An excellent
book (although it's over 700 pages) on this subject is "Albion's Seed". It describes
the various social, economic and genealogical backgrounds of the colonists and the ways that
they informed the structure of the United States.
Some of the differences
include;
Time of Settlement: The colonies were
settled over the course of more than 100 years (Virginia in 1607 and Georgia in 1733); this was
partly due to the time it took to establish infrastructure, explore, and to negotiate the
various political boundaries.
Point of Origin:
Some colonies, for various reasons, had significantly more immigrants from a
particular Old World region, which subsequently influenced that colony's culture and politics.
For example, Pennsylvania is famously influenced by its initial status as a Dutch colony, which
led to a significant Germanic influence.
Economy:
This was an extremely influential point in the development of the colonies. New
England, for example, didn't have as much useful farming land for crops like corn and grain, and
instead developed greater manufacturing and trading industries.
Geography: The physical layout of the colonies also
influenced their development. A variety of factors led to a greater concentration of cities and
ports in the Northern colonies, while the South tended more toward a plantation-style land
management.
It is difficult to make generalizations about the settlement of
all 13 colonies at once; for example, it could be said that the southern colonies were more
rural than the northern ones, but the western portions of the northern ones were just as, if not
more wild, than their southern counterparts. Likewise, the political influences that led to the
formation of each colony were rarely uniform; factors such as the nearby Spanish and French
colonies, the wars in Europe, financial need, Native American alliances and threats, and slave
labor all influenced the final form of each colony.
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