Children in the 1800s

Compared to people in the twenty-first century, with all their modern

conveniences and technological advances, the life of any early-American seems

difficult.

However, the lives of children were among the most arduous. Linda Pollock

states in her book Forgotten Children that between 1660 and 1800 families -and

society in general- became more affectionate, child-oriented, and permissive of

uniqueness and unstructured time (67). Although this may be true, many other

sources depict the lives of children as taxing and oppressive at best. Children of the

time were either forced to abandon education for their family contributions, or had

to balance school with a full day's work ("Education"). Even when they were not in

school or doing manual labor, their day-to-day lives were uncomfortable and harsh

(Kids). Social status, as is expected, was a key factor in determining how hard a

child's life would be (Murray 9). Although many children at the time had it easier

than others they were all asked at an early age to take on adult responsibilities.

The lives of all children in 1800 were mundane and difficult due to family and

societal expectations for labor, schooling, and maturity.

Gender, social status, and the region in which a child lived determined how

much schooling a child would receive and where and how they would get it.

Children of the upper class were either taught in private schools or by a tutor. They

were taught reading, writing, prayers, and simple math ("Education") . They were

taught using repetition from the Bible, a religion-based reading supplement called a

 primer, and/or a paddle-shaped (also religious) horn book ("Schooling"). The

upper-class boys were taught more advanced academic subjects, and may have

been sent to boarding school in England or another state. The girls were taught to

assume the duties of a wife and mother and obtained basic knowledge so they

could read the Bible and record expenses ("Education"). While the south had very

few laws for education because of its population, the middle and northern colonies

(and then states) had established guidelines for their citizens. Pennsylvania's Law

of 1683 set a monetary penalty for any parent whose children could not read and

write by age twelve, and who were not taught a useful trade. By 1642 the northern

colonies had already mandated a public education or apprenticeship for children,

one grammar school for towns with more that one-hundred families, and an

elementary school for towns with more than fifty. However, most towns didn't have

a school house and children were taught basic knowledge at home, and would learn

and practice their parent's trade ("Schooling"). The amount of schooling received

 

was also based on the family's dependency on the child, helping to explain why

wealthier families could devote more time to an academic education.

The daily routines of children in 1800 were also very demanding. Not only

were they expected to follow strict rules of etiquette, but between the ages of four

and seven they wore small-scale adult clothes which were often uncomfortable

("Children's Glossary"). "Boys and girls meant workers - the boys on the farm or

sea or in the shop, the girls in the home" (qtd. in Kids). As soon as children could

 perform simple tasks they were given chores. Children between the ages of four

and eight were expected to do things such as help with basic cooking and cleaning

tasks, weed, card wool, and start their lessons in school (tasks vary for different

regions). Girls between the ages of nine and twelve would help with more complex

chores and were trained in all aspects of being a wife and mother; large numbers of

girls were wed at age 16. By this age it is also likely, given high death rates during

childbirth, that a girl would have already taken over the responsibilities of a

deceased mother. A young girl's journal entry from 1775 gives a list of 26 chores

accomplished ranging from fixing clothing, making candles, and spinning linen to

feeding animals. The daily tasks of a boy that age would involve bringing in fuel for

the day, working in the fields, and going to school or (more likely, especially if

 poor) going to an apprenticeship, which were started around age eight. The popular

thought of idleness as a sin was reflected in the amount children were expected to

accomplish daily (Kids).

 Although children's work in the fields and at home could be considered child

labor, a growing problem, closer to present-day definitions, was appearing around

1800 in America. Adoption didn't come into play until the mid-1800s and even then

was hard to attain. Before that, children that were given up or found to have unfit

 parents were forced into apprenticeships where they traded their labor for the cost

of living (Murray 9). At this point in time children were still widely thought of as

 property which meant that in some cases their parents could unofficially sell them.

 A first hand account from 1750 details a common event in which immigrants

indentured their children until the age of 21 in return for an erasure of debt and

ability to leave the ship and start their new life ("The Peopling"). The end of the

18th century also brought the beginnings of the Industrial Revolution. It is

estimated that in the early 1800s one third of factory workers in America were

between the ages of seven and twelve. In this time period it was not unusual for a

family's financial burdens to fall on the children (Collins).

Rare as it may have been sometimes a child did have free time, especially in

the winter, or if their parents had slaves. When they did have unstructured time

they would play games such as rolling the hoop, nine pins, tag, marbles, and

 

leapfrog. They also often had a few whittled or corn husk toys. Richer families were

able to afford a greater variety and better quality toy for their children, many of

which were shipped from England ("Toys and More"). In the late 1600s John Locke,

a British philosopher, had popularized the notion that toys helped the learning

 process, and by the end of the 1700s there were educational toys for many

different subject areas (Smith). Although not many gifts were given, Christmas was

an important holiday and around the turn of the century, and was being popularized

as a children's holiday ("Colonial Christmas"). Even though most of a child's life was

full of difficulty they found refuge in their simple toys and holidays.

Between schooling, chores, and manual labor children in 1800 had a very

hard life. Their day's were brutal, repetitive, and exhausting. The higher the social

status the more free time, toys, and academic schooling a child would have (Kids).

The orphans and incredibly poor were often indentured or would spend years of

their life being apprenticed (Murray 9). The majority, farmers and other members

of the middle class, obtained basic efficiency in school and would spend the rest of

their life helping their parents, and eventually obtain a job of their own (usually the

same as their father's) or a husband ("Education"). The daily lives of almost every

colonist ended in physical exhaustion and very little entertainment, something that

should be admired by all present-day Americans.

Works Cited

Children's Glossary. The Colonial Williamsburg Foundation. 22 Oct. 2005 .

Collins, Joey. "History of Labor and Unions." Child Labor. 22 Oct. 2005 .

Colonial Christmas Customs. The Colonial Williamsburg Foundation. 22 Oct. 2005 .

Education for Boys and Girls. Stratford Hall. 22 Oct. 2005 .

"Kids." Children in Colonial Times. Fort Frederica. 22 Oct. 2005 .

Murray, John. The Worth of a Child. Berkeley: University of California Press, 1996.

The Peopling of America. University of Houston. 22 Oct. 2005 .

Pollock, Linda. Forgotten Children. New York: Cambridge University Press, 1996.

 

Schooling, Education, and Literacy in Colonial America. Gettysburg College Alumni .

22 Oct. 2005 .

Smith, Travis. Play and Playthings: How It Affects the Learning Process . Michigan

State University. 22 Oct. 2005 .

Toy s and More. Museum of American Heritage. 22 Oct. 2005 .