For America250, thirteen British colonies declared independence together in 1776.
These colonies occupied the Atlantic coast of North America and became the original states of the United States. They were commonly grouped as the New England Colonies, the Middle Colonies, and the Southern Colonies.
The Thirteen Colonies did not all have identical governments or economies, but they shared growing disputes with Britain over taxation, representation, and imperial authority. Their delegates coordinated through the Continental Congress during the American Revolution.
The number thirteen is central to early American symbolism. It appears in the original grouping of states, the first U.S. flag’s thirteen stripes and stars, and the language of the Declaration, which refers to the colonies as free and independent states. Georgia was the last of the thirteen colonies to be established, in 1732.