CHAPTER 3: EXPANSION AND DIVERSITY: THE RISE OF COLONIAL AMERICA
OVERVIEW OUTLINE
INTRODUCTION
THE NEW ENGLAND WAY
1. A CITY ON A HILL
2. SETTLERS AND NATIVES
3. PURITAN ORTHODOXY
4. DISSENTING PURITANS
5. POWER TO THE SAINTS
6. COMMUNITY LIFE
7. PURITAN FAMILIES
8. DEMISE OF THE PURITAN ERRAND
9. EXPANSION AND NATIVE AMERICANS
10. ECONOMICS, GENDER & WITCHCRAFT
CHESAPEAKE SOCIETY
1. STATE AND CHURCH IN VIRGINIA
2. VIRGINIA’S FIRST FAMILIES
3. MARYLAND
4. TOBACCO SHAPES A WAY OF LIFE
5. MORALITY, GENDER AND KINSHIP
6. TOBACCO’S TROUBLES
7. BACON’S REBELLION
8. SLAVERY
THE SPREAD OF SLAVERY
1. THE CHAOTIC CARIBBEAN
2. SUGAR AND SLAVES
3. WEST INDIAN SOCIETY
4. CAROLINA: RESTORATION
THE MIDDLE COLONIES
1. NEW NETHERLAND AND NEW SWEDEN
2. NEW YORK AND THE JERSEYS
3. QUAKER PENNSYLVANIA
RIVALS FOR NORTH AMERICA
1. FRANCE BUILDS A CONTINENT
2. TAOS PUEBLO (PLACE IN TIME)
3. SPANISH BORDERLANDS
AP SUGGESTIONS
The Puritans are very important in our
history. Spend time trying to emphasize
the unique nature of these colonists.
What are their beliefs? Why and how did
they settle in America? What type of
colony did they create (government, economy,
society, geography & longevity…)?
The witchcraft segment is interesting.
However, at our school, they deal with it
extensively in English. Therefore, while I
deal with the most interesting areas, I move
quickly through it.
I spend a fair amount of time on the causes,
events and effects of Bacon’s Rebellion. It
tells a lot about how Virginia Colony evolved
in the late 1600s.
This material is interesting. However, I have
not seen it on the AP exam. My students read
about it, but I do not spend very much time on
it in class.
I combine the Carolina, New York and
Pennsylvania Colonies into one discussion.
If there is time, I will deal with the topic of
how the French, Spanish and English colonies
differed. But, why am I fooling myself. There
is never enough time.
Advanced Placement Essays
(1983 Essay) In the 17th century, New England Puritans tried to create a model society. What were their aspirations, and to what extent were those
aspirations fulfilled during the 17th century.
(1985 Essay) Most religious movements reflect significant shifts in religious beliefs and produce significant social changes. Apply this to two of the
following:
b. The First Great Awakening
a. 17th century Puritanism
c. The Second Great Awakening
d. The Social Gospel Movement
(1993 Documentary Based Question – DBQ) Although New England and the Chesapeake region were both settled largely by people of English origin,
by 1700 the regions had evolved into two distinct societies. Why did this difference in development occur?
(1994 Essay) Analyze the ways in which two of the following influenced the development of American society:
a. Puritanism in the 17th century
b. The Great Awakening during the 18th century
c. The Second Great Awakening during the 19th century
(1998 Essay) Analyze the extent two which religious freedom existed in the British North American colonies prior to 1700.
