chapter five colonial society on the eve of revolution 1700-1775
TRANSCRIPT
An American Way of Life
A distinct American way of life begins to emerge
Population in colonies begins to grow 1700 – 300,000 (20,000 slaves) 1750 – 2.5 million (1.25 million slaves) The colonies were doubling their population
every 25 years
Population
Highest Pop Colonies 1-Virginia 2-Massachusetts 3-Pennsylvania 4-North Carolina 5-Maryland
Highest Pop Cities 1-Philadelphia 2-New York 3-Boston 4-Charleston
Foreign Populations
Numerous foreign groups moved to the colonies
Germans – 6% of pop settled in PA Scots-Irish – 7% of pop
12 future Presidents were Scots-Irish
Other Foreign Pops
French Huguenots Jews
Welsh Irish
Dutch Swiss
Swedes Scot-Highlanders
*African slaves made up 20% of colonial pop.
Structure of Colonial America
18th century – America was a land of equality and opportunity (except slaves)
No titled nobility No pauper underclass RAGS TO RICHES POSSIBLE & COMMON Almshouses – built in Philadelphia and Boston for
poor and orphaned
Structure cont…
South – wealth was concentrated by those who owned large numbers of African slaves.
HUGE gap between the very rich and the very poor
The Working Class
Indentured servant – one whose passage to the New World was paid for by someone to whom the servant would owe years of his life to pay back the cost of passage
“Jayle Birds” - 50,000 English prisoners were dumped on the American colonies, including rapists, murderers and thieves.
Professions
Most honored position was within the church or Christian ministry – high prestige
Physicians – looked down upon, poorly trained. 1765 – first medical school in colonies (bleeding common treatment)
Lawyers – not held in high regard, “noisy, windbags, or trouble makers”
Disease
Medicine was not very advanced in the 18th century
Smallpox – affected 1/5 of colonists (George Washington was heavily pox marked)
Diphtheria – affected younger people and children
American Living
Americans enjoyed a relatively high standard of living because of the fertility of the soil
90% of population involved in agriculture NY – exported 80,000 barrels of flour/yr.
Triangular Trade
New England (rum)
$ Profits on every leg of trip $
West Indies Africa(molasses) (slaves)
Manufacturing
Not many people were involved in manufacturing because it was easier to get ahead through agriculture
Rum was distilled in RI and MA Beaver hats were produced, despite British
regulations against it.
Household Manufacturing
Primary manufacturer - households. Spinning and weaving had impressive output
for each family Carpenters would be released from prison for
murder because their skills were so badly needed in the colonies
Lumber
Most important manufacturing activity in colonies
Timber consumed by shipbuilders
1770 – 400 ships produced/yr.
1/3 of British merchant-marine were American made
Trade Imbalance
Britain was saturated with colonial goods. Large demand for British goods in the
colonies This created a trade imbalance; the colonist
looked to overseas markets to sell the excess supply of goods
Tobacco
Colonial tobacco filled the pipes of many French gentlemen
But, the tobacco was forced to go through British customs where they received a tariff (re-exported)
The Molasses Act of 1733
Parliament passed the Molasses Act with the intention of limiting American colonial trade with the French West Indies.
Resulted in Americans bribing or smuggling their way around the law.
Roads
By the 1700s, roads began to connect major cities in the colonies to one another.
Roads during the Roman Empire were better built for travel than American colonial roads.
Summer – dusty dirt roads Winter – muddy, impassable roads Travelers often drafted wills!
Taverns
Popped up on roadways and in large cities
Bowling alleys, bars, pool tables, gambling tables
Cradle of democracy Samuel Adams – owned
famous brewery and tavern, Green Dragon Tavern
Postage
Intercolonial Postage System – established around 1750 – service was slow and infrequent
Secrecy was not guaranteed (some postal carriers would read the mail)
The Great Awakening
A religious awakening that spread throughout the colonies
Jonathan Edwards Northampton,
Massachusetts – 1734 -tall, intellectual, delicate Preached dependence on
God’s grace…
Jonathan Edwards
Edwards preached a bold message that hell was very real, and literally scared his congregation
“hell is paved with the skulls of unbaptized babies”
George Whitefield
1738 – orator of rare gifts
Ex-alehouse owner Magnificent voice Human helplessness Divine Omnipotence Many imitated him
The Great Awakening
Revivals – sinners professed conversion into Christianity, they were “saved.”
Believers in religious conversion formed the Baptist Church
Lasting Effects of the Awakening
Undermined the “Old” clergy Increased competitiveness in American churches Encouraged a fresh wave of missionaries Led to the founding of “new light” centers:
Princeton, Brown, Rutgers, and Dartmouth First mass movement – broke sectional and
denominational lines
Education in The Colonies
Education was a time honored English tradition
Many colonists sent sons back to England to study at Cambridge
Schools in the Colonies
New England – tax supported and private schools both primary and secondary
South – wealthy families hired private tutors for their children’s education
Schools focused on religion, Latin, and Greek.
Art and Culture
Colonists, with a frontiersman spirit, typically were uninspired by arts and culture
Colonist preferred English and European arts and culture.
Charles Wilson Peale
1741 – 1827 Famous portrait artist of 18th century Painted famous early Americans Ran a museum and practiced dentistry
Poor Richard’s Almanack
Published by Benjamin Franklin from Philadelphia 1732-1758
Famous quotes on thrift, morality, industry, and common sense
Libraries and The Press
Byrd Family of Virginia had the largest private library in the colonies numbering 4,000 books
Ben Franklin est. first public library in Philadelphia.
1776 – 50 public libraries 40 colonial newspapers (mostly weekly readers;
news was late)
John Peter Zenger
Trial 1734-1735 Printed story about
corrupted royal governor of New York
Arrested and tried in to royal court
Jurors defy the judge and find Zenger not guilty
Banner achievement for freedom of the press
Politics In The Colonies
The 13 Colonial Governments
8 with royal governors
3 with proprietors that appointed the governor (MD,PA,DE)
2 with elected governor by popular election (RI,CT)
Politics cont…
All colonies had a two-house legislature Upper House – (Council) – appt. by Crown
or proprietor Lower House – popular elections for
representatives Raise taxes for colonial expenditures through
self taxation (precious privilege)
Colonial Life
Life was drab/tedious Labor heavy/constant Food was plentiful Diet course and plain Church and homes – no
heat, running water or plumbing
Colonial Life
Candles or oil lamps used for light Hogs in the street would serve as garbage
disposal Buzzards were legally protected
Amusement
Watching militia drills House-raisings Quilting bees Weddings and funerals strong liquors were
distilled for get togethers…