America250 commemorates the 13 original colonies that declared independence and became the founding states of the United States.
The colonies stretched along the Atlantic coast from New Hampshire to Georgia. They were New Hampshire, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, Connecticut, New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Delaware, Maryland, Virginia, North Carolina, South Carolina, and Georgia.
These colonies did not all have identical economies, governments, or religious cultures. New England, the Middle Colonies, and the Southern Colonies developed in different ways, yet representatives joined the Continental Congress during the Revolutionary era.
The number 13 remains visible in national symbols. The American flag has 13 alternating stripes, representing the original colonies, while its stars represent the states in the Union. The flag’s design changed as new states entered, but the stripes remained at 13.