Multiple Choice Questions from the 1984, 1988 and 1996 Exams – published by the College Board
(1984 – Qst. 22) Which of the following most accurately describes the attitude of 17th-century Puritans toward religious liberty.
a. Having suffered persecution in England, they extended toleration to everyone.
b. They tolerated no one whose expressed religious views varied from their own views.
c. They tolerated all Protestant sects, but not Catholics
d. They tolerated Catholics, but not Quakers
e. They had no coherent views on religious liberty
(Answer: B)
(1988 – Qst. 53) In the 18th century, colonial Virginia and colonial Massachusetts were most alike in that both
a. relied on the marketing of a single crop
b. were heavily dependent on slave labor
c. had an established Anglican church
d. were royal colonies
e.
administered local government through justices of the peace
(Answer: D)
(1988 – Qst. 63) The Halfway Covenant provided for which of the following:
a. The baptism of children of baptized but unconverted Puritans
b. The granting of suffrage to non church members
c. The expansion of women’s power within the Congregational church
d. The granting of full membership in the Congregational church to all New Englanders
e. The posting of banns by engaged couples
(1996 – Qst. 17) Which of the following was true of a married woman in the colonial era?
a. She would be sentenced to debtors’ prison for debts incurred by her husband
b. She could vote as her husband’s proxy in elections
c. She generally lost control of her property when she married.
d. She was the prime beneficiary by law of her husband’s estate
e. Her legal rights over her children were the same as those of her husband
(Answer: C)
A DETAILED KEY-WORD OUTLINE OF THE CHAPTER
INTRODUCTION
Barbados Colonization: Englishwoman Sarah Horbin… the Great Migration of Englishmen to the Caribbean and America…
Patterns of European & African Immigration: The African slave trade…
The Depopulation of Native Americans: epidemic diseases… warfare & the taking of Indian lands… 1 million Indians estimated to have died
THE NEW ENGLAND WAY
A.
A CITY ON THE HILL
(Why did the Puritans thrive given the harsh conditions faced during their early colonization? What did Winthrop’s Sermon call for?)
The Charter: Massachusetts Bay Company… Took their charter with them to Massachusetts… not controlled from England
The Puritan Migration: Great fleet of 11 ships… 700 colonists
John Winthrop’s Sermon: Creation of a City on a Hill… Rich and Poor exist… Rich have an obligation to show charity… less wealthy should
Live according to God’s laws… social reciprocity… avoid acquisitive and greedy tendencies… profits to be
Controlled… Create an example to the rest of the world…
Hardships upon Landing: 1630… Boston Harbor… 6 new towns were established… Disciplined… piety of colonists
B.
THE PEQUOT WAR
(What type of resistance did Puritans meet when they first colonized? How did they deal with the Pequot resistance?)
Little Resistance to Colonization: One epidemic killed 90% of coastal Indians… Survivors sold their lands to English colonists… Laws passed
to prohibit their own religions… “praying towns” were created… John Eliot preached to Indians…
Expansion into the Interior did cause resistance: Connecticut River Valley… Pequot violent resistance…
Crushing the Pequot Resistance: plantation tactics developed against the Irish… encircled their village… burned…killed survivors as they fled
C.
THE DEVELOPMENT OF PURITAN ORTHODOXY
(How were ministers chosen and beliefs determined? What was the Conversion Experience? What was the purpose of Harvard?)
Congregationalists: Members of churches created their own self-governing churches in Massachusetts… People chose their ministers & ran their
Churches…. The elders made local decisions…
Required colonists to attend and support the church: A meetinghouse was established to make local decisions.
Conversion Experience: Members were expected to profess their faith and be interrogated by the members to determine if you were worthy…
Those who passed became “Saints” and part of the Elect…
Importance of Literacy: People needed to be taught to read so they can judge for themselves the meaning of the Bible… Towns over 100
households were expected to have schools (not all did… boys also got better educations than girls)
Responsibility of Clergy: Stir the followers to read the Bible and come to the religion… explain what the Bible and sermons meant…
Harvard College established: Training of ministers… 1636… 201 graduates in early years (1/2 became ministers)
AREAS OF INTEREST: WHAT DID PURITANS BELIEVE:
(Before I begin this segment, I explain that their religion is their business and certainly not mine. While I play the role of a Puritan minister, it
is only to explain what and why the Puritans believed as they did… not to influence any of their own beliefs.)
