Lecture 13: Native Americans and the Colonial Period (prehistory – 1765) British and American Culture

Native Americans – Crossing the Bering Strait (10,000-30,000 years ago)

Native Americans (pre-Columbian period)

European Exploration and Colonization Vikings from Scandinavia attempted a colony in North America around 1000 CE, but was soon abandoned Christopher Columbus arrived at the islands of the Caribbean in 1492 In the 1500s, Spanish, French, and Dutch explorers set up colonies throughout the Americas British colonization of the Americas started relatively late, in the 17th century

British, French, and Spanish claims in N. America in 1750

British Colonization – The South Jamestown – established in 1607 (modern-day Virginia) The southern colonies were mostly based on farming, used labor from imported African slaves, and had a fairly rigid social hierarchy

The Trans-Atlantic Slave Trade

British Colonization – The North The first British colony in New England was in Plymouth (in modern-day Massachusetts) Plymouth was founded by pilgrims who were Puritan religious followers fleeing persecution in England In their colony, they established strict religious rules The economy of the North was more based on industry and commerce than the agriculture-based south

The Thirteen Colonies