Copyright 2005 Heathcock 1 Life in the Colonies
Copyright 2005 Heathcock 2 New England Colonies Immigration, large families, and the fact that America, especially New England, was an unusually healthy place to live caused the population of the colonies to increase very quickly.
Copyright 2005 Heathcock 3 Farming was the main economic activity in all the colonies, but New England farms were smaller than those farther south. Long winters and thin, rocky soil made large-scale farming difficult.
Copyright 2005 Heathcock 4 Farmers in New England practiced subsistence farming, which means that they produced just enough to meet the needs of their families.
Copyright 2005 Heathcock 5 New England had many small businesses. Waterpower from the streams was used to run mills for grinding grain or sawing lumber.
Copyright 2005 Heathcock 6 When women made things for their families they made extra to sell or trade. Large towns attracted skilled craftspeople.
Copyright 2005 Heathcock 7 However, shipbuilding was their main industry. The lumber was transported down rivers to the shipyards. The region also relied on fishing and some whaling.
Copyright 2005 Heathcock 8 New England Colonies
Copyright 2005 Heathcock 9 Colonial Trade New England’s coastal towns were the center of the shipping trade in America. New England ships sailed south along the Atlantic coast, trading with the colonies and with islands in the West Indies.
Copyright 2005 Heathcock 10 They took fish, furs, and fruit to England and Europe to trade for manufactured goods. These colonial merchant ships followed many different trading routes. Some went directly to England and back.
Copyright 2005 Heathcock 11 Others followed routes called the triangular trade because the routes formed a triangle.
Copyright 2005 Heathcock 12 The ships brought sugar and molasses from the West Indies to the New England colonies.
Copyright 2005 Heathcock 13 In New England, the molasses would be made into rum. Next, the rum and other goods were shipped to West Africa and traded for slaves.
Copyright 2005 Heathcock 14 On the one leg of the route, known as the Middle Passage, the enslaved Africans were taken to the West Indies where they were sold to plantations.
Copyright 2005 Heathcock 15 Triangular Trade
Copyright 2005 Heathcock 16 This is an official British document telling how to get the most slaves into a ship without breaking the law.
Copyright 2005 Heathcock 17 Middle Passage
Copyright 2005 Heathcock 18 The Middle Colonies The Middle Colonies had better soil and a milder climate than New England. Farmers in this region cultivated larger areas of land and produced bigger harvests than New Englanders.
Copyright 2005 Heathcock 19 In New York and Pennsylvania, farmers grew lots of wheat and other cash crops that could be sold easily. New York City and Philadelphia became busy ports.
Copyright 2005 Heathcock 20 The Middle Colonies also had industries including carpentry, flour making, lumbering, mining, and small-scale manufacturing. They even had one iron mill in New Jersey that had several hundred employees.
Copyright 2005 Heathcock 21 Middle Colonies
Copyright 2005 Heathcock 22 The Southern Colonies Because the Southern Colonies had rich soil and warm climate the farmers could cultivate large areas of land for cash crops.
Copyright 2005 Heathcock 23 Because most settlers in the Southern Colonies made their living from farming the land, they did not develop commerce or industry.
Copyright 2005 Heathcock 24 Plantations, or large farms, were often located on rivers so crops could be shipped to market by boat. Each plantation was a self-contained community with fields stretching out around a cluster of buildings.
Copyright 2005 Heathcock 25 Why would they have had more influence? Although small farmers of the backcountry outnumbered the large plantation owners, the plantation owners had more influence in the area.
Copyright 2005 Heathcock 26 Southern Colonies
Copyright 2005 Heathcock 27 Here’s the Quiz 1. What caused the population of the colonies to increase very quickly? A. ImmigrationC. America was a healthy place to live B. Large familiesD. All of the above 2. What was the main economic activity of all the colonies? A. TradeC. Manufacturing B. FarmingD. Lumbering 3. In which section of the colonies were farms generally the smallest? A. New EnglandC. Middle Colonies B. Southern D. They were all about the same 4. What were farming conditions like in the New England Colonies A. Warm, rich soilC. Cold weather with rich soil B. Mild weather with D. Long winters, short summers rich, fertile soil with thin rocky soil 5. Which term is defined as a farm where a family produces just enough to meet their needs? A. PlantationC. Cash crop farm B. Subsistence farmD. Survivalist farm
Copyright 2005 Heathcock What provided the power for New England mills and factories A. Water powerC. Wind B. SteamD. Horses and mules 7. Which was not an important industry in New England? A. FishingC. Commerce B. TobaccoD. Shipbuilding 8.What did New England merchants trade their fish, furs and fruit for in Europe? A. SlavesC. Rum B. MolassesD. Manufactured Goods 9. What was trade between America, Africa and the West Indies called? A. Triangular TradeC. Middle Passage B. MercantilismD. Continental Trade 10. What was shipped in the “Middle Passage?” A. RumC. Molasses and sugar B. SlavesD. Manufactured Goods
Copyright 2005 Heathcock How did the soil and climate of the Middle Colonies compare to New England? A. Better for farmingC. Worse for farming B. About the sameD. Better climate but worse soil 12. Which cash crop was most likely grown in the Middle Colonies? A. TobaccoC. Indigo B. RiceD. Wheat 13. What was the level of manufacturing in the Middle Colonies? A. More than New EnglandC. Less than New England, more than the south B. Less than the SouthD. Very little if any manufacturing