ORIGINAL SIN: The Puritans believed literally in the Bible. If it said there were Adam and Eve and they were seduced by the serpent into
biting the apple… the Puritans believed it happened just as the Bible described it….
Thus, Puritans accepted the idea of original sin. They
assumed that all mankind inherited the sins of Adam and Eve. They argued that man was worthless, that he deserved to be damned and dropped
into the pit of hell. It was only God’s incredible mercy (according to the Puritans) that anyone was saved at all. No one deserved to be saved…
PREDESTINATION (this is fun… I ask if there is a student who is religious and will play a bit of a mind game with me. I then ask the
following questions.) Do you believe in predestination? (if they answer yes, I go on until I find one who does not believe it.)… I then ask…
the God you believe in, is he all powerful? Does he know what you have done? Does he know what you are doing? Does he know what you
will do in the future? (When they answer yes, I ask them if it is possible to do differently than what God knows you are going to do? I then
ask them if they believe in predestination. As the students present different arguments, I continue to counter with the question “ Can you do
differently than God knows you are going to do. I then make the point that the Puritans were not stupid or illogical. They believed that God did
know what you were going to do and they accepted the fact that that meant they believed in predestination. The last thing I would do is deal
directly with student beliefs… Those are not any of my business… My goal is for my students to understand what the Puritans believed?
STRICT MORAL BEHAVIOR: If the Puritans believed in predestination and it was already determined whether you were going to heaven
or hell, why behave now… Why not go to the party and party hardy. Well… No one really knows if they are among the saved. But, they can
assume that if they are leading a sinful life, they are not. There was no guarantee that leading a good life would save you. There was no
salvation by good works in the Puritan doctrine. But, if you led a good life, you had a chance.
CAREFUL WATCH OF OTHERS: Have you ever noticed that the Old Testament has a different tone than the New Testament of the
Bible. The Old Testament calls for “an eye for an eye” while the New Testament calls for turning the other cheek. The Puritans were of the Old
Testament. They had read of Sodom and Gomorrah and Noah’s Ark and they feared that, if their colony was not a model for God, that could
happen to them. They watched their neighbors to be certain that they were moral and “Godly”. They passed Blue Laws (called that because
they were printed on blue paper in Connecticut colony) which prohibited certain practices (including the celebration of Christmas which they
believed was a pagan holiday).
THE VIRTUE OF HARD WORK: The Puritans believed that people had a calling. They argued that there was some profession that you
were meant to follow. One should seek their calling, not because of its salary or prestige, but because God meant to you do so. It could be a
minister, a farmer, a mother or a servant. You should then work very hard at that calling and take pleasure in the work that you do in God’s
name. With a colony of people working so hard, you can see why it eventually succeeded.
THE VIRTUE OF THE BIBLE AND THE ROLE OF MINISTERS: The Puritans believed that all men and women should read the Bible
to understand the word of God. They emphasized learning the read and were among the most literate people in their world. Remember reading
in your text about the “old deluder laws” which required that schools be provided for when there were so many children in a congregation.
While the law was not always followed, it was an influence in the community…
Puritans saw the role of ministers as interpreters of the
Bible. They should help their congregations to understand difficult passages of the Bible. Thus, their sermons were often intricate, logical
analyses… quite intellectual. That is why they created Harvard in 1636 (the colony was established in 1630)… to train ministers.
THE BELIEF IN CONGREGATIONALISM: The Puritans believed that the Congregation was paramount. They argued that each group
should create a meetinghouse, choose their own minister and run affairs in their small community according to the will of God. Puritans
opposed having a Bishop or top leader of their church telling people what to believe. They saw this as similar to the Catholic Church which had
its Pope and its hierarchical structure. The Puritans argued for a decentralized structure.
DISSENTING PURITANS
(How did Puritans deal with dissenters like Roger Williams and Anne Hutchinson? How and why was Rhode Island established?)
