These were established in the 17th century by those New England Puritans who preferred the presbyterian system of church polity (government) to that of New England Congregationalism. Also in the 17th century, Scotch-Irish, English, and other settlers formed Presbyterian churches in Maryland, Delaware, and Pennsylvania.

Why did Presbyterians settle in America?

In the late 1600s, economic problems and religious persecution prompted many Scotch-Irish to migrate to America, and most settled in the Middle Colonies. Their numbers were augmented by Presbyterian migration from Puritan New England, and soon there were enough Presbyterians in America to organize congregations.

What colony were the Presbyterians in?

A second stream of dissent was Scotch-Irish Presbyterianism. Over 100,000 Presbyterians migrated from Northern Ireland to the colonies in the period from 1717 to 1776, populating principally the mid-Atlantic colonies of New York, New Jersey, and Pennsylvania, and adding greatly to the strength of Presbyterianism there.