copyright 2005 heathcock 1 life in the colonies. copyright 2005 heathcock 2 new england colonies...

Copyright 2005 Heathcock 1

Life in the Colonies


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.


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.


Farmers in New England practiced subsistence farming, which means that they produced just enough to meet the needs of their families.


New England had many small businesses. Waterpower from the streams was used to run mills for grinding grain or sawing lumber.


When women made things for their families they made extra to sell or trade. Large towns attracted skilled craftspeople.


However, shipbuilding was their main industry. The lumber was transported down rivers to the shipyards. The region also relied on fishing and some whaling.


New England Colonies


Colonial Trade

New England’s coastal towns werethe 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.


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.


Others followed routes called the triangular trade because the routes formed a triangle.


The ships brought sugar and molasses from the West Indies to the New England colonies.


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.


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.


Triangular Trade


This is an official British document telling how to get the most slaves

into a ship without breaking

the law.


Middle Passage


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.


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.


The Middle Coloniesalso 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.


Middle Colonies


The Southern Colonies

Because the Southern Colonies had rich soil and warm climate the farmers could cultivate large areas of land for cash crops.


Because most settlers in the Southern Colonies made their livingfrom farming the land, they did not develop commerce or industry.


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.


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.


Southern Colonies


Here’s the Quiz

1. What caused the population of the colonies to increase very quickly?A. Immigration C. America was a healthy place to liveB. Large families D. All of the above

2. What was the main economic activity of all the colonies?A. Trade C. ManufacturingB. Farming D. Lumbering

3. In which section of the colonies were farms generally the smallest?A. New England C. Middle ColoniesB. Southern D. They were all about the same

4. What were farming conditions like in the New England ColoniesA. Warm, rich soil C. Cold weather with rich soilB. Mild weather with D. Long winters, short summers

rich, fertile soil with thin rocky soil5. Which term is defined as a farm where a family produces just enough to meet their needs?

A. Plantation C. Cash crop farmB. Subsistence farm D. Survivalist farm


6. What provided the power for New England mills and factoriesA. Water power C. WindB. Steam D. Horses and mules

7. Which was not an important industry in New England?A. Fishing C. CommerceB. Tobacco D. Shipbuilding

8.What did New England merchants trade their fish, furs and fruit for in Europe?

A. Slaves C. RumB. Molasses D. Manufactured Goods

9. What was trade between America, Africa and the West Indies called?A. Triangular Trade C. Middle PassageB. Mercantilism D. Continental Trade

10. What was shipped in the “Middle Passage?”A. Rum C. Molasses and sugarB. Slaves D. Manufactured Goods


11. How did the soil and climate of the Middle Colonies compare to New England?

A. Better for farming C. Worse for farmingB. About the same D. Better climate but worse soil

12. Which cash crop was most likely grown in the Middle Colonies?A. Tobacco C. IndigoB. Rice D. Wheat

13. What was the level of manufacturing in the Middle Colonies?A. More than New England C. Less than New England,

more than the southB. Less than the South D. Very little if any

manufacturing

copyright 2005 heathcock 1 life in the colonies. copyright 2005 heathcock 2 new england colonies...

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