Puritans deal with dissent: Puritan fear of dissent… while they resented persecution for beliefs, they persecuted dissenters in their colony
Roger Williams: radiating joy … Separation of church and state… Separation from sinners… Banished to Rhode Island
Anne Huchinson: Refusal to recognize minister’s authority… Antinomians… Woman outside her role… Her supporter defeated the Governor in one e
election… Heresy charges – personal revelation… Escaped to Rhode Island
Merchants rebel against profit restraint: Robert Keane’s trial
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AREA OF INTEREST: DISSENTING PURITANS
Quakers: Quakers were persecuted by the Puritans. They fined them, flogged them, and banished them. In one case, a woman kept returning to
Boston. At first she was banished. When she returned, they tied her to a wagon and flogged her out as they drove her out of town. When she
returned again, they put on a gallows and threatened to hang her. Only at the last second did they stop the hanging… and banished her out of
town. When she returned again, they finally went ahead and hanged her on Boston Common.
Roger Williams: The very well liked Salem minister… with views that got him in trouble…He was a separatist calling for Puritans to break
completely from the corrupt Church of England. He also challenged the legality of the Puritans expropriating land from the Indians. He also
denied the rights of the government in Massachusetts to regulate religious behavior… Obviously, he was a danger to the Massachusetts colony.
He was tried and banished back to England. He escaped with the help of Indians and went on to establish Rhode Island Colony.
Anne Hutchinson: Exceptionally intelligent… strong-willed… talkative… She would have meetings at her home to discuss the sermons of
the ministers… She found little in their sermons worth much, and that obviously made her unpopular with the ministers. (She only liked John
Cotton and maybe her brother-in-law…)
Anne believed that a holy life was no guarantee of salvation… that you could not earn heaven
through good works. She carried these ideas to their logical conclusion… that the truly saved were saved by God and would not be subject to
the law of minister or man. That also would not make you popular in Massachusetts.
When Anne’s supporters managed to win the election
for governor one year (replacing John Winthrop), she was really unpopular. She was brought to trial. Unfortunately, she was smarter than the
prosecutors. She knew the Bible and the theology better and was close to acquittal. However, she stated that she had received revelation
directly from God. That was the great heresy… She was found guilty and banished.
Very pregnant, Anne moved to Rhode Island. Although
she did not agree with Roger Williams, she and her family were allowed to settle there (she had 14 children eventually). In time she left Rhode
Island and moved to New York where she and her family were killed by Indians. John Winthrop, governor of Massachusetts saw “God’s hand”
in her death.
Rhode Island: Rhode Island offered total freedom of religion… even for Jews and Quakers. There was no compulsory attendance at church,
no taxes, no oaths… etc.
Every flake in America moved to Rhode Island. It earned the name of “Rogues Island” … the “sewer in which
the Lord’s debris had collected and rotted.” It was a place for the independent minded… (As I look around now days, I wonder what sort of
place that might have been… and would I have moved there…)
POWER TO THE SAINTS
(What type of government did Puritans create? Why was Thomas Hooker so important? The Fundamental Orders of Connecticutt…)
Massachusetts took its charter to America: Citizenship based on status as a saint… 55% were able to vote as opposed to England’s 30% vote)
The Government in Massachusetts: The Governor and his council were elected… The General Court (Legislature) was also elected.
Thomas Hooker: Settled Connecticut: the Constitution was called the Fundamental Orders
New Haven: also established at this time… wanted a more strict religion than one found in Massachusetts
New England’s County Courts: Ran the local government… Granting of land to establish a town
THE GOVERNMENT OF MASSACHUSETTS (The Bailey Textbook):
The Charter: In 1629 an energetic non-Separatist group secured a royal charter for the Massachusetts Bay Company. They wanted to create a
sizeable settlement in a region noted to be infertile soil. These newcomers took their charter with them. That put them out of the reach of the
King and the Church of England. They continued to deny that they wanted to separate from the Anglican Church, but only from its impurities.
