Growth of the American Colony
Growth of the American Colony
African Americans in the Colonies
The Middle Passage
•There was a triangular trade between Great Britain, Africa and the Americas
•Ships:
•Started in Britain
•Went to Africa and loaded up slaves
•Slaves were unloaded in the Americas andtrade goods were brought back to Britain
•The journey from Africa to the Americas is called The Middle Passage
•10-40% of Africans on slave ships died
•Some committed suicide by jumping overboard
•Sometimes they would stage a mutiny
•Which mean revolt
Slavery
•Once Africans arrived in the Americas they were sold in slave auctions
•Perth Amboy was the largest in New Jersey
•The most difficult life for a slave was in Georgia and South Carolina
•African Americans made up the majority of South Carolina’s population and 1/3 of Georgia’s
•Rice plantations would have over 100 slaves
•Slaves would keep their culture by:
•making music
•telling tales past down from grandparents
•Slaves in Virginia and Maryland were less numerous
•Most were born in America
•Most grew Tobacco
•More integrated to European culture
•400,000 slaves lived in South Carolina
•50,000 lived in New England and the Middle Colonies
•Had more freedom to choose occupation
•Worked in cities as cooks, housekeepers, and servants
•Some built ships and worked on docks
Slaves
•Many slaves were from different regions of Africa
•They spoke different languages
•Many combined their culture with European culture
•Most adopted Christianity
Laws
•Laws governing slaves varied by region
•These laws changed over time
•Slavery was banned in Georgia in 1735 but the ban was lifted in 1750
•Generally slaves could not leave town or travel by boat without a written pass
•Breaking laws resulted in whipping and sometimes death
•Slaves had a difficult time resisting
•They could not meet and organize
•They could not read or write
•Some did rebel
•In 1739 20 whites were killed in the Stono Rebellion in South Carolina
Rebellions
•After the Stono Rebellion the slaves ran to Spanish Florida
•They were killed and captured by armed planters
•50 rebellions took place between 1740-1800
•Slaves would also rebel in smaller ways
•Fake illness
•“misunderstand orders”
Mercantilism
•Mercantilism is the idea that a country should keep as much gold and silver as possible
•Its Balance of Trade should be little imports, and many exports
•Colonies could only trade with the parent country
•Controlling the colonies trade would allow for maximum profit for England
•In 1660 Charles II approved the Navigation Act
•It stated only English ships with English sailors could trade with English colonies
•Sugar, Tobacco, and cotton could only be sold to England
•If colonists wanted to sell other items they had to first pay a duty, (tax) to England
•In 1686 King James II took control of all New England colonies by creating the Dominion of New England
•It abolished colonial legislature and replaced it with a council and governor appointed by James II
•Edmund Andros was put in Charge
•Andros collected taxes without the King’s or the people’s permission
•He declared religious tolerance
•In 1689 James II was replaced by his daughter Mary and her husband William of Orange
•The Dominion of New England was lifted
•The Massachusetts Charter was reestablished
•However, the King could still appoint a governor
Colonial Society
•Wealth gender and race tended to decide a person’s place in colonial society
•The Gentry or wealthy class had servants and would wear the latest fashions including wigs
•Most land owners were white males
•These men often dominated politics
Trades
•At a young age boys became apprentices
•They would work under someone to learn a trade
•Silversmiths, blacksmiths, furniture makers, etc
•Printers
•Ben Franklin was the most famous printer
•He printed Poor Richards Almanac
•Farmers
•Indentured Servant
Page 83-84
- How was a woman’s status determined?
- What could women not do during colonial times?
- Were women ever allowed to own property?
- What was a woman’s job in the house?
- Why were schools opened in New England?
Education
•Mostly boys received an education in New England
•Some girls attended dame schools
These schools were run out of women’s homes
•Few colleges existed
Yale, Harvard, William and Mary, and two in New Jersey Princeton and Rutgers
•Most graduates became ministers
The Great Awakening
•Many ministers believed colonists had fallen away from faith
•In the 1730s and 40s many led revivals in religious teaching
•This became known as The Great Awakening
•Jonathan Edwards from Northampton, Mass. was the most well-known leader
•He reminded people of the power and authority of God
•Edwards popularity was taken over by George Winfield, an English minister who toured the colonies 7 times from 1738-1770
•Faith was most important
•They revitalized religion in the colonies
Churches Reorganize
•Many New Englanders switched to the Baptist faith in the 1740s
•They had emotional ceremonies
•They taught that a person can act on their own faith and do not need a Minister to
•This was the first signs of equality for all
Emerging Tensions
Colonies
•The population of the 13 colonies was growing rapidly
•Doubling every 25 years
•Immigrants to the country were increasing and people began moving West
•Land shortages faced many families in New England
•A migration of settlers began
•They moved into Indian territory
Native and French Reaction
•Native Americans lived in the West
•The French had claim to much of the land
•Many Native tribes in the East had been weakened such as the Iroquois
•Other tribes were still strong
•They created a barrier in west
French and Indian Relations
•The French were friendly with the Native Americans
•The French needed them for fur trade
•The British did not treat the Natives as well
French Actions
•The French saw new English Settlers as a threat
•In 1749 French Defenders were sent to fortify Detroit
•In 1752 the French killed men defending an English trading post in PA
•Tensions grew
The French and Indian war
•The French built a fort in western Pennsylvania
•This Angered the British
•The British sent a Virginian named George Washington to attack the fort
• Washington won the battle but was forced to surrender when the French Counter attacked
Page 86-88
- What is another name for The French and Indian War?
- Where was the war fought?
- What city was captured by the British causing the French to surrender Canada?
- How did the British succeed because of this surrender?
- What treaty ended the French and Indian war?
American Indian Resistance
•Colonists are moving westward past the Appalachian Mountains
•After The French and Indian War the British limited the amount of rum and ammunition they traded with the natives.
The natives were angered, they considered the trade of goods as payment for using their land
•As more colonists moved west more Indian land disappeared
American Indian Resistance
•Neolin
Native American known as the Delaware prophet
Denounced the use of British goods and believed the British were the enemy
•Pontiac an Ottawa chief acted on Neolin’s message
Pontiac’s Rebellion
•Called on Delaware, Ojibway, Seneca, Shawnee, Wyandot, and other natives to unite
•During 1763 war waged on the frontier
Pontiac’s forces killed 2,000 settlers and destroyed British forts
•The rebellion was stopped when Pontiac’s forces could not take Fort Pitt and Fort Detroit
The Proclamation of 1763
•The British could not effectively control the frontier
•The proclamation barred settlement west of the
•Traders had to receive royal permission before entering the territory
•The Proclamation was difficult to enforce because
Colonists wanted more land and colonial governors did not enforce the law
Disputes among the colonies
•The 13 colonies argued with each other during the French and Indian War
•They were not a united country
•Benjamin Franklin drafted the Albany Plan of Union
•The colonies would unite as one under British rule
•Disputes among the colonies
•The colonies dismissed the Albany plan of Union because they feared losing some of their Autonomy
•The British also dropped the plan because one large colony would be hard to manage
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