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Former British colonies and protectorates in the Americas

  • Antigua and BarbudaHunter-gatherers settled the islands starting around 3000 BC. They arrived on canoes from Central and South America. Carbon dating has established the…
  • GrenadaChristopher Columbus sighted the island of Grenada during his third voyage to the Americas in 1498. He named it La Concepción in honour of the Virgin Mary.
  • Saint Kitts and NevisThe Kalinago people called the island Liamuiga, which translates to fertile land. They arrived around 1300 CE and displaced earlier agricultural societies…
  • GuadeloupeChristopher Columbus set foot on the island in November 1493. He named it Guadeloupe after a shrine to the Virgin Mary located in the Spanish town of…
  • British GuianaSir Walter Raleigh published The Discovery of Guiana in the early 17th century, though his account focused on Venezuela rather than the lands that would…
  • MississippiAround 9500 BC, the first human groups arrived in what is now Mississippi. These Paleo-Indians hunted megafauna that would soon vanish from the landscape.
  • GuyanaThe name Guyana comes from an indigenous Amerindian language and means land of many waters. This vast territory lies between latitudes 1° and 9°N, and…
  • CanadaIn 1534, French explorer Jacques Cartier planted a cross on the shores of Gaspé Bay and declared possession of New France in the name of King Francis I.
  • British West IndiesIn 1604, an English merchant named Charles Leigh established a short-lived settlement on the Wiapoco River. This location now forms part of the border…
  • South CarolinaThe Atlantic Ocean meets the land along South Carolina's eastern edge, creating a landscape defined by salt marshes and barrier islands.
  • United StatesPaleo-Indians first migrated from North Asia to North America at least 15,000 years ago. They crossed the Bering land bridge or followed submerged Ice Age…
  • Georgia (U.S. state)On the 12th of February 1733, British General James Oglethorpe established the Province of Georgia in Savannah. This settlement occurred one year after the…
  • VirginiaIn 1607, the London Company established Jamestown as the first permanent English settlement in North America. This event marked a turning point for the…