Alternate New Englands

[David S Poepoe]

I've been reading a interesting book about The South (ie. Dixie) and its gotten me thinking about a few possible WIs. One of them would be a revision (reimaginaneering(?)) of a previous ATL that I posted much earlier.

1. WI the Northern colonies had remained loyal to Britain and the Southern colonies, Virginia and southward, had become independent. It appears that there were fewer Loyalists in the South than there were in the North and it was the Southern colonies that first sought independence first, while the Northern colonies sought reconciliation.

2. WI New England seceded from the US over the Louisiana Purchase? It appears that at the time there were New England interests that feared the expansion of the US to the detriment of New England congressional power.

3. WI the North had succeded in passing amendments that would have limited government-imposed trade embaroges to sixty days and another that would have prevented the election of the next president from the same state as the current president. (Not likely a major political item these days, but when there were fewer states in the Union it would be important.)

 

[Dutchie]

I've always wondered what would have happened if the N.E. merchants had worried enough about their English trade to remain Loyalists... I could see N.E. forming the heart of British North America, along with Upper and Lower Canada, the Atlantic Maritimes. 'Canadian' (or whatever they'd call themselves) confederation would come a lot earlier than 1867, gaining Dominion status within the Empire. The capital may be Boston, or maybe Providence.
The rump US would be a lot weaker - wonder if they could still have afforded the Louisiana Purchase? Maybe the British claim it during the Napoleonic Wars instead, surrounding the US with British territory?

 

[Max Sinister]

@David:
1. Really? I would've thought that except for Virginia, the percentage of loyalists in the south was higher than anywhere else. How many revolutionaries came from NE, and how many famous loyalists?

2. Not for the reason you mentioned, but it is a New English secession: DoD.

 

[Tom Veil]

Usually, the way that I hear US history, Georgia and the Carolinas were the great loyalist bastions. Most AHs that do a pre-Civil War split of the US have these areas stay with Britain while VA and the Northern states form a rump USA.