1. Middle Colonies

2. Colonies
New York
Pennsylvania
New Jersey
Delaware

3. Geography/Location Rich soil which helped plants and crops to grow
Plains, valleys, and hills/mountains
Harbors, bays, rivers
Deep rivers allowed larger ships to travel to inland settlements and allowed colonists to trade.
Moderate climate which made for a long growing season

4. Resources
Wildlife
Wheat
Corn
Barley
Grain
Were known as the “Breadbasket Colonies” because they produced so much wheat, corn, and rye
These became known as Cash Crops- crops grown to sell for profit

5. Reasons for settling Religious freedom
Economic opportunity- People wanted to buy land and grow crops to make money.

6. Economy/Trade
By the mid 1700’s Philadelphia and New York were important trading and manufacturing centers
Merchants in Philadelphia and New York exported colonial goods to markets in Britain and the East Indies
Included wheat from Pennsylvania, New York, and New Jersey

8. Industries
Breadbaskets
Raised livestock
Farmers
Shipping
Trading

9. Quakers – religious people who were members of a church
Artisans – someone who is skilled at making something by hand, such as silver spoons or wooden chairs
Quakers – religious people who were members of a church
Slaves
Farmers

10. Artisans
People who were skilled at making things by hand, like silver spoons or wooden chairs.
Liked the big cities as there were more customers in a city
Attracted by the free market economy-which means people could buy and sell what they wanted.

11. Women Women made important contributions to the economy
Ran farms, businesses such as clothing, grocery stores, bakeries, and drugstores
Practiced medicine and acted as midwives
Colonial laws in this area limited their opportunities
Most colonial women worked in the home and ran the farm
Sometimes provided paid services like washing clothes

12. Apprentice
Someone who studies with a master to learn a new skill or business
Boys learned shoemaking, printing or bookmaking
Girls learned how to spin thread and weave cloth.

13. Roles
Slaves-Unlike the New England colonies, slaves were somewhat more important in the Middle
Instead of the huge apprentice system, the Middle Colonies used slave labor in its place
Worked as blacksmiths and carpenters
Could also be found in the shipbuilding industry
Indentured servants filled a lot more of those needs than slave labor
They were not a life long commitment
After their term was done, they were gone

14. Terms of Use
Thank you for downloading my Causes of the American Revolution PowerPoint. I hope that you enjoy using it as a valuable resource in your classroom! Please let me know if you have any questions or concerns. My is
©Kara Lee 2013
This resource entitles you to single classroom use only. Please do not share with grade level teams or district wide or post/resell any part of this resource. If you would like to share this resource with others, please purchase multiple licenses.
I’d love to hear your feedback!

15. Reference Material:
Houghton Mifflin Social Studies United States History Early Years Textbook