Virginia, Maryland, North Carolina, South Carolina, and Georgia The Southern Colonies Virginia, Maryland, North Carolina, South Carolina, and Georgia

Virginia and Maryland The settlement of Jamestown marked the beginning of English colonization in North America- and of the Virginia Company. The demand for workers was high because… It took a great deal of labor to plant, tend, and harvest the tobacco crop on which the colony depended.

Workers However, not all people came willingly to the New World. The first group of African slaves (20 people) arrived in 1619 on board a Dutch trading vessel. This terrible slave trade would only intensify over the coming years. England also shipped criminals and prisoners of war to the colonies. They could earn their release by working for a period of time- usually seven years. Many people also came as to the colonies as indentured servants. To pay their passage to America, they agreed to work without pay for a certain length of time.

Founding Maryland Sir George Calvert (Lord Baltimore) was the founder of Maryland. Calvert wanted a safe place for his fellow Catholics- who faced persecution in England. King Charles I gave Calvert a proprietary colony north of Virginia. As the number of settlers and estates (large areas of land with one owner), the need for additional workers grew -> indentured servants and slaves. Maryland and Pennsylvania disagreed about their border. Eventually they hired to men, Charles Mason and Jeremiah Dixon to map the boundaries between the colonies- known as the Mason- Dixon Line. Religion was a source of conflict. The Catholics and Protestants in the colony didn’t get along. Eventually Maryland became a royal colony. After this, the Catholics were treated poorly.

Rebellion in Virginia As the colonies grew, settlers moved west- onto Native American lands. Nathaniel Bacon was a young planter in western Virginia- He opposed the colonial government because he disagreed with Berkeley’s (the governor) promise to stay off of Native American lands. In 1676 Bacon led attacks on Native American villages. Bacon then led his army to Jamestown to drive out Berkeley and they burned the town to the ground. Bacon seemed like he was about to take control of the colony, but fell ill and died. England sent troops to restore order.

Two Carolinas Farmers from inland Virginia settled northern Carolina. They grew tobacco and sold timber and tar. North Carolina lacked a good harbor, so farmers used Virginia’s ports. Settlers in southern Carolina took advantage of fertile land and the harbor at Charleston. Two crops came to dominate (take over) Carolina agriculture. Rice grew well near the coastal lowlands- Required much labor (slave) Indigo- used to dye cloth (discovered by Eliza Lucas, a young woman) Cash crop- Term used to describe any crop that is easily marketable (sellable)

Georgia Founded in 1733, was the last British colony set up in America. James Oglethorpe received a charter from George II. Oglethorpe hoped to establish a colony where debtors (person or country that owes money) and poor people could make a fresh start. This would help England which was overcrowded. The British also hoped Georgia would block any Spanish attack on the colonies from Florida. They built forts in Savannah to stop such attacks. The colony did not develop as Oglethorpe had planned. He eventually turned the colony over to the king in 1751.