Life in the Colonies

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Life in the Colonies 17th 18th Century
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A. Slavery
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Introduction of Slavery

• 1st slaves arrive in VA in 1619
• Not numerous because of price
• Factors favoring slavery
• Self-renewing labor force
• Price decreases/begins new industry
• Caucasian superiority
• By 1750, slavery legal in ALL colonies

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Bacons Rebellion (1676)

• Landless farmers forced to settle in Western VA
• Had trouble with Natives
• Governor Berkley sided with the Natives
• Bacon 1000 men attacked the Natives burned
  the capital

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Labor in the South

• Problem with Indentured Servants
• not easy to identify
• would gain freedom
• became landless poor
• Colonies would turn to African slaves more so
  after the 17th century
• Middle Passage trans-Atlantic trip from Africa

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The Atlantic Slave Trade
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Slave Codes

• Laws put into place to control the slaves
• Stated
• Africans all children were property
• Slaves could not be taught to read
• Christianity or conversion were not grounds for
  freedom

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Slave Revolts

• 10 or more slaves trying to gain freedom
• Stono Rebellion (1739) SC slaves trying to go
  to FL
• 80 Slaves
• Killed or sold to
• West Indies

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• B. Religion in
• the Colonies

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Half-Way Covenant (1662)

• As population of New England grows, emphasis on
  religion declines
• Church leaders designed a new formula for Church
  membership trying to increase participation
• Would allow for partial membership
• Did not have to have the conversion experience
• Puritans trying to maintain control over New
  England

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The Great Awakening (1730s 1740s)

• Enlightenment ideas decreased church attendance
  in ALL colonies
• Great Awakening was a movement to bring religion
  back to ALL of the colonists
• Jonathan Edwards preached Sinners in the Hands
  of an Angry God
• Instead of predestination promised repentance
  would equal salvation

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C. Political Life in the Colonies
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Types of Colonies

• Royal Colonies
• NY, VA, GA, NH
• Proprietary
• MD, PA, DE,
• NC, SC, NJ
• Charter
• MA, CT, RI

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Colonial Governments

• Governors
• Appointed by those who controlled the colony
• Had most of the power
• Only weakness legislature controlled their
  salary
• Two House Assemblies
• Had limited power
• Elected by property holding men

• Local Government
• New England Town Meetings
• Appointed Justices of the Peace in South
• Elected County officials in Middle Colonies

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Evolving Home Rule

• Began in New England
• Dominion of New England rejected and overthrown
• Navigation Acts ignored
• Bacons Rebellions shows the potential of the
  lower classes

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D. A Changing Population
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A Growing Population

• 1700 300,000 colonists
• 1775 2.5 million people
• Increase due to natural reproduction
  immigration
• Growing Diversity
• German
• Scots-Irish
• Irish

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Stratification of Society
Upper Class Plantation Owners (South) Wealthy Merchants, Lawyers, Clergy (North)
Middle Class Yeoman Farmers
Lower Class Tradesmen Manual Laborers
Slaves

• 17thc colonists were on equal footing
• 18thc colonists were divided into a rigid social
  hierarchy

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Gender Roles

• Men
• Head of Family/Property Owner
• In charge of Outside Affairs
• Church
• Politics
• Law

• Women
• Few Legal Rights
• Essential to well being of the Family
• In charge of Inside Affairs
• Child rearing
• Cultivation of the Garden
• Food Production/Preparation
• Maintaining Home
• Production of Clothing

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• E. Economy

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Means of Living

• 80 of the population involved in agriculture by
  1775
• Humble lifestyles
• Up at dawn
• Bed at dusk
• More Clerics, Physicians, Merchants and Jurists
  emerged in the 18th century
• Americans had a higher standard of living than
  England

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Triangular Trade

• Trade with other areas of the world made the
  colonies a success
• Known as Triangular Trade

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Mercantilism

• The economy of colonies was to benefit the mother
  country
• Colonies provided raw materials, mother country
  provided finished products
• Compatible with the Middle and Southern
  economies, not with New England

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The Navigation Acts (1650-1696)

• Laws passed to enforce policy of Mercantilism
• All foreign goods imported had taxes placed on
  them (tariffs)
• All goods exported to foreign nations had taxes
• Transportation had to be English
• Enumerated goods tobacco, rice, indigo, fur,
  skins, pine masts, tar, and resin could only be
  shipped to England

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Molasses Act (1733)

• Tax placed on Molasses from foreign nations
• The British had difficulty enforcing the tax
• Colonists were outraged
• Most colonial merchants turned to smuggling

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Limitation of Competition

• Britain also limited the industries that would
  compete with British industries.
• Wool Act 1699
• Hat Act of 1732
• Iron Act of 1750

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Salutary Neglect

• Policy of Robert Walpole
• Believed that without interference, the economy
  of the English empire would run smoother
• Stopped enforcing mercantilist laws
• Allowed for peace and prosperity to last until
  1763

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F. An Informed Society
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Printing Presses

• Many printing presses allowed for newspapers
• By 1775, there were 40 newspapers in the colonies
• Best way to disseminate news (esp. in 1775)

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John Peter Zenger Trial

• Trial from 1734-35
• Case was about Zengers printing about the
  corrupt governor of NY
• Accused of libel even though he printed the
  truth
• Victory! And gave us the idea of the freedom of
  the press