colony · North America and Oceania

Province of Massachusetts Bay

1691 CE – 1776 CE · capital Boston

The royal province that united Massachusetts, Plymouth and Maine in 1691, and whose capital Boston became the flashpoint of the American Revolution.

Origins

After the fall of the Dominion of New England, Increase Mather negotiated a new charter from William III and Mary II in 1691. It merged the Massachusetts Bay Colony, Plymouth Colony, Maine, Martha's Vineyard and Nantucket into one province. Governor William Phips arrived in 1692, just as the Salem witch trials began.

Rule and society

The Crown now appointed the governor, but the elected assembly chose the council and controlled salaries, leading to constant friction. Property, not church membership, now qualified voters. Boston thrived on shipbuilding, fishing and Atlantic trade. Massachusetts led New England's wars against New France, and in 1745 forces raised by governor William Shirley captured Louisbourg on Ile Royale. Thomas Hutchinson, a native-born merchant, became the province's last civilian governor.

Decline and legacy

Resistance to British taxes grew through the Stamp Act riots, the Boston Massacre of 1770 and the Boston Tea Party of 1773. After the Massachusetts Government Act of 1774, General Thomas Gage ruled, and fighting at Lexington and Concord in 1775 began the war that made Massachusetts a state of the United States.

Lineage

Plymouth Colony 1620 CE – 1691 CEMassachusetts Bay Colony 1628 CE – 1691 CEProvince of Massachusetts BayUnited States 1776 CE – present

Connections (2)

More states of North America and Oceania →

Cite this page
APA
The Epoch Institute. (2026). Province of Massachusetts Bay. In The Epoch Institute States Register. https://the-epoch-institute.org/state/province-of-massachusetts-bay
MLA
“Province of Massachusetts Bay.” The Epoch Institute States Register, The Epoch Institute, 2026, https://the-epoch-institute.org/state/province-of-massachusetts-bay. Accessed .
Chicago
The Epoch Institute. “Province of Massachusetts Bay.” The Epoch Institute States Register. 2026. https://the-epoch-institute.org/state/province-of-massachusetts-bay.
Harvard
The Epoch Institute (2026) ‘Province of Massachusetts Bay’, The Epoch Institute States Register. Available at: https://the-epoch-institute.org/state/province-of-massachusetts-bay (Accessed: ).

Last reviewed October 2026Random state ↻