1. Characteristics of the Colonies
New England, Middle, Southern

2. New England - Political
1620 Pilgrims landed in Plymouth
- Puritans: settlers seeking freedom from religious persecution
Mayflower Compact
Developed “covenant communities”
Said government would frame “equal and adjust laws”
Important formation of the American Government
New England settlers practiced democracy in town meetings
Used town meetings (an “Athenian” direct democracy model) in the operation of government.

3. New England – Economic Based on: Shipbuilding Fishing Lumbering
Small-scale subsistence farming
Eventually… Manufacturing

4. New England – Social Based on religious standing
Puritans were intolerant of dissenters who challenged the their belief in the connection between religion and government
Rhode Island was founded by dissenters fleeing persecution by Puritans in Massachusetts

5. Middle Colonies – Political
The Middle region was settled by English, Dutch, and German-speaking immigrants seeking religious freedom and economic opportunity
Incorporated a number of democratic principles that reflected the basic rights of Englishmen

6. Middle Colonies – Economic
Based on:
Shipbuilding
Small-scale farming
Trading
Cities such as New York and Philadelphia began to grow as seaports and commercial centers.

7. Middle Colonies– Social
Home to multiple religious groups, including Quakers in Pennsylvania, Huguenots and Jews in New York, and Presbyterians in New York, who generally believed in religious tolerance
Developed middle class skills – artisans, entrepreneurs (business owners) and small farmers

8. Southern Colonies – Political
Early Virginia settlers were called “cavaliers,” English nobility who received large land grants in eastern Virginia from the King in England.
Continued to have strong ties with Britain, with planters playing leading roles in representative colonial legislatures
House of Burgesses – 1640s, first elected assembly in the New World (Today, known as the General Assembly of Virginia)

9. Southern – Economic Based on:
“cash crops” – Tobacco, rice and indigo (coastal lowlands on large plantations)
Small-scale subsistence farming, hunting and trading (inland- mountains and valleys of the Appalachian)
Private ownership of property and free enterprise characterized colonial life.

10. Southern - Economic
The growth of the agricultural economy in the Southern colonies and in the Caribbean led to slavery in the New World. The first Africans were brought to Jamestown in 1619 to work at tobacco plantations.

11. Southern – Social Based on: Family status and the ownership of land
Landowners were usually members of the Church of England
2. Small subsistence farmers
3. Hunters
4. Traders of Scots-Irish and English descent

12. “Great Awakening”
Religious movement of both Europe and the colonies during the mid-1700s.
Led to the growth of religions like, Methodists and Baptists as well as challenging the established religious and governmental order
Was a foundation for the American Revolution

13. Indentured Servants
With the growth of agriculture, Southern colonies were in need of cheap labor
Less fortunate people from England, Scotland or Ireland agreed to work on plantations for a period of time in return for their passage from Europe or relief of debt
Eventually, labor was filled with Africans who were forced into work, however, some Africans worked as indentured servants and earned their freedom (lived freely during the Colonial Era)
Overtime the numbers grew of enslaved Africans in the Southern colonies (the “Middle Passage”)
Slavery led to the conflict between the North and South and the American Civil War