It was before the era of railways hence waterways were critical factor. They determined the population centers access to trade. Examples rivers (New Orleans, Cincinnati), Great Lakes (Chicago, Detroit), canals (Milwaukee) and obviously sea port cities (New York)
Spain and France were also among the strongest in Europe, with Portugal being a player early on because of their sea worthiness and exploration. I can’t recall of Portugal’s decline had already started by the beginning of the 17th Century, but it was getting close.
what got people motivated was that it basically said that if you lived on the government given land for 5 years than it was yours.
