The first waves of European settlers to Northern America were collections of religious nonconformists, entrepreneurs, ethnic minorities (such as the Scotch-Irish), and restless adventure seekers.
One thing they had in common, though, was they wanted to be left alone to live life as they saw fit.
And in order to forge a life out of a land with no governments, courts, schools, or police, they had to be self-reliant.
It was the self-reliant mindset that spawned the freest society in the history of mankind.