WHY LEARN ABOUT THE COLONIES?  Diversity: racial, cultural, national, religious, socio-economic, political, geographical  Dominance of Protestantism  Racial attitudes toward non-white people  Origins of political institutions  Development of the unique American character, attitudes, and practices  Development of American Exceptionalism  Rights are innate, inborn, and integral to each and every individual  Liberty, equality, democracy, and prosperity

CHARACTERISTICS OF EARLY COLONISTS  Young (under the age of 25)  Male  Arrived alone  ½ indentured servants or slaves  Chance to improve their lives  English, Scot, and Irish  Most worshipped in the Anglican Church

NORTHERN COLONIES  Hierarchy  Homogeneous  Structured around Religious beliefs and values  Characterized by clustered settlements which encouraged the growth of strong vital communities and a rigorous sense of local order.  Composed of four groups: small farmers; craftsmen and merchants; servants; Indians  Small, family run farms and small household manufacturing endeavors. Self sufficient families who lived in clustered town dwellings.  Small towns surrounded by adjacent fields.  Division of labor. The farm economy was rigidly controlled by division of labor within the family: men were responsible for field work; women were responsible for housework, gardening, dairy, hen house, etc. The reliance upon family farming meant little need for servants or slaves.  Manufacturing and exporting their natural resources  Self-government: central governments and local government town meetings

MIDDLE COLONIES  Multicultural and very diverse - people from many parts of Europe; The population was culturally, linguistically, and spiritually diverse. People lived in small settlements throughout the colonies which encouraged the growth of small towns run by county governments.  Somewhat equal for white men - almost every white, adult male owned land  Diverse in religious beliefs and cultural values. People in the Middle Colonies displayed more tolerance than the other two regions.  Composed of four groups: small farmers, craftsmen, merchants, service providers  fur-trading  Hard working small farmers, craftsmen, and merchants.  Manufacturing which included iron ore products - tools, kettles, nails and plows.  Trade that included exported agricultural products and natural resources and imported European manufactured goods.

SOUTHERN COLONIES  Biracial - primarily white and black.  Unequal - social, economic, and political inequality  Hierarchical and socially stratified according to wealth as dictated by English tradition: plantation owners; smaller landowners, merchants, and craftsmen; the servants; Indians; and slaves.  Composed of five groups: landowners (large plantation and small farmers); merchants and craftsmen; servants; Indians; and slaves.  Single crop economy - profitable, single crop farms growing tobacco, indigo, rice, hemp, and later on, cotton.  Slave labor. The quest for huge profits, which depended upon a constant source of cheap labor, created an enormous slave population.  Rural areas with sparse settlements  Export of agricultural goods