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III. The : Life and Times Before the Revolution

Middle Atlantic, and Southern. Instruct students to cut out each colony, and then write facts about the colony on the back and the name of the colony on the front. Use shorter yarn to hang the together, longer yarn to hang the Middle Atlantic colonies together, and the longest pieces of yarn to hang the Southern colonies together. Share these with the class and hang them in class- rooms. This activity can be a springboard for organizing ideas and outlining para- graph writing. A good extension for this activity would be to have students cre- ate “tourist” brochures about each region, giving facts about each colony and illustrating their brochures. The purpose of the brochure could be to convince other Europeans to move to the colonies. Ask students to think about the strengths and relative weaknesses when deciding on what to include in their brochures. • Invite a historian to the classroom to talk about the original 13 colonies,

Name Date particularly if the class lives in one of these areas. University professors or Venn Diagram librarians may also be available to talk about the history of the colonies. Before the visit, have the class write letters to the presenter, asking one ques- tion that they would like answered about the colonies. Instruct the class to use the letter-writing format for a friendly letter. • Use a Venn diagram to help students see the differences and similarities in climate, physical geography, and food production among the three regions. Discuss with students how people have culturally adapted to the physical environments they occupy in order to make a living. e Knowledge Foundation

Directions: Venn diagrams are useful for showing how things are alike in some ways, but different in others. Where the circles overlap, write or draw how • Have the class become pen pals with students who live in the areas of the both things are alike. Where the circles don’t overlap, write or draw how two things are different. Copyright ©Cor Master 62 Grade 3: Teacher Material original colonies. Have the class write letters about what they have learned about that area’s history and then ask questions about the area now. Use Instructional Master 62. • You may also ask the following questions at the end of this section: 1. What did Philadelphia, Boston, City, and Charleston have in common? All four cities were located on good harbors and close to farming areas, so the cities became important trading centers. 2. What was the first English colony in ? Jamestown was the first English colony in North America. 3. Why did people who grew , rice, and indigo use enslaved Africans? Growing tobacco, rice, and indigo required large amounts of land, labor, and equipment. Indentured servants who were Europeans left at the end of their term of indenture and were more expensive to take care of than Africans. It seemed as though there was a steady supply of Africans in Africa, and once they paid for a slave, plantation owners believed that they did not need to spend very much to provide an African with food, clothing, and shelter. 4. What was the Middle Passage? The Middle Passage was the voyage that brought enslaved Africans from Africa to the Americas. The people who were transported often suffered terri- bly during the Middle Passage. 5. Why did Pilgrims and Puritans come to America? Puritans and Pilgrims wanted to be able to practice their religion, which they could not do freely in England.

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Cross-curricular Connections Language Arts Visual Arts Poetry Elements of Art • “First Thanksgiving of All” (Nancy • Early American quilts Byrd Turner) • Edward Hicks, The Peaceable Fiction Kingdom (Pilgrims) Stories • “The People Could Fly” (slavery in the colonies)

At a Glance The most important ideas for you are: Climate and physical geography were two reasons that the English colonies developed differently. Towns located on good harbors and in proximity to agricultural areas developed into market centers and ultimately into thriving cities. While the economy of the Southern colonies was based on large-scale plantation agriculture, most Southern farms were small. The first Africans came as indentured servants, not as slaves. Religion was the most important influence on the founding of the New England colonies. The Middle Atlantic colonies were founded for financial and religious motives.

Teaching Idea What Teachers Need to Know Discuss the colonies in New England. Background Why is this region called “New England”? What do you notice about Although students may have heard the word colony, it would be useful to the names of the colonies and the define the term with students and to discuss reasons why nations have estab- names of the states there today? lished colonies in the past. Help students to see that the 13 English colonies (Students should notice the names were not identical. First, different groups of people came to the colonies with are the same, but the regions them- different motivations (hoping to get rich, looking for religious freedom, and so selves differ—for example, Maine on), and these motives had an effect on how the colonies developed. In addi- was part of what was then called tion, the climate and the physical environment of each region affected its devel- .) Follow a similar opment. discussion with the Middle Atlantic and Southern colonies. (How did A. Geography these regions get their names, etc.) Each group of people culturally adapted to the climate and terrain of their Ask students to compare and contrast colony, finding different ways to produce food and use resources available to life in the three colonies simply them. Each region had a variety of terrain, from coastal plain to mountainous based on geography. backcountry with corresponding climates.

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Teaching Idea New England Colonies Make an overhead from Instructional Agriculture in the New England colonies was hampered by both the climate Master 31, Map of the Thirteen and the physical environment. New England experiences long, cold, and very Colonies, to orient students to the snowy winters and short, warm summers. Crops that grow well in the other names and locations of the colonies in regions, such as rice and wheat, do not thrive in this climate. In addition, the soil each region. Use this overhead as a is rocky or sandy, and generally poor for growing crops. way to introduce or review each region As a result, farming in New England was limited to small farms on which as you teach the section. Extend this families managed to grow enough to feed themselves and not much else. These activity by having groups of students subsistence farmers grew vegetables, apples, and possibly a field of grain crops make puzzles of the colonies. You will (often oats that were fed to livestock). need to enlarge the map using a copier. Fortunately for the colonists, New England was heavily forested and those Have one group make the puzzle pieces forests became the basis for thriving maritime industries. Cities like Boston, of the New England colonies by gluing , and Portsmouth, New Hampshire, became major centers for ship- the map onto cardboard and then cut- building. Coastal towns were home to fleets of fishing boats that fished in the ting out the pieces. Then have two coastal waters for cod, lobster, and other shellfish. By the mid-1600s, fish was other groups make the puzzle pieces of New England’s most important export. International trade also depended on New the Middle Atlantic and Southern England shipbuilding and sailors. Colonial ships based in New England ports like colonies. Instruct students to write a Boston and Salem, Massachusetts, sailed to England and the Caribbean. Some fact about each colony on the back of ships participated in the slave trade between Africa and the Caribbean and North each puzzle piece. Then, challenge America. groups to assemble the puzzle. Middle Atlantic Colonies The climate in the Middle Atlantic region is more moderate, with milder,

