Final answer:
Incompatibility was not recognized as a ground for divorce in the American colonies; recognized grounds included adultery, abandonment, and cruelty. Legal norms required proving these grounds, and divorce was largely inaccessible to women without means.
Step-by-step explanation:
The ground for divorce that was not recognized in the American colonies is incompatibility. Divorce laws in the colonial era were based on a more restrictive set of criteria, mainly influenced by religious and legal traditions brought from Europe. While adultery, abandonment, and cruelty were considered valid grounds for divorce, incompatibility was not recognized as a legitimate reason to dissolve a marriage during that time. Cases like adultery or cruelty had to be proven, often offering a higher threshold for obtaining a divorce. Furthermore, the patriarchal norms dictated that as long as a husband provided the basic necessities such as food, clothing, and shelter to his wife, she had limited legal rights to pursue a divorce. It was not until decades later, primarily due to feminist campaigns in the late nineteenth century, that divorce laws began to change, recognizing additional reasons such as incompatibility.