1. Colonial America (Life in the Colonies)

2. New England Economy
Most people in New England lived in towns, farms were small and located on the towns’ outskirts
Long winters and rocky soil made large-scale farming difficult, many New Englanders owned small businesses such as milling grain or sewing clothes

3. New England Economy
Shipbuilding was an important industry, the region’s forests provided wood for boats; fishing and whaling employed many people

4. New England Economy
The Puritan religion emphasized hard work, modest living and personal virtues such as honesty and obedience; this became known as the Puritan ethic

5. Middle Colonies Economy
The soil and climate in the Middle Colonies were more suited to agriculture; farmers grew wheat and other cash crops which they sold overseas

6. Middle Colonies Economy
This foreign trade spurred the growth of busy ports, such as New York and Philadelphia
Industries such as sawmills, mines, and ironworks were developed to take advantage of the region’s natural resources

7. Southern Colonies Economy
In Maryland, Virginia, and North Carolina, tobacco was the leading crop, rice dominated in South Carolina and Georgia

8. Southern Colonies Economy
Both crops were grown in the Tidewater, areas of flat, low plains near the seacoast of Virginia and North Carolina

9. Southern Colonies Economy
The region’s rivers made it easy to transport the harvested crops to the coast for shipment to overseas markets

10. Southern Colonies Economy
Charleston, South Carolina became a leader in trade thanks to its harbor

11. Southern Colonies Economy
Tidewater crops needed large amounts of labor, plantation owners depended on enslaved African workers; small farmers grew tobacco, corn, and other crops and were less dependent on enslaved workers

12. Southern Colonies Economy
Because agriculture was dominant in the South, the region did not develop much industry or commerce, it traded for manufactured goods it needed

13. Religion
In several colonies, such as Massachusetts, religious leaders were often also the leaders of government
Puritans passed laws that supported their beliefs about religion and society and had the power to expel those who did not share their beliefs

14. Religion
Pennsylvania and Rhode Island practiced religious toleration

15. Religion
In the 1720s, a powerful religious revival known as the Great Awakening swept through the colonies; preachers stressed the importance of a personal religious experience and questioned the authority of some established religious leaders

16. Education
Religion led to the founding of America’s first colleges and schools; colleges such as Harvard in Massachusetts and Princeton in New Jersey were founded for the purpose of training ministers

17. Education
In some colonies taxes were levied to pay for public education
Slave Codes made it illegal to teach enslaved workers to read or write

18. Family Life
Men were the head of the household, women looked after the children and worked on chores; on farms they worked together, assisted by older children

19. Family Life
In towns women sometimes held jobs outside the home; they worked as maids, cooks, nurses, teachers, shopkeepers, or seamstresses
Families arranged for sons to work as apprentices, or learning assistants to workers who taught them a trade

20. Family Life
Married women had few rights, widows and unmarried women could run businesses and own property but women could not vote

21. Ideas About Government
The Enlightenment and the Great Awakening helped to create a spirit of egalitarianism, or equality; colonists believed they possessed all the traditional rights of native English people

22. Ideas About Government
By 1733, all thirteen English colonies had been established, each with its own constitution and protections for individual rights

23. Ideas About Government
By the mid-1700s many Americans felt they did not possess the rights of English citizens, they believed British policies did not follow Enlightenment ideals
They accepted John Locke’s idea that government derives its power from consent of the governed (people)
Americans looked for answers to the problem of a distant and unresponsive British government, many looked to independence