Name Date shorter winters than in New England and a longer overall growing season from Map of the Thirteen Colonies spring to fall. Because of the more advantageous climate and fertile soil, cereal

Study the names and locations of the thirteen English colonies. Then use the map to complete the chart below. crops—wheat, oats, corn—and many vegetables and fruits grow well in this region.

New Hampshire Salem Farms in the Middle Atlantic colonies varied in size. There were some very Boston New York Plymouth Massachusetts large estates on which tenant farmers worked for wealthy owners, but most farms

Delaware N Jamestown were owned by a single family. The proprietors of Pennsylvania made land avail- North W E Carolina ATLANTIC South S Carolina OCEAN able cheaply to anyone willing to work it. As a result, the average farm in these Charles Town

Savannah 250 Miles 0 250 Kilometers colonies was approximately 100 acres.

New England Colonies Middle Atlantic Colonies Southern Colonies

Southern Colonies Middle Atlantic Colonies New England Colonies Southern Colonies Maryland New York New Hampshire Virginia New Jersey Massachusetts Pennsylvania Rhode Island The Southern colonies had a warm climate with a long growing season, abun- Connecticut e Knowledge Foundation Georgia dant rainfall, and fertile soil. Whereas New England farmers were subsistence

Purpose:

To read and interpret a map featuring the thirteen English colonies Copyright ©Cor Master 31 Grade 3: History & Geography farmers, farming just enough for their families, and Middle Atlantic farmers used a system of mixed farming, raising a variety of crops and some livestock, large- Use Instructional Master 31. scale Southern farmers were one-crop farmers. They relied on one cash crop—it might be tobacco, rice, indigo, or (later) cotton—year in and year out. This is not to say that there were no small farmers in the Southern colonies, but they did not drive the economy. Like New England farmers, small Southern farmers were sub- sistence farmers, raising just enough to eat with maybe a little left over to sell. The origin of the one-cash-crop economy can be traced all the way back to Jamestown, where large-scale planting of tobacco was instrumental in saving the colony from economic ruin. Subsequent colonists followed this model, using it to cultivate rice and later indigo, from which a blue dye is made. To be economical- ly viable, these crops all require large amounts of land and many workers. 178 Grade 3 Handbook CK_3_TH_HG_P146_194.QXD 4/11/05 10:47 AM Page 179

Farmers who worked these crops established large farms that became known as plantations. The landowners were called planters. As these farmers opened up more land, they needed an abundant, cheap source of workers. It became more difficult over time to find indentured servants—Europeans willing to work for a period of seven years in exchange for their passage to the colonies in addition to food, clothing, and shelter. Planters therefore began to rely on enslaved Africans for labor. Important Cities The first settlements, regardless of the region, were small villages near the coast. Over time some of these villages grew into towns, and by the late 1600s and early 1700s, a few had become substantial cities. Those that grew into cities had taken advantage of their locations on good harbors to become trading centers. These cities acted as markets not only for international trade with England and English colonies in the West Indies, but also for colonists in the backcountry. Philadelphia Philadelphia was founded by William Penn in 1681 and laid out in 1682 as a planned city—Penn’s “greene countrie towne.” At the time of the , Philadelphia was the second-largest English-speaking city in the world, following London, with a population of more than 30,000. Philadelphia had one of the world’s largest freshwater harbors, located where the Schuylkill Teaching Idea and Delaware rivers merge. Backcountry farmers brought wheat, pork, horses, and flour to Philadelphia to sell. In exchange, Philadelphia merchants Have students work in pairs to create imported rum, sugar, molasses, and salt, among other goods. Philadelphia was the a “Where Am I?” game. Give each capital during the American Revolution and served as the new nation’s capital pair two index cards. Assign each from 1790 to 1800. pair one of the four cities discussed in this section. The pairs will write a Boston different statement about the city on the front of each card followed by the Boston is located at the mouth of the Charles River on Massachusetts Bay. question “Where am I?” Answers Settled by the Puritans in 1630, two years later the town became the capital of the should be written on the back of the (see pp. 187–188). Boston also grew to become an cards. important center for shipbuilding and international trade. Export goods included Collect all the cards and place dried cod, pork, and beef. Iron, salt, and molasses were among the imports. them in a box. Choose teams with the Boston was a hotbed of Patriot activity leading up to the American Revolution. entire class playing, or set up a panel New York City with some students answering ques- Originally settled by the Dutch as New Amsterdam, the area had been seized tions and the rest acting as question- by the English in 1664 and renamed New York City in honor of the English king’s er, judges, and scorekeeper. Rotate brother, the Duke of York (see p. 190). students through the jobs. Building on its beginnings as an important center of trade for the Dutch West India Company, especially in furs, New York City continued to grow and prosper as a commercial center. Its excellent harbor and proximity to the Hudson River— and, therefore, upstate communities—were factors in its growth. During the American Revolution, the British held the city from 1776 to 1781. In 1789 and 1790, the city served as the new nation’s capital, and George Washington was inaugurated there as the first president of the in 1789.

