Geography of Colonial America, 1755

SUMMARY The independent activity will introduce you to information dealing with the geography of the Thirteen British Colonies which played an important part in the American Revolution. You will read and analyze several maps to learn the locations, physical features, and human geography of the regions throughout the colonies and North America. It is at these areas where important fighting took place during the Colonies fight for independence.

ACTIVITY Obtain a map and a worksheet from Mr. Beitz and then complete questions 1 through 9 with complete sentences. Provide as thorough an answer as you can. In addition, label the map following the directions.

Question #1 Using the map to the right, label each colony on the map. Also add and label the colonies largest cities: Boston New York Philadelphia Charleston Why would the locations of these four cities have been important?

Question #2 Draw and label the Appalachian Mountains on your map. How many colonists per square mile lived across most of this region? Explain why the population density is lower when compared to other regions. Also label the following physical features on your map: Atlantic Ocean Delaware River Lake Erie Lake Huron Lake Ontario Ohio River

Question #3 Circle the region where the most colonists lived. What cities does this region include? Question #4 Shade in the colonies that had large populations of Loyalists. Which of the three main colonial regions had the fewest Loyalists? Can you provide a reason(s) to explain this?

Question #5 Based on your map, in which colonies do you predict the goal of independence would have been the strongest? Use information from your map to explain why. Question #6 Label Lake Champlain and the Hudson River. Also add and label Albany. If British armies in Canada and New York City wanted to divide New England from the rest of the colonies, in what ways could they have used the physical geography of this region to carry out their strategy?

Question #7 Refer to the population density map to the right. Compare the amount of settlement along the coast of the 13 colonies to with the amount of settlement farther inland? What do you think is a possible reason for that?

Question #8 During the first phase of the American Revolution, most major battles took place near the cities of Boston, New York, and Philadelphia. Why would controlling this region have been an important goal for both sides in the war? Question #9 The strategy of the British had been to control the New England and Middle Colonies. However, after years of fighting in those regions the British decided to invade Georgia and North Carolina. Based on your map, why might the British have believed they could conquer this colonial region?

Staple the completed map and worksheet together. Place in the yellow bin. Work on “What to Know” for The Road to Lexington and Concord