APUSH - Chapter 3
What was the "triangular trade" and what does it reveal about colonial economics? How was this a response to British mercantile policies?
"Triangular trade" = trade in rum, slaves, sugar, manufactured goods Some products to be made outside the British empire, so merchants developed markets in French, Spanish, and Dutch West Indies but the prices = higher
What were the major religious groups in the colonies, what elements formed them, and where were they located?
- Anglicanism: formed by Church of England and located in Virginia, Maryland, New York, the Carolinas, & Georgia - Congregationalists/Presbyterians: formed by religious diversity and located in New England - Dutch Reformed: formed by Dutch and located in New York and New Jersey - Baptists: formed by orthodox teachings and located in Rhode Island - Roman Catholic: mostly located in Maryland - Jews: located in New York City, Newport, & Charleston
What colonial colleges were in operation by 1763? Why was each founded, and what subjects were studied in the mid-eighteenth century?
- Harvard: founded to train ministers - Cambridge: founded b/c John Harvard left library and estate to college - William and Mary: founded to train clergymen - Yale (Congregationalists): liberal education - College of NJ/Princeton
Explain the growing preoccupation with consumption of material goods in the British colonies and how this preoccupation was associated with social status.
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What were the general characteristics of the colonial population in the first half of the eighteenth century-its rate of growth, cultural composition, settlement patterns?
1. French Huguenots 2. German Protestants (many from Palatinate)- settled in NY, PA 3. Dutch (mispronunciation of Deutsch), around 1710 4. Scotch-Irish immigrated (pushed out to edges of Eur settlements) significant in NJ and PA, established Presbyterianism as important religion there
Describe the steps that led to the establishment of black slavery in the English-American colonies.
1. demand grew once tobacco cultivation became a staple for the Chesapeake economy 2. substantial commerce in slaves grew within America 3. English seamen est. themselves in slave trade 4. Royal African Company of England maintained monopoly on trade (high prices, low supplies)
Describe the "distinctive features" of urban life in colonial America.
1. social distinctions 2. locations of the most advanced schools & sophisticated cultural activities & shops of imported goods 3. urban social problems AKA crime, vice, pollution, epidemics, traffic 4. constables' offices and fire departments 5. developed systems for supporting urban poor 6. new ideas could circulate and be discussed
What were the two powerful forces competing for the American mind in the eighteenth century?
1. traditional outlook of the 16th and 17th century: emphasis on God, involved with world, keeping watch over individual lives 2. spirit of Enlightenment: stressed importance of science and human reason, moral code > faith
How did the plantation system in the American South illustrate both the differences between the colonial and English class systems and the way in which colonial communities evolved in response to local conditions?
Class system of England failed to reproduce itself in America. The imbalance between land and population was a foundation for both English and America
How did the importance of reproduction in the labor-scarce society of colonial America affect the status and life cycle of women?
Decreased indentured servitude, more equal sex ratio, life easier for whites, women would marry early -> most of woman's life spent on childbearing
Explain the debate among historians over how and why it was determined that people of African descent should be slaves in America.
Did not cause: Oscar and Mary Handlin, George Fredrickson, Peter Wood, Brion Davis Result of: Carl Degler, Winthrop D. Jordan, Edmund Morgan Just a factor: Robin Blackburn
How did the economy of South Carolina and George differ from that of the Chesapeake? How was it similar?
Differences: built damns & dikes, environment difficulty Similarities: dependence on African labor
How was the family central to the Puritan community?
Division of fields and woodlands depended on numbers, wealth, and social station
Describe the plantation as an economic unit; as a social unit.
E: successful growers = great profits and expand operations, but always at risk b/c no control over market S: Africans developed elaborate family structure, developed languages, slave religion (Christianity + African folklore),
What factors gave rise to colonial commercial enterprises? What obstacles did these enterprises have to overcome and what effect did their success have on the colonial economy?
Factors: elaborate coastal trade, expanding transatlantic trade Obstacles: different paper money, near impossibility of imposing order on trade Effects: new merchant class, access to market in England, higher profits
Explain the commercial economy that emerged in the northern colonies alongside the agricultural one. What role did technology play in this?