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Teaching Idea Charleston Throughout this unit of study, keep a Originally known as Charles Towne, the city is built on a peninsula between simple chart to organize student under- the Cooper and Ashley Rivers, which empty into the Atlantic Ocean. The city was standing of the colonies. Use the fol- founded in 1670 in what was then the southern portion of the Carolina colony. lowing categories: In 1729, Carolina was divided into two colonies, and Charleston became the cap- • Name of colony ital of South Carolina. A trading center for rice, indigo, and slaves, Charleston • Who founded it was the largest city in the Southern colonies. • What is unique about the colony (religion it was founded on, for example) B. Southern Colonies • What life was like in the colony Virginia • Any famous places or people who lived there The first permanent English colony was not established in North America • Other interesting facts until 1607, when colonists sailing under a charter from King James I planted the Fill in the chart as you learn about the English flag at Jamestown. Rather than shoulder all the potential losses from an colonies. At the end of the unit of study, expedition, some London merchants decided to combine into a joint-stock com- students can use the chart as a refer- pany to finance a colonization attempt. It was similar to a modern corporation in ence to review and write paragraphs or which people buy shares to underwrite expenses with the expectation they will reports on what they’ve learned. share in the profits. The merchants named their venture the London Company, later renamed the Virginia Company, and sought a charter from King James I. At that time, all land that had been discovered by explorers was claimed in the name of the nation under whose flag they sailed. As a result, anyone who wanted to set- tle on that land needed the monarch’s permission—whether it was the king or queen of Spain, France, or England. The Virginia Company was granted a charter to settle the coast of an area that stretched from what is modern-day North Carolina, through Virginia and Maryland, to Delaware. In April 1607, the first 100 colonists—men and boys only—dropped anchor in a river they named James, in honor of King James I (1603–1625). (The colony, Virginia, had been named in honor of Queen Elizabeth [1558–1603], the “Virgin Queen.”) The river emptied into the , an arm of the Atlantic Ocean. After a search for a site that was accessible for trade with the local people and out of sight of Spanish ships, the colonists established their settlement and named it Jamestown. Unfortunately, the area was marshland and filled with mosquitoes. Farming such land would prove difficult. However, many of the men who came in the first three years of the colony were not interested in farming. They were gentlemen-adventurers, many of whom had never done a hard day’s work. They had come to search for gold and silver and to trade for beaver and deerskins with the Native Americans. These trade goods were luxuries that would bring high prices in Europe. The charter also commanded the English to convert the native peoples to Christianity, but unlike the Spanish, the English crown did not send missionaries or soldiers to force Native Americans to obey. The quest for riches made it difficult to get the men to work together. Finally, Captain took charge and told the men that those who did not work would not eat. Reluctantly, the men set to farming. Smith remained in charge until 1609, when he returned to England because of an injury. Between 1607 and 1609, more colonists arrived, including a few women, but the difficulties of farming, disease (malaria and dysentery), and malnutrition dec-

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imated the population. Some 900 colonists came during those years, but only 60 were left after what was called the “starving time.” Those who survived did so by eating dogs, cats, mice, rats, and horses. Some colonists robbed the colony’s store- house. There were even accusations of cannibalism. Between 1610 and 1622, another 9,000 people came to Jamestown, but only 2,000 survived. The Powhatan Confederacy and Pocahontas The Virginia colonists had an up-and-down relationship with the native peo- ples of Virginia. The native peoples and the colonists had differing opinions on land use, which continued to cause conflict between the groups. The native people did not seek to own land exclusively, as the colonists did. The English had expected to be able to subdue and exploit the Native American populations, as the Spanish had. However, the English did not send an army to support the colonists. Instead, the colonists were left to themselves to figure out how to deal with the native peoples. Powhatan was the name of a tribe, and the English called both the tribe and their leader, Wahunsonacock, by the name Powhatan. Wahunsonacock (Powhatan) was the leader of both the Powhatan and a confederacy, or loose organization, of Native American groups that was spread over most of the Virginia coast and into Maryland. (Powhatan is also discussed in connection with the Eastern Woodlands, on pp. 156–157.) In the beginning, the Powhatan aided the colonists of Jamestown as much as the Wampanoag helped the Pilgrims in . The Powhatan showed the colonists new plants that would grow well in their fields and gave them food. However, when the colonists still were not growing enough food by the second year, Smith tried to force the Powhatan to give them food by burning their fields and villages. The Powhatan attacked. According to Smith’s history of the time, which certainly contains much factual material but may also contain some leg- ends and exaggerations, at one point he was captured by Powhatan and about to be executed when Powhatan’s daughter, Pocahontas, stepped in and saved him. Smith wrote: “She hazarded the beating out of her own brains to save mine; and not only that, but so prevailed with her father, that I was safely conducted to Pocahontas James town, where I found about eight and thirty miserable poor and sick crea- tures.” Jamestown was then in the middle of the “starving time.” Smith goes on to give Pocahontas credit for saving the colony: “Such was the weakness of this poor commonwealth, as had the savages not fed us, we directly had starved. And Teaching Idea this relief . . . was commonly brought us by this Lady Pocahontas . . . she, next It is important that students under- under God, was the instrument to preserve this colony from death, famine, and stand that Disney versions of movies utter confusion.” such as Pocahontas, while generally In 1614, Pocahontas married John Rolfe, a colonist, and took the Christian based on historical fact, do present name Rebecca. When he returned to England for a visit, she went with him. historical fiction. Talk to students Pocahontas was a sensation in England and was presented at the royal court. She about other movies by Disney that, was touted as “the first Christian ever of that Nation [the Powhatan], the first while based in history, don’t repre- Virginian ever [to speak] English, [and the first to have] had a child in marriage sent the true story. Make sure you by an Englishman.” Unfortunately, Pocahontas died, possibly of smallpox, before convey that they shouldn’t always she could return to America. believe everything they see—espe- After Smith’s return to England, other governors tried to force the Powhatan cially in cartoons. to cooperate. They told the Native Americans to ignore their chief Powhatan and bring food and furs to the colonists. Warfare broke out and continued through much of the first half of the 1600s. History and Geography: American 181 CK_3_TH_HG_P146_194.QXD 4/11/05 10:47 AM Page 182

