Even in the mid-eighteenth century, when the New World had been settled for 130 years, it was an enormous risk for a European to cross the Atlantic Ocean and immigrate to an American colony. The long ocean voyage was itself hazardous, especially since most ships were overcrowded and filthy. Once in America, the colonists faced the challenge of finding shelter and obtaining a livelihood in an unfamiliar environment where the weather was often harsh. Yet decades of war had caused extreme poverty in Europe, and many people were willing to face the dangers of immigrating to the colonies in the hope of making a better life for themselves and their families.

What awaited these newcomers was not merely a single New World but a variety of colonies. Having been founded for different reasons and settled by various groups of immigrants, the thirteen colonies...