New England has played a dominant role in American history. Until well into the 19th century, New England was the country's cultural and economic center. The earliest European settlers of New England were English Protestants who came in search of religious liberty. They gave the region its distinctive political format --  town meetings (an outgrowth of meetings held by church elders) in which citizens gathered to discuss issues of the day. Town meetings still function in many New England communities today and have been revived as a form of dialogue in the national political arena.

America's first college, Harvard, was founded at Cambridge, Massachusetts in 1636. Without, however, large expanses of rich farmland or a mild climate, generations of exasperated New England farmers declared that the chief product of their land was stones.  By 1750, many settlers had turned from farming to other pursuits.  In their business dealings, New Englanders gained a reputation for hard work, shrewdness, thrift, and ingenuity.

Source: http://usa.usembassy.de/travel-regions.htm