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Teaching Idea Tobacco as a Cash Crop This would be a good place to mention that cigarettes are made from tobacco, John Rolfe is notable not only for being Pocahontas’s husband but also for and that smoking is bad for your health. introducing tobacco agriculture into Jamestown. Local tobacco was not of a high Mention that people didn’t know it quality, but in 1612, Rolfe tried growing milder tobacco imported from the West back in the 1600s, but we have learned Indies. a lot of things since then. Also, it might Tobacco had been introduced to Europeans in the 1500s by the Spanish. be good to mention that while adults Columbus’s crew took the plant back to Spain with them after their exploration may choose to smoke, it is important in the New World. Initially, tobacco was used for medicinal purposes, but recre- for children not to start a bad habit. ational use soon spread across Europe. King James of England had written a pam- Close with a brief discussion about phlet against tobacco smoking in 1604, calling it “a custom loathsome to the eye, how tobacco, while bad for one’s hateful to the nose, harmful to the brain, dangerous to the lungs, and in the black health, was economically good for the stinking fume thereof nearest resembling the horrible stygian smoke of the pit colonies. that is bottomless.” Nevertheless, the ranks of the tobacco smokers continued to grow, and, in time, many of them would be supplied with tobacco from the Virginia colony named for King James. The first tobacco crop from Jamestown was sent to England in 1617, and, by 1619, tobacco had become the colony’s chief crop. By 1669, the colony was exporting 15 million pounds a year. Early on, the Virginia Company had tried to dissuade colonists from relying on just one crop, but farmers who were seeing their profits jump each year ignored them. In 1624, all attempts to limit tobacco agriculture were lifted. In 1619, a Dutch ship brought approximately 20 African laborers to Jamestown. These may have been slaves or they may have been indentured ser- vants. In either case, they are believed to be the first African laborers brought to the English colonies in North America. For more on the beginnings of slavery in America, see “Slavery” on p. 184. Maryland After the Protestant Reformation in Europe, the people within a country were expected to practice the religion approved by their government. To do otherwise was to risk fines, imprisonment, and even death. In England, King Henry VIII had begun the Church of England, also known as the Anglican Church, in protest against the Roman Catholic Church’s refusal to grant him a divorce from his wife, Catherine of Aragon. All English subjects were then expected to become Anglicans. The Anglican Church was the “official” or established church. From the time of Queen Elizabeth on, Catholics were persecuted and suspected of wanting to undermine the religion and government. In 1632, Maryland was established as a haven for Roman Catholics. Lord Baltimore, a Catholic and friend of King Charles I, was given land along Chesapeake Bay to found a colony, which he named Maryland in honor of the Teaching Idea English queen, Henrietta Maria. The colony was settled in 1634. Recall that many places are named Like Virginia, Maryland’s economy was based on tobacco agriculture. A few after important people from history. large Catholic landowners ran huge tobacco plantations, but they were outnum- What city in Maryland was named after bered by small farmers and others who were Protestant. In an attempt to keep a significant leader? peace in the colony, Lord Baltimore had the general assembly, the legislative body for the colony, pass the Act of Toleration in 1649. This law ensured freedom of

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religion by confirming that all people could practice their religion without inter- ference. While Maryland is considered a Southern colony culturally, it is geo- Teaching Idea graphically part of the Middle Atlantic area. Have students create a book about the colonies. They can draw a map of North and South Carolina each colony indicating enough of the colonies, frontier, and/or water A group of proprietors founded Carolina colony in 1663. It was named in around it to provide a visual context. honor of King Charles II (Charles in Latin is Carolus). The northern part of the Then have students write a few facts colony was centered on the Albemarle Sound, not far from the Virginia border. about the colony. They can illustrate Most farms in that area were small and worked by families. their book with their own drawings. The southern part of the colony grew up around the settlement of Charles Use construction paper for covers, Towne, later Charleston. Rice was introduced into the colony in the 1690s, but and either staple the books together the land and climate of the northern part of Carolina were ill-suited to rice agri- or punch two holes in the books and culture. However, the swampy area around Charleston was ideal for growing rice. use yarn to tie the books together. Like tobacco, rice was labor-intensive and required large amounts of land and equipment. Fields needed to be flooded at certain intervals, so dams and dikes had to be built. Wealthy men began to buy up land and establish plantations. Slaves from Africa played an instrumental role in the successful cultivation of rice in South Carolina. Many of them had grown rice in Africa and were able to teach the Europeans how to cultivate the crop. By the mid-1700s, planters also began to cultivate indigo on a large scale. In the beginning of the colony, the proprietors offered land to every man, woman, child, and servant—male and female—who would immigrate to Carolina. For a time, indentured servants provided much of the labor, but once agriculture became big business, planters began to import boatloads of enslaved Africans. By 1740, for every European colonist in Carolina there were two African slaves. Carolina was divided into North and South Carolina in 1729. Georgia Georgia was the last of the 13 English colonies to be established. In 1732, and a group of London businessmen received a charter from King George II to set up a colony between South Carolina and . Named in honor of King George, the colony was to provide a place for English debtors. At the time, those who could not pay their debts were sent to debtors’ prison. In 1729, one of Oglethorpe’s friends had been thrown into a London prison because of unpaid debts. The man was thrown into a cell with a prisoner who had smallpox; he contracted the disease himself and died. The loss of his friend stim- ulated Oglethorpe to begin a long campaign to reform and improve the horrible conditions in England’s prisons. Oglethorpe also came to believe it was a tragedy that so many British citizens lingered in jail simply because they could not pay their bills. He began to push for the creation of a new colony in America, a place where the “worthy poor” could have a “second chance,” and could be turned into farmers, merchants, and artisans. Oglethorpe envisioned a colony without slav- ery. In 1732, the colony became a reality, partly because the British wanted a “buffer” colony between the Spanish and Native Americans in Florida and the settlers of Carolina.

