Life In The British Colonies Most of the New England towns were self sufficient. Early towns were built along a narrow road. Each family had a house with a small A meeting house stood in the center of the town. The meeting house was used for worship. They were also, used for town meetings. During the town meetings, male land owners could take part in the government. There were fields near each town which grew crops. In the center of the town, there were common of grassy areas where the herds grazed. In the town , there are important people. The herder took care of the herds on the common.