Farming was not favorable in the north because of rocky soil and cold weather. They established a wide range of industrial activities. Technology prospered for agricultural needs
What were the major non-English groups to migrate to America, and why did they come?
French, German, Swiss, Irish, Welsh, Scottish, Scandinavian immigration increased. Mostly for religious freedom
What factors contributed to the rapid increase in colonial population during the last half of the seventeenth century?
Immigration, but mostly people reproducing
How and why did the status of women in colonial America differ from region to region?
It depended on whether or not the women's husband/father were there to dictate her. In the south, women had more room for freedom than the ones in the north
How did the witchcraft hysteria of the 1680s and 1690s result from a "gap between the expectations of a united community and the reality of a diverse and divided one"?
It was a reflection on social strains in the community and how highly religious it is. It revealed that there is jealousy between the isolated, unsuccessful members and the prosperous members
What were the limits of colonial technology? Just how self-sufficient were American colonists?
Lacking in guns, plows, & tools. Americans were behind in manufacturing these technology.
Explain the system of indentured servitude that developed in the American colonies. Why was it such an "appealing" system?
Men/Women sign a contract saying they will serve their master for an exchange of passage to America, food, & shelter. It was appealing because it was to escape England troubles, establish themselves on land, etc.
Explain the commerce in slaves-how it grew so extensive, more sophisticated, and more horrible.
Native African chieftains captured members of enemy tribes to sell them in the slave marts -> slave ships held as many as possible -> hardly able to stand/breathe, minimal food/water, women = victims of sexual abuse, dead thrown overboard -> slaves auctioned off
Explain the results that the limited extent of medical knowledge had on colonial society. Who benefited from this limitation?
No knowledge of infection/sterilization -> 1 woman:8 children, but up to 5 would die in infancy/early childhood. Greater levels of freedom -> Southern women benefited.
How did the experience of America affect the patriarchal family?
Only adult males participate in meetings, even social distinctions = evident. Full membership depends on the "visible saints"
Why are the 1690s considered a "turning point in the history of the black population in America"? What had this change resulted in by 1760?
Royal African Company's monopoly broken -> slaves increased by 250,000
Explain the working of the law in colonial America-the concepts on which it was based and the way it functioned.
Some colonists thought law was a reflection of divne will, while others thought it was a result of natural order. It was based off of Europe's institution. Local communities ran own affairs, had delegates to colonial assemblies filed role of Parliament, appointed provincial governors' powers were limited
What was the Great Awakening? Who brought it about, and what groups supported or opposed it?
Spiritual regeneration. Evangelists from England, but most importantly, the New England Congregationalist Jonathan Edwards
What was the Enlightenment? How did it differ from the Great Awakening?
The product of scientific and intellectual discoveries. The Great Awakening was more about faith
What impact did freed indentures have on colonial sociopolitical development?
They either established themselves as farmers, tradespeople, artisans, or they were bouncing from place to place in search of work or land
How have historians differed over how and why white Americans created a system of slave labor in the seventeenth century?
They wondered whether slavery was a result of white racism or helped to cause it
Describe the economy of the Chesapeake region, and explain why it developed as it did.
Tobacco = basis of economy developed boom-and-bust pattern, expanded landholdings, enlarged fields, acquired additional laborers
What forces gave rise to colonial "cities"?
Trading centers, center of industry
What were the effects of the Great Awakening?
Weakened the authority of established churches, created increasing hostility to clergy, helped American religion more open and diverse
Why did most indentures go to Pennsylvania and New York after 1700?
Working conditions in the south were arduous and prospects for advancement were slim. Penn. and NY had more promising opportunities
What evidence was there that the influence of the Enlightenment was spreading in America?
an increasing interest in scientific knowledge
In colonial America, what needs did the almanacs fill?
educational purposes
Why was it said of almanacs that "no book we read (except the Bible) is so much valued and so serviceable to the community?"
it was the only source of printed information
What were the characteristics of communities that emerged in Puritan, New England?
town sets up "covenant" binding residents in religious & social commitment to unity & harmony
What were the characteristics of plantation slavery?
¾ blacks lived on plantations with 10+ slaves, ½ lived w/ 50+