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Few debtors took up the offer of 50 acres, tools, and supplies for a year. Poor immigrants from other countries including Ireland, Scotland, and Wales did set- tle in the colony, but it grew slowly. In time, plantation-style agriculture, includ- ing the use of enslaved Africans, was introduced.

Teaching Idea Slavery Students in Core Knowledge schools The first Africans were enslaved and brought to the Americas in the early began the discussion of slavery in 1500s by the Spanish to work on farms and mines in the Caribbean. The first Kindergarten around the idea that Africans in the English colonies on the mainland arrived at Jamestown in 1619, a slaves were denied freedom of even year before the Mayflower sailed to New England. These first Africans are believed such basic rights as choosing where to to have been indentured servants, people who contracted to work for a certain live, what to eat, and what to wear. The period of time and then were released to work for themselves. complexity of the discussion should By the 1660s, however, many Africans were being treated as slaves. By then, have deepened each year. In Grade 3, it was difficult to find enough workers to farm the large tobacco plantations that the discussion can begin by looking at the English were starting in the colony, so bringing captured Africans seemed to how Africans were enslaved in the first promise a steady supply of labor. place and what happened to them In the 1700s, importing Africans as slaves for the Southern colonies became when they arrived in the Americas. The big business for American merchants and sea captains. Slavery was not as impor- discussion can also review the points tant in New England, although there were slaves in those colonies. However, made in the discussion about how Northern colonies did gain economic benefits from slavery. Ships made in New Europeans were able to mistreat Native England were used to bring slaves to the colonies, and ships made in cities such Americans. Or, if you have not taught as New York City were used to transport slave products like cotton and tobacco Section I yet, set up the following to England and France. Slavery was less important in the Middle Atlantic discussion points: colonies, where most farms were small and tilled by families, although again there Africans, like Native Americans, were slaves on farms and in cities, working in houses and as skilled artisans and were seen as uncivilized—inferior—by craftworkers. the Europeans and their colonial descendants. Africans, like Native The section of the trade network between Africa and the Americas was Americans, did not dress like, speak known as the Middle Passage. It was in the Middle Passage that Africans were the same languages as, worship as, or transported in chains from Africa to the American colonies. Slave raiders, have the same values as the Europeans. Africans armed with guns supplied by European slave traders, would kidnap Reinforce that there are two sides to members of enemy tribes or just hapless people—men, women, and children— every story, that some people have who were in the wrong place, and march them in chains to the coast. There, the learned to treat everyone with respect Africans would be put into slave factories, holding pens, until a slave ship came over time, and discuss how the Native to pick them up. Americans and Africans perceived the On board the slave ship, the Africans would be chained together below deck colonists. in tight spaces with little food and water for six to ten weeks. They might be allowed on deck in good weather for exercise and fresh air. Sometimes, Africans jumped to their deaths from the railings rather than endure any more. The Middle Passage ended in the Caribbean, in South America, or in the Southern colonies, where the Africans would be marched off the ship in chains to be examined by prospective buyers and sold at auction. 52

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C. New England Colonies As noted in Section A, over time the New England colonies developed a maritime economy based in large part on fishing and shipbuilding, as well as on international trade. However, religion was also an important factor in the settlement of New England. Massachusetts Two groups settled what became Massachusetts: the Pilgrims and the Puritans. Both were religious dissenters who came from England in search of reli- gious freedom. The subsection on Maryland (on pp. 182–183) described the establishment of the Anglican Church and the persecution of Catholics that led to the establish- ment of Maryland. Religious disputes also led to the settlement of New England. A small group of English Protestants did not think that the Church of England had gone far enough in removing Roman Catholic practices. These people called themselves Puritans after their wish to purify the Church of England. One group of Puritans went so far as to separate themselves from the Church of England and form their own church. These people were called Separatists, and became the Pilgrims, or travelers, who settled in New England. The Pilgrims In 1608, a group of Separatists left England for Holland, where they could practice their deeply held beliefs without fear of reprisals. However, by 1618–1619, they found that their children were speaking Dutch and learning Dutch ways of life rather than English ones. The Pilgrims determined to hold fast to their English heritage and so left Holland to find a new life for themselves and their children near Jamestown in the Virginia Colony. Thirty-five Pilgrims, plus 47 other English people who wanted to start new lives, set sail on the Mayflower in September 1620. They spent 65 days at sea and landed not in mild and sunny Virginia, but much farther north in a cold and snowy climate. When the Pilgrims first sighted Cape Cod, they rejoiced and gave thanks to God for allowing them to make the passage safely. One of the Pilgrim leaders, William Bradford, described their feelings many years later in his history, Of Plymouth Plantation (c. 1650): Being thus arrived in a good harbor, and brought safe to land, they fell upon their knees and blessed the God of Heaven who had brought them over the fast and furious ocean, and delivered them from all the perils and miseries thereof, again to set their feet on the firm and stable earth, their proper element.

