Providence Island Company

views updated

PROVIDENCE ISLAND COMPANY

PROVIDENCE ISLAND COMPANY. The Providence Island Company, which functioned from 1630 to 1641, was incorporated for the purpose of colonizing the Caribbean islands of Providence, Henrietta, and Association. Although profit was the main objective of the company's wealthy promoters, they were also interested in founding a colony for Puritans. From the outset the undertaking foundered. Soil and climate were unfavorable, and the location of the colony in the heart of Spanish territory was a constant source of danger. To attract settlers, the company's promoters tried to divert to Providence Island English Puritans planning to go to New England; they even encouraged disillusioned New England Puritans to migrate. A group headed by John Humphry left Massachusetts in 1641 to settle in Providence, but en route it was conquered by a Spanish expedition.

BIBLIOGRAPHY

Bridenbaugh, Carl, and Roberta Bridenbaugh. No Peace Beyond the Line: The English in the Caribbean, 1624–1690. New York: Oxford University Press, 1972.

Viola G.Barnes/a. r.

See alsoCaribbean Policy ; Chartered Companies ; Colonial Charters ; Colonial Settlements ; Puritans and Puritanism ; Trading Companies .

About this article

Providence Island Company

Updated About encyclopedia.com content Print Article