.

· Rhode Island:

Year Colony Was Founded - 1636

Year Of Statehood - 1790

* Roger Williams founded the colony of Rhode Island in 1636 after being banished from the colony of Massachusetts for his political beliefs. Preferring the Articles of Confederation, Rhode Island was the last of the original 13 colonies to ratify the Constitution. It became the thirteenth (13th) state on May 29, 1790.

· New Jersey:

Year Colony Was Founded - 1660

Year Of Statehood - 1787

* The first permanent settlement in New Jersey was established in 1660. New Jersey ratified the U.S. Constitution and became the third (3rd) state on December 18, 1787.

· North Carolina:

Year Colony Was Founded - 1663

Year Of Statehood - 1789

* The charter for the Carolinas was issued in 1663, though Roanoke Island off the coast of North Carolina had previously been settled by colonists from Plymouth in 1587. They later vanished and it is still not known what became of them. North Carolina ratified the Constitution and became the twelfth (12th) state on November 21, 1789.

· South Carolina:

Year Colony Was Founded - 1670

Year Of Statehood - 1788

* South Carolina was settled in 1670. It ratified the Constitution and became the eighth (8th) state on May 23, 1788.

· Pennsylvania:

Year Colony Was Founded - 1682

Year Of Statehood - 1787

* Pennsylvania was established as a Quaker colony in 1682. Pennsylvania ratified the U.S. Constitution and became the second (2nd) state on December 12, 1787.

· Georgia:

Year Colony Was Founded - 1732

Year Of Statehood - 1788