While still on board the Mayflower, the Pilgrims drew up and signed what is known as the Mayflower Compact. With this document, the 41 men who signed it agreed to consult together on rules for the colony. It is the first document in the English colonies to guarantee self-government. The text, as found in Bradford’s history, reads as follows: We, whose names are under-written, the loyal subjects of our dread sovereign Lord, King James, by the grace of God of Great Britain . . . Defender of the Faith, etc. History and Geography: American 185 CK_3_TH_HG_P146_194.QXD 4/11/05 10:47 AM Page 186

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Having undertaken, for the glory of God and advancement of the Christian faith and honor of our King and country, a voyage to plant the first colony in the northern parts of Virginia; do, by these presents, solemnly and mutually in the presence of God and one of another, covenant and combine ourselves together into a civil body politic, for our better ordering and preservation and furtherance of the ends afore- said; and by virtue hereof do enact, constitute, and frame, such just and equal laws, ordinances, acts, constitutions, and offices, from time to time, as shall be thought most meet and convenient for the general good of the Colony; unto which we promise all due submission and obedi- ence. In witness whereof we have hereunder subscribed our names at Cape Cod, the eleventh of November, in the year of the reign of our sov- ereign lord, King James . . . Anno Domini 1620. 49

According to legend, the Pilgrims first set foot in North America on Plymouth Rock, a large granite boulder on the shore at Plymouth. Today, the rock is enclosed to keep people from climbing on it. Although no reliable evidence exists to support the landing on Plymouth Rock, the story has become part of our national lore. The Pilgrims called their settlement Plymouth Colony in honor of the English town from which they had recently set sail. With little food, no way to plant and grow food in the winter, and only temporary shelter, almost half the colonists died that first winter. Bradford noted: In two or three months time, half their company died, especially in January and February, being the depth of winter and wanting houses and other comforts, being infected with the scurvy and other diseases . . . . There died sometimes two or three a day . . . . In this time of distress, there [were] but six or seven sound [healthy] persons who to their great commendations, be it spoken, spared no pains night nor day, but with abundence of toil and hazard of their own health, fetched them [the sick] wood, made their fires, dressed their meat, made their beds, washed their loathsome clothes, clothed and unclothed them.

In spring 1621, the Wampanoag under Chief Massasoit came to the aid of the Pilgrims. A Native American named Samoset visited them and spoke in broken English. Samoset told them of the territories nearby and of another Native American named Tisquantum (Squanto), who had been to England and spoke even better English than Samoset. Tisquantum’s story is remarkable. He had been kidnapped by an English explorer years earlier and had spent time in Spain and England. Later he had returned to America, only to find that his original people (the Patuxet) had died of diseases brought by the Europeans. Tisquantum joined the Wampanoag and Chief Massasoit. When the Pilgrims arrived, he presented himself as a translator, and eventually became an agricultural advisor as well. Tisquantum proved espe- cially helpful to the Pilgrims. He made a peace treaty between the Native Americans and the colonists and taught the colonists how to raise corn, beans, and squash. He also showed them which wild plants were safe to gather and eat. The Pilgrims learned quickly, and their harvest that fall was good enough to provide food for the coming winter, so they set aside time to give thanks to God.

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From previous grades, students should be familiar with the story of the first Thanksgiving, celebrated with the native people. At this feast the Pilgrims most likely ate turkey, duck, or goose, and fish, shellfish, stews, and vegetables. In 1863, President Abraham Lincoln made Thanksgiving a national day of celebra- tion for the blessings Americans receive during the year. William Bradford records many other interesting details about the Pilgrims in his history. One of the most fascinating stories tells how the Pilgrims first adopt- ed and later rejected a communal style of farming. The original plan was for all the Pilgrims to hold the land jointly, and all to share the fruits of the soil. This was called “the common course and condition,” and it was tried for a few years. However, Bradford noted that the system was problematic: The experience that was had in this common course and condition, tried sundry years and that amongst godly and sober men, may well evince the vanity of that conceit of Plato’s and other ancients . . . that the taking away of property and bringing in community into a commonwealth would make them happy and flourishing . . . . For this community (so far as it was) was found to breed much confusion and discontent and retard much employment that would have been to their benefit and com- fort. For the young men, that were most able and fit for labor and serv- ice, did repine that they should spend their time and strength to work for other men’s wives and children without any recompense.

To alleviate the confusion and dissent, Bradford and the other Pilgrim lead- ers decided to assign each head of household some land and a certain amount of seed, and let them all farm for themselves. Bradford says this greatly improved the situation: This had very good success, for it made all hands very industrious, so as much more corn was planted than otherwise would have been by any means the Governor or any other could use, and saved him a great deal of trouble, and gave far better content. The women now went willingly into the field, and took their little ones with them to set corn; which before would allege weakness and inability; whom to have compelled would have been thought great tyranny and oppression. Bradford was governor of the colony at the time this happened. He was re-elected 30 times over the next several decades. The colony he governed was very religious. All men, women, and children were expected to attend church.

The Puritans and Massachusetts Bay Colony In 1629, a group of English Puritans and merchants formed a partnership called the Massachusetts Bay Company. Its purpose was to establish a colony north of Plymouth, which was both a business venture and an experiment in liv- ing according to the Bible and Christian principles. The profits for the owners would come from farming, fishing, and trade for furs with the Native Americans. One thousand colonists came in the first year and 10,000 by the end of the 1630s. They began with a settlement at Salem and then moved south to establish settle- ments at places they called Boston, Charlestown, and Cambridge.

