A Puritan minister named John Davenport had…

A Puritan minister named John Davenport had led his flock from exile in the Netherlands back to England and finally to America in the spring of 1637.

The group had arrived in Boston on the ship Hector on June 26, but decided to strike out on their own, based on their impression that the Massachusetts Bay Colony is lax in its religious observances.

That fall, London merchant Theophilus Eaton had led an exploration party south to the north shore of Long Island Sound in search of a suitable site.

He had purchased land from the natives at the mouth of the Quinnipiac River.

The group of five hundred colonists had set out in the spring of 1638, and on April 14 they had arrived at their 'New Haven' on the Connecticut shore.

The site seemed ideal for trade with a good port between Boston and New Amsterdam and access to the furs of the Connecticut River valley.

However, while the colony success as a settlement and religious experiment, its future as a trade center is some years away.

The colonists adopt a set of Fundamental Articles for self-government in 1639, partly as a result of a similar action in the river towns.

A governing council of seven is established, with Eaton as chief magistrate and Cunningham as pastor.

The articles require that "...the word of God shall be the only rule..." and this is maintained even over English common law tradition.

Since the Bible contains no reference to trial by jury, they have eliminated it and the council sits in judgment.

Only members of their church congregation are eligible to vote.

The colony's success soon attracts other believers, as well as those who are not Puritans.