Thirteen colonies declared independence from Britain in the Declaration of Independence in 1776.
The colonies stretched along the Atlantic coast of North America, from New Hampshire in the north to Georgia in the south. They were separate British colonies with different economies, governments, and local traditions, but they cooperated through the Continental Congress during the crisis with Britain.
The Declaration described the colonies as “Free and Independent States.” After independence, the thirteen states continued to operate under the Articles of Confederation until the Constitution created a stronger federal system.
The thirteen were Delaware, Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Georgia, Connecticut, Massachusetts, Maryland, South Carolina, New Hampshire, Virginia, New York, North Carolina, and Rhode Island. The term “Thirteen Colonies” refers to the British colonies that joined the revolutionary movement, not every European settlement in North America.