Photo:
Wikipedia.org
The land that
is now Pennsylvania was actually first claimed by the
Swedes under Peter Minuit in 1638. Minuit had agreed to
help them establish a colony after having a falling out
with Dutch officials. Although the Swedes did colonize
the region on the west banks of the Delaware River, known
at the time as Nya Sverige, or New Sweden, they were attacked
and displaced by the Dutch in 1655. In turn, the British
would dispatch the Dutch from the region in 1664.
Pennsylvania
was founded in 1681 by William Penn. Penn was issued a
land grant by King Charles II largely because of a significant
debt owed to his father, Admiral Penn. At the time, the
grant was one of the largest in terms of area ever known.
It was named Pennsylvania, which means Penn's Woods, after
Admiral Penn.
Penn quickly established a government based on religious
freedom for the Quakers. The colony's religious tolerance
soon attracted German and Scottish immigrants, and promoted
more peaceful relations with local Indians. Furthermore,
it helped Philadelphia grow into the most important city
in the thirteen colonies, and it helped established Pennsylvania
Dutch Country, where German "Deutsh" political
and religious refugees formed farming communities