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One of the leaders of the Massachusetts Puritans was John Winthrop. En route to America, Winthrop delivered a famous sermon, called “A Model of Christian Charity.” In this sermon he explained that everyone would be watching the Puritan experiment in godly living, to see if it succeeded or failed. In a famous simile, he compared the Puritan experiment to “a city upon a hill”: 51 For we must consider that we shall be as a city upon a hill, the eyes of all people are upon us; so that if we shall deal falsely with our God in this work we have undertaken and so cause him to withdraw his present help from us, we shall be made a story and a byword through the world, we shall open the mouths of enemies to speak evil of the ways of God and all professors for God’s sake; we shall shame the faces of many of God’s worthy servants, and cause their prayers to be turned into curses upon us till we be consumed out of the good land whether we are going.

To avoid this fate, Winthrop encouraged the Puritans to bond together: For this end, we must be knit together in this work, as one man, we must entertain each other in brotherly affection, we must be willing to abridge ourselves of our superfluities, for the supply of others’ necessities, we must uphold a familiar commerce together in all meekness, gentleness, patience and liberality, we must delight in each other, make others’ con- ditions our own, rejoice together, mourn together, labor and suffer together . . . . So shall we keep the unity of the spirit in the bond of peace, the Lord will be our God, and delight to dwell among us, as his own peo- ple, and will command a blessing upon us in all our ways . . . . he shall make us a praise and glory, that men shall say of succeeding plantations, the Lord make it like that of New England.

The experiment in living a life according to religious values was evident in how the company set up the government of the colony. Church and state were tightly linked. The legislature, which was called the General Court, met four times a year and included the governor, council, and representatives of each town who were elected by the freemen of their town. A freeman was a church member, but not all adult males who attended church were allowed to use the title “church member” and vote in elections. The Puritan ministers decided who was worthy to become a church member. By controlling church membership and, therefore, who could vote, the ministers controlled the policies of the colony’s government. Thus the church and government worked closely together. Teaching Idea Puritan Emphasis on Education Students may be interested to learn Knowing God’s word as revealed in the Bible was a central point of more about Puritan education or read Puritanism. To ensure that everyone was able to read the Bible, in 1642 the some of the little poems and alphabet General Court of Massachusetts passed the first education law in the colonies. rhymes in the New England Primer. According to the law, parents had to teach their children to read. In 1647, the Reprints are widely available. General Court passed a law ordering every town of 50 families to support a school. The following is an example of the kind of instruction that Puritans gave their children. It is taken from the New England Primer. This little book, which was first published in 1687, taught religion, reading, and writing.

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The Dutiful Child’s Promises Teaching Idea I will fear God, and honor the King. Use the concept of the New England I will honor my Father & Mother. Primer to have students create alpha- I will Obey my Superiors. bet flash cards for kindergartners in I will Submit to my Elders. your school. Have some alphabet I will Love my Friends. books available for students to use as I will hate no Man. models. Students can either draw the I will forgive my Enemies, and pray to God for them. letters and illustrations or cut them from magazines and paste them on I will as much as in me lies keep all God’s Holy Commandments. index cards. In the primer, even the alphabet was taught in connection with religious Divide the alphabet into groups of ideas. The children learned their letters from little rhymes like these: letters and assign the groups to A: “In Adam’s Fall / We sinned all.” teams to work together to create the B: “Thy life to mend, / This Book attend.” cards. Depending on the size of your J: “Job feels the Rod, / Yet blesses God.” 50 class, have students make one or two sets of flash cards. In addition to the New Hampshire letter and the illustration, students should print the name of the object on Puritans from the Massachusetts Bay Colony moved into the area that is now the card. New Hampshire in the 1630s and 1640s. By the 1670s, the colonists there peti- tioned for status as a separate colony. In 1679, an English court agreed and New Hampshire became a royal colony. Rhode Island In 1631, Roger Williams, a minister from London, arrived in the Massachusetts Bay Colony and soon ran afoul of the colony’s leaders. He believed that magistrates should not interfere with people’s religious beliefs. He also advo- cated religious toleration and fair treatment for Native Americans. Williams believed that they should be compensated for lands taken from them. These ideas brought Williams into conflict with the Puritan leadership of the Massachusetts Bay Colony. William Bradford described Williams as “godly and zealous . . . but very unsettled in judgment” with “strange opinions.” Another church leader, Cotton Mather, called him “the first rebel against the divine order in the wilder- ness” that the Puritans were trying to create. In 1635, Williams was charged with heresy and divisiveness and banished from Salem by the Puritan leadership. Williams and his followers moved south. They purchased land from the Narragansetts and established a settlement that Williams called Providence in what is today Rhode Island. Williams wrote sever- al books defending his views and calling for more understanding and better treat- ment of the Native Americans. Anne Hutchinson Another religious dissenter who had to flee the Massachusetts Bay Colony was Anne Hutchinson. Hutchinson had come to Massachusetts from England in 1634. In Massachusetts, women were not allowed to preach in church, so Hutchinson held meetings in her home, where she spoke against the strict reli- gious regimentation of the colony. She also taught that good works were no indi- cation of God’s favor: faith alone could lead to salvation. Hutchinson’s views that a devout person did not need to follow the rules of the church and the Bible but