Nevertheless, the head of the Anglican Church argued they were “swine which rooted in God’s vineyard.
Voting: Voting was extended to all “freemen” (males who belonged to Puritan congregations. Unchurched men remained voteless… thus,
about 40% of the males in the colony had the right to vote. Town government was run through the town meetings. Voting members of the
town discussed everything and made decisions for the town. It was direct democracy. If they wanted to hire a teacher, the members of the
town voted on it. They did not elect representatives to make their decisions for them.
Not a Democracy? Liberal as the government was, Governor Winthrop would not have allowed a democracy. He feared mob rule… rule by
the “meaner sort.” It was true that the freemen elected the Governor and the representative assembly called the General Court. But only
members of the church could vote and the purpose of government was to “enforce God’s Laws.”
Not a Theocracy: The power of the preachers was not absolute. Congregations chose their own ministers and set their salary. Furthermore,
clergy were forbidden by law from holding political office.
COMMUNITY LIFE
(What pattern was established in most communities in Massachusetts? The Meeting House, the Commons and the Farm Fields)
Effect of the Environment on the colony… Farm communities…
Allotment of Lands: Land allotted to families for farming… Farm communities… Land given to families… Meetinghouse, strips of land, commons…
Efforts to keep towns tightly clustered… Reciprocity…
PURITAN FAMILIES
(What type of family life did Puritans enjoy? Why did the population increase so rapidly in New England?
What type of economy was established?)
Family Life: Nuclear family – well ordered community… Husband in control… Justices of the Peace married people… a contract… A few divorces—
desertion, abuses…Puritans intervened in troubled families
Treatment of women… Women had some legal protections… Widows owned property
Environment affects population: Benign disease environment… Long lives, large families… Rapid Population growth, male/female division less…
Labor on farms: Labor of children on the farms… Sons lived on the family farm until late 20s… Marriage often delayed until they could afford farms
Women: Women married younger – had many children… Some sons became apprentices… hired help
Types of Farms: Farming: short growing season, rocky soil… Few farmers made much money – subsistence…. Turned to lumber, fishing, furs, ship
building, rum distilling
THE NEW ENGLAND FAMILY ( The Bailey Textbook): Nature was kinder to the pioneer New Englander. Clean water… cool
temperatures… this retarded the spread of microbes. Most people in the region lived 10 years longer than those in other regions.
Moreover, the New Englanders migrated generally as families and were fruitful and multiplied. Early marriage and a child born on the average
every two years increased the population. However, the burden of having so many children haunted many women. Many had 10 or more
children. Massachusetts Governor William Phips was one of 27 children… all by the same mother. Child raising became a full time
occupation for most Puritan women.
A quote: “New England early acquired a reputation as a healthful environment. Urging his fellow Englishmen to emigrate to
Massachusetts Bay Colony in 1630, the Reverend John White described New England (somewhat fancifully) as follows: ‘No
country yields a more propitious air for our temper than New England… Many of our people have found themselves always weak
and sickly at home, have become strong and healthy there: perhaps by the dryness of the air and constant temperature of it, which
seldom varies from cold to heat, as it does with us… Neither are the natives any time troubled with pain of teeth, soreness of eyes, or
ache in their limbs.”
PURITAN ATTITUDES: Puritans balanced carefully their spiritual intensity with the worldly lives. The believed they were called to do
God’s work and shared the Protestant Ethic which called them to be serious about their work. However, they also enjoyed simple pleasures…
they were willing to eat well, drank heartily (although not to excess), sang songs and were even known to occasionally tell a joke. They did not
wear all black as they were portrayed by artists who knew not what they drew (although they would probably have not worn much red or
yellow). They were careful to not enjoy simple pleasures too much. One young married couple were fined twenty shillings for kissing in
public…
Nevertheless, life was serious and these people were certainly God-fearing. Hell was a place where sinners shriveled and
shrieked in vain for divine mercy. One clergyman, Michael Wigglesworth tried to describe what happened to the “fate of the damned.”
