N EW E NGLAND AND THE M IDDLE C OLONIES Chapter 3 Section 2

N EW E NGLAND ’ S E CONOMY New England’s economy was very diverse Agriculture- subsistence farming=grew corn, beans, peas, pumpkins, squash, turnips, barley, oats, and rye Apples, cranberries, blackberries, and strawberries Livestock= cows, horses, sheep, and pigs Fishing- Grand Banks =region of Atlantic Ocean where Gulf Stream and North Atlantic meet, produces plankton= food supply for fish and whales Fish= cod, mackerel, halibut, and herring Whales=used blubber for making candles, lamp oil, ambergris (perfume), and bones (buttons and combs).

N EW E NGLAND F ARM

C OLONIAL F ISHING

N EW E NGLAND ’ S E CONOMY Lumbering in NE=dense forests+waterfalls (powered sawmills)= development of lumber industry Lumber was used for furniture, doorframes, spinning wheels, construction materials, barrels, and shipbuilding English merchants bought ships from New England=30%-50% cheaper

S AWMILL

W OODEN B ARRELS

C OLONIAL S HIPBUILDING

L IFE IN N EW E NGLAND ’ S T OWNS New England’s social life centered around the town Puritans believed that should come together to form church covenants Agreements to worship together Land was given to groups of Puritans to form towns Towns determined how people were governed Town meetings=local gov’t Passed laws and elected officials

L IFE IN N EW E NGLAND ’ S T OWNS Selectmen- men chosen to manage town affairs, elected annually Appointed other town officials: clerks, constables, and justices Town meetings helped the people establish the rights to govern themselves

T RIANGULAR T RADE

N EW U RBAN S OCIETY A new society developed with distinct social classes Wealthy Merchants=controlled trade= >5% of pop. Artisans and their families= made nearly ½ of pop. Carpenters, masons, glassmakers, bakers, etc. People w/o skills or property Worked at harbors, servants, washed clothes, cleaning houses, grooming horses=30% pop. Enslaved Africans=b/w 10% and 20% of pop.

N EW U RBAN S OCIETY Rapid development of cities caused many problems Overcrowding, crime, pollution, and epidemics Gov’ts established offices to deal with problems

S OCIETY IN THE M IDDLE C OLONIES Middle Colonies=PA, NY, NJ, and DE= most fertile farmland in North America Produced surplus of crops=$ Long growing seasons Grew rye, oats, barley, potatoes, and wheat ($ crop) Growth of Middle Colonies Sold wheat and flour to Carribean Had 3 rivers that led to Middle Colonies interior Allowed for trade Cities grew where rivers led to Atlantic Ocean (NYC and Philadelphia)

W HEAT

C OLONIAL P HILADELPHIA

S OCIETY IN THE M IDDLE C OLONIES Wheat Boom B/W the years = wheat prices doubled Increase in demand=increase in pop. Changed society Farmers hired immigrants to work Entrepreneurs risked money on land, equipment, and supplies=sold to immigrants to make profit Capitalists invested money in new businesses Gristmills=produced flour Glass and Pottery Social Classes of M.C.= 1 st Wealthy Entrepreneurs 2 nd farmers 3 rd landless workers=rented their land