Thirteen colonies were represented by the Declaration of Independence as the original American states.
The colonies occupied much of Britain’s Atlantic seaboard territory in North America. They became the political units that declared themselves free and independent states in 1776. The Declaration’s formal title referred to “the thirteen united States of America.”
The thirteen were New Hampshire, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, Connecticut, New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Delaware, Maryland, Virginia, North Carolina, South Carolina, and Georgia. Their economies, populations, and political traditions differed considerably, but they joined in resistance to British rule.
The number thirteen is sometimes confused with the number of colonies voting on particular days. For example, New York initially abstained from the July 4 vote before receiving instructions to support independence. The colonies later became the first states of the United States, although Vermont joined the Union separately in 1791.