1. The Cultures of Colonial North America
1700 – 1780

2. Indian America
Native Americans showed a great capacity to adapt and change by using European materials and participating in trade (on which they became dependent for survival)
Though the French seemed to have better relations with the Indians than most other nations, the Indians still tried to play each country off against the other
By the end of the 18th century, it was the sheer number of colonists that concerned the Indians, as their populations declined due to disease
The horse modified the Great Plains Indian cultures by making them nomadic hunters and warriors

3. The Spanish Borderlands
New Spain was the largest and most prosperous colony in North America
Whereas Mexico City was a cultural hotspot, the borderlands of California, New Mexico, Texas and Florida were considered buffer zones to protect them from other colonial powers
Florida society was multiracial, combining Spanish, Indian, and African
New Mexican society was spreading due to ranching and farming along the Rio Grande

4. The Spanish Mission System
Presidios, or forts were built on the fringes of the colonies to protect the interior
The mission system converted the Indians and made them subject to the Spanish Crown
Indians were not forced to join, but were not allowed to leave
Missions promised a higher standard of living
Congregacions: villages of converted Indians who worked for the benefit of Spain, overseen by the missions

5. The French Crescent
The Catholic Church was also instrumental in creating a “Second Catholic Empire” in America
French allied with Indian trading partners to set up a line of military posts and settlements
French communities combined French and Indian elements in architecture, dress, and familial patterns
New France was a crescent-shape of settlement from Canada to the port of New Orleans in Louisiana

7. New England
Puritan congregations governed local communities (very little distinction between secular and religious authority)
Puritans did not come to create a society where religion could be practiced freely (harsh repression)
Though the Toleration Act was passed in 1689, it was first resisted
By the 1700s, other denominations were allowed to practice openly in Massachusetts
New England grew in population and stressed the limits of available land

8. The Middle Colonies
New York had one of the most ethnically diverse populations in the colonies; NYC grew quickly, but land was unavailable in the rural areas to immigrants
Pennsylvania Quakers were more tolerant of immigrants and boasted a 4% raise in population every year!
Middle Colony communities were more individualized than the tightly controlled New England colonies, creating a loose dispersal of small towns throughout the countryside

9. The Backcountry
Most pioneers owned little or no land, hacking out their own squatted-tract of land
Men were warriors and women were focused on domestic duties
Conflicts between settlers and Indians made the area a violent region
Helped to create that “pioneer-myth” of American culture
Movement into the Backcountry forced England to officially forbid this activity and raise colonial taxes to protect these “pioneers,” creating some early resentment for English rule

10. The South A tri-racial society: European, African, and Indian
Specializing in tobacco, rice, and other commercial crops, it was overwhelmingly rural, with large plantation homes taking vast tracts of land in the Lower South
The Lower South was dominated by large plantations, that seemed to echo the large sugar plantations of the Caribbean
Yet, small tobacco farms were widely found in the Upper South, creating a well-developed network of neighborhoods, establishing community and white solidarity

11. Traditional Culture in the New World
Life revolved around family, kinship, the church and the local community
Nostalgia for Europe helped to fix a conservative colonial attitude towards culture
Oral traditions and suspicious towards change
Community needs outweighed those of the individual
Majority of rural Americans were self-sufficient farmers who practiced diverse agriculture
Artisans and craftsmen flourished in the commercial cities as the craft system continued in the colonies

12. The Frontier Heritage
Land was plentiful and cheap, but that did not lead to any form of democracy
Slave labor was common and indentured servants rarely won freedom
Yet life for indentured servants offered more opportunities in the 18th century, due to the growing prosperity of the colonies
Violence and brutality were considered an essential part of colonial life

13. Population Growth and Immigration
High fertility rates and low mortality rates played important roles in the spike in population from
Mainly due to an abundance of food, colonists enjoyed relatively good health
Britain was the only colonial power to encourage immigration, including foreign immigration

15. Social Class In New Spain, class was based on racial purity
New Spain and New France kept their hereditary ranks and styles from the Old World
In the British colonies, elite was open and based on wealth
Social mobility was common
The large middle class was a social phenomena (as it did not exist in New Spain or France)
The British colonies had a higher standard of living than England

17. Economic Growth and Inequality
New Spain and France were economically stagnant compared to the British colonies
Though the growth of a middle class was an impressive social achievement, the gap between the rich and poor increased, especially in the cities and commercial farming regions
Land shortages created the “strolling poor,” or homeless

18. Contrasts in Colonial Politics
British authority was decentralized using royal governors and locally elected assemblies to govern
Most adult white males could vote
Leadership was entrusted to men of high rank and wealth
Most colonial assemblies had considerable power over local affairs because they controlled the finances

19. Cultural Transformation of British North America
The colonies were more open to intellectual and religious challenges than the French and Spanish
Education and literacy was widespread in the British colonies
Unlike Spain and France, the British made little attempt at cultural censorship

20. The Enlightenment
Philosophical movement that stressed that the universe was governed by natural laws, emphasizing rationality, harmony, and order
John Locke proposed a state that existed to provide for happiness and security of individuals who were endowed with the natural rights of life, liberty, and property
Though most held to tradition, many colonists who were self-made, embraced these new ideas
Colonial colleges taught a mixture of the traditional with Enlightenment viewpoints

21. Decline in Religious Devotion
The economic growth in the colonies and the development of a colonial upper class led to a more cosmopolitan culture in the cities
Puritan churches saw falling membership and attendance at services due to “uninspired” ministers
Change to an established church led to a decline of regular goers, and the emergence of “half-way” members that weakened the overall influence of religion
Questioning of tenets like Predestination

22. The Great Awakening
Reverend Jonathan Edwards of Massachusetts called for a return to Puritan traditions that appealed to dissatisfied young people
Stressing “emotional conversions” preachers spoke with passion and fire igniting religious fervor in the young and disenfranchised
George Whitefield toured America, fueling the movement with his fiery sermons (revival meetings)
Religious enthusiasm gave people relief from social and economic stresses
Conflict between the Old and New Lights
A full national event, that spread to the South where Christianity was introduced to slaves
: number of churches doubled; church membership increased with the population (women and the young affected, too)

23. The Politics of Revivalism
It empowered ordinary people to challenge their leaders
Old Lights politically tried to stamp the New Lights, but they politicized and won out in the end (they would provide the leadership for the American Revolution)
Gave people the first chance to participate in public debate about religion, war, and economics