University Library, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign

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Sorry, we couldn't find anything matching "In the New England colonies, as in the French settlements in the American Bottom, commons were areas set aside for communal use, grazing domestic animals, gathering wood, and hunting. Both arose from medieval customs in England, but while the French continued to farm in narrow strips, in New England the farmers tilled their land in square plots at the edge of town. The early French homes were laid out in rows at the end of the strips (long lots), but later, as in New England, they were clustered together for mutual protection.".