American Life

1
American Life

• 17th Century

2
Unhealthy Chesapeake

• Harsh Wilderness Lifestyle
• Many diseases
• Life expectancy for many was 50
• Chesapeake area had a 6-1 ration of males to
  females
• Many children born out of wedlock
• Virginia most populated colony

Elisha Woodburys Gravetyphoid fever victim in
1750
3
The Tobacco Economy

• Much tobacco cultivation in Chesapeake Bay area
• Much early tobacco cultivated by indentured
  servants
• Earned freedom dues (corn, clothes, land?) at end
  of indenture

Indentured servant contract
4
The Head-Right System

• Under this system, if an aristocrat sponsored an
  indentured servants passage to America, the
  aristocrat earned the right to purchase 50 acres.
  This system created large plantations and less
  available land for the poorer colonial immigrants

Head right historical marker and records
5
Frustrated Freemen and Bacons Rebellion

• 1675 to 1676
• Nathaniel Bacon led a group of frustrated
  indentured laborers
• raids against nearby Indians to confiscate their
  land.
• turned their anger against wealthy Virginia
  planters,
• Bacon died in 1676 AND Revolt collapsed.
• Led to a strengthened system of African slavery

6
Result of Bacons Rebellion

• Bacon's Epitaph, made by his Man" is called the
  first American poem, and eulogizes Nathaniel
  Bacon, leader of Bacon's Rebellion in 1675-76.
  Some historians interpret the rebellion as a
  proto-democratic movement against Governor
  Berkeley's autocratic regime. Others see it as
  merely a pretext to seize Indian land.

7
Colonial Slavery

• Roughly a half million slaves were brought to
  America. Ten Million to the New World.
• Most slaves were from West Africa.
• By 1750 African Slaves are very populous in the
  Southern colonies.
• Slave Codes created hereditary slavery
  (matriarchal).
• Some slaves purchased their freedom and became
  slaveholders themselves.

8
The Triangular Trade

• A ship would leave New England with rum and go to
  the Gold Coast of Africa and trade it for African
  Slaves. Then travel on the middle passage to the
  West Indies where slaves would be exchanged for
  molasses, which in turn would be sold /traded in
  New England to make the rum.
• On the Middle Passage the death rate was very
  high.

9
Africans in America

• The Deep South where rice was cultivated was
  extremely harsh for slaves
• Slavery existed in all colonies at one point
• Slave communities existed at slave quarters
• Some slaves became skilled artisans but most were
  relegated to working on plantations by way of
  task or gang system

10
Early slave revolts

• Slave protests took many forms. These included
  outright rebellion or subtle attempts to harm
  masters. For example, working slower, getting
  sick, or sabotaging food.
• Outright revolts occurred. Examples would be in
  1712 in New York City, or at the Stono River
  rebellion in 1739 in South Carolina.

11
Punishments for slaves were harsh and cruel

• For disobeying ones master slaves were whipped,
  hung, skinned or cat hauled.
• Slave families were often disbanded by sale.
• Rape occurred often from white masters.

12
Southern Society

• Socioeconomic class society
• Highest class was planter class (First Families
  of Virginia).
• This class often owned
• 100 or more slaves and dominated the House of
  Burgesses.

Plantation House
13
Southern society

1. Large planter
2. small farmers
3. merchants
4. skilled artisans.
5. indentured servants
6. free slaves
7. Slaves
8. Native Americans.

14
The New England Family

• In contrast to the southern situation, New
  England had strong family ties.
• Women had many children. However, there was a
  high infant mortality rate.
• New England husbands maintained much control
  over their wives and children.
• Strict laws

15
Life in the New England Towns

• A town consisted of a meetinghouse surrounded by
  houses, village green and cemetery.

• Towns of fifty families had a Little Red
  Schoolhouse. Towns with 100 families required a
  secondary school.

16
New England Towns

• Early Colleges

• Harvards oldest building is Massachusetts Hall

• Harvard was established to train ministers in
  1636.
• William and Mary was established in 1693 in
  Virginia.

17
New England way of life

• Less ethnically mixed than other colonies.
• Rivers were short and rapid.
• The rocky soil led to small farms rather than
  large plantations (why slavery not instituted).
• Also led to the rock walls of New England.

18
Early settlers Days and Ways

• Sun up to sun down work. Unless an event was
  worth a candle
• Not a lot of extravagant living.
• Fishing, whaling, ship building, furniture maker
  were the big industries.

Goddard Townshed family furniture of Newport
19
Gold Mines of New England
Cod fish
Whaling
20
The Half Way Covenant and jeremiads

• Half -Way Covenant

• The jeremiad

• As Puritans began to worry about their children
  being loyal to faith ministers announced that all
  people could come to church even if they were not
  visible saints.
• What did this mean for the Puritans?

• In jeremiad sermons earnest preachers scolded
  their congregations about their waning piety and
  waning faith.
• May have paved the way for Great Awakening
  ministers in colonial America

21
Salem Witch Trials

• In the early 1690s, a group of Salem girls
  claimed to have been bewitched by certain older
  women.
• A hysterical witch-hunt followed that led to the
  execution of 20 people and two dogs. (Similar
  events had been occurring in Europe).
• After a year and a half the hysteria died down.