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instead could act according to his or her belief in God led to a controversy known as the “antinomian controversy,” which divided the colony. In 1737 she was brought before the colony’s leaders (including John Winthrop) and found guilty of heresy. Winthrop wrote that Hutchinson sealed her own doom by announcing at the end of her trial that it had been revealed to her that she was to come into New England and be persecuted there, and that “God would ruin us and our pros- perity.” Hutchinson was told to recant or be banished. She chose banishment and found refuge, first in Williams’s settlement and later in New York. Hutchinson and most of her family were killed during a Native American uprising in 1643. In 1643, the four settlements of dissenters that had grown up in Rhode Island petitioned the English king for a charter. It was granted in 1644 and the colony set up its own government, which guaranteed self-government and religious freedom. Connecticut Religious dissenters also established Connecticut. In 1636, a group led by Thomas Hooker, a minister, settled what is now Hartford. In 1639, they and mem- bers of several other towns in the area drew up the Fundamental Orders of Connecticut, the first constitution in the English colonies. Membership in the Puritan church was not a requirement for voting. In 1662, Connecticut was grant- ed a charter. D. Middle Atlantic Colonies New York The first settlement in the area of New York was a Dutch trading post estab- lished by Henry Hudson (see pp. 170–171) in 1609. In 1624, Peter Minuit, act- ing for the Dutch West India Company, allegedly purchased Manhattan Island from the Manhattan people for $24 in trade goods. The Dutch named the city New Amsterdam in honor of one of their cities in the Netherlands and turned the settlement into an important fur-trading center. The entire area, including Long Island, was known as . The success of the Dutch drew the attention of the English, who decided to press their right to the area. They based their claim on John Cabot’s voyage of 1497. In 1664, the English captured the city and renamed the entire area New York in honor of the English king’s brother, the Duke of York. New Amsterdam was also renamed New York City. New Jersey The Duke of York gave the lower portion of New York to two friends who named it New Jersey after the Isle of Jersey in the English Channel. New Jersey was a proprietary colony managed for the benefit of the two men, but they offered religious toleration and representative government to all who immigrated to New Jersey. Pennsylvania In 1681, William Penn received a grant of land from the English king to repay a loan that Penn’s father had made to an earlier monarch. Penn was to be the sole

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proprietor of the huge tract and, at the king’s suggestion, named the land Pennsylvania, Latin for “Penn’s woods.” Penn was a member of the Society of Friends, a Protestant group known familiarly as the Quakers. Quakers believed that all people had something of God in them and were, therefore, equal. They believed that every man and woman has direct access to God. It followed that there was no need for priests or churches, or for elaborate costumes or rituals, or even dogma and creeds. At their meetings, Quakers would generally keep silent and there was no planned program. They referred to themselves as “Friends of Truth” or just “Friends.” Quakers refused to support the state church, swear oaths in court, or fight in wars. Like Puritans, Pilgrims, and Roman Catholics, Quakers were persecuted in England for their religious beliefs. Penn hoped to make Pennsylvania a haven not just for his fellow Quakers, but for people of all religions. Because of Quaker beliefs, slavery was banned, and small farms rather than plantations developed in the colony. Delaware The English had occupied the area known today as Delaware since 1664, when they took it from the Dutch. In 1682, the Duke of York gave the area to Penn, who wanted an outlet to the Atlantic. The Lower Counties, as they were called, were represented in the Pennsylvania Assembly until 1704 when they were granted their own legislature. The Lower Counties did not have their own gover- The Big Idea nor, however, and continued to be ruled from Philadelphia. in Review The three regions of English colonies on the Review eastern seaboard devel- oped differently for a Below are some additional ideas for ongoing assessment and review activities. variety of reasons. These are not meant to constitute a comprehensive list. Teachers may also refer to the Pearson Learning/Core Knowledge History & Geography series for addition- al information and teaching ideas. Name Date • Use Instructional Master 32, The Thirteen English Colonies, to assess stu- The Thirteen English Colonies

dents’ understanding of the colonies. Read the names of seven of the colonies in the box. Then read each sentence. Write the name of the colony the sentence describes. • Have students choose one of the three regions of English colonies and New York Maryland Georgia Massachusetts Virginia Pennsylvania Rhode Island

describe how people culturally adapted to the climate and physical geography in 1. By 1619, tobacco had become this colony’s most profitable crop. order to make a living. Write these descriptions in paragraph form using a topic Virginia 2. This colony was founded as a place where Roman Catholics could Maryland sentence, supporting sentences, and a concluding sentence. worship freely. 3. This Southern colony was the last colony to be established. Georgia

4. The city of Boston became the capital of this New England colony. • Choose one of the colonies from this section and have students write an Massachusetts Rhode Island acrostic poem about that colony, using the letters of the colony’s name to start a 5. Roger Williams established religious freedom here. 6. This colony was originally founded by the Dutch as New Amsterdam. sentence describing the area and the people who settled there. Before starting New York 7. William Penn, a Quaker leader, wanted people of all religions to feel

poems, have students brainstorm facts that they have learned about the colony so welcome here. Pennsylvania

they can choose words for their poems more easily. Share the poems aloud. Name Six More You wrote the names of seven colonies. Work with a partner. See if you can name the other six colonies. New Hampshire, Connecticut, New Jersey, • Using the information from this section, have students make a mobile depict- Delaware, North Carolina, South Carolina e Knowledge Foundation

Purpose: ing what they have learned about the 13 colonies. Before starting, make sure each To review key facts about the thirteen English colonies Copyright ©Cor Master 32 Grade 3: History & Geography student has a clothes hanger, 13 pieces of yarn in three different lengths, and a set of circles cut from construction paper. Each circle should have an outline of a Use Instructional Master 32. colony. Designate a different color for each group of colonies: New England,

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