“They cry, they roar for anguish sore, and gnaw their tongues for horrour.
But get away without delay, Christ pitties not your cry:
Depart to Hell, there may you yell, and roar Eternally.”
DEMISE OF THE PURITAN ERRAND
(What brought about the demise of the Puritan Utopia or Errand? What was the Half-Way Covenant?)
The Puritan Revolt In England led by Cromwell: Puritan Revolt in England – Charles I beheaded by Oliver Cromwell
Effect of the Restoration… King restored… Puritans persecuted – expel from churches… New England no longer had anyone to set an example for…
Youth Rebellion…New England Way challenged by younger generation… Failure to submit to conversion experience and become saints…
Half-way covenant – children of baptized parents… could become saints – sacrifice purity for community… End of the New England experiment.
THE HALFWAY COVENANT (The Bailey Textbook): Is the second generation ever as zealous as the first generation. I ask my
students what are their attitudes when there parents really push a particular idea. Do they embrace it as hard as their parents do (some do)…
or do they say, “Ah, come on Dad… Lighten up” My students recognize how hard it is to keep the eye on the prize as much as their parents
might wish them to do so. The Puritans faced this same predicament. By the time of the second generation, there was a distinct decline in
zealousness. The first generation had risked so much coming to America. They could not believe it. Jeremiads (sermons warning of the loss
of zeal) were heard regularly… It might remind you of those who spent a lot of time lamenting what is wrong with the new generation… Isn’t
that the same thing that we heard when we were kids… You have to remember that I was a teenager in the 1960s, so I heard it a lot. The way
the Puritans dealt with it was to lament, but to also create the Half-way Covenant. That allowed partial membership rights to people not yet
converted. That kept the pews full of people, young and old, instead of half full of old people…
EXPANSION AND NATIVE AMERICANS
(What happened to the Indians? What were the causes, events and effects of the King Philip’s War?
Decline of the Indian—new diseases… Diphtheria, measles, tuberculosis, more smallpox… 1600: 125,000 Indians – 1675: 10,000 Indians
Fur Trade—hunt rather than farm – depleted beaver… Debt
Farming communities expand—pressure Indians… Despair – alcoholism
Praying towns – christianized—“savages”
King Philip’s War: Metacom “King Philip” – son of Massassoit… Hangings… tensions… Attacked 52 of 90 towns, killed 600 colonists
Mohawks & Christian Indians turn against Metacom… Destruction of Indian food supply… Metacom’s wife & child sold into slavery
40% of the Indians were dead or had fled
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AREA OF FOCUS: NATIVE AMERICANS
Natives and the Pilgrims: Serious disease had plagued Massachusetts before the Pilgrims landed. Whole villages had been wiped out by an
epidemic. About 3/4ths of the natives were dead. The Pilgrims found deserted Indian fields, ready for tilling… as well as the skeletons of the
dead Indians.
In time they were befriended by Squanto, a native who had been captured and taken to Spain, and who escaped to England.
He knew English and was of great help to the Pilgrims. He showed them were to fish, how to grow corn… basically how to survive. He also
introduced the Pilgrims to Massasoit, chief of the Wampanoag.
The first Thanksgiving did occur… although historians are not certain about
why the celebration happened. Some believed it was to celebrate a massacre of another tribe of Indians rather than praising God for survival.
The Pequot Massacre: Hostilities between the Pequot and Puritans exploded in 1637. The Puritans set an ambush of a major village along the
Mystic River. They set fire to the village and killed everyone who fled (man, woman or child) from the flames. The slaughter annihilated that
tribe and brought an uneasy peace for the next 40 years.
King Philip’s War: The natives only hope was to ally with each other. Metacom (son of Massasoit)… often called King Philip because of his
regal bearing, caused such an alliance to be formed. They attacked over half of the Puritan towns killing over 600 settlers. There was panic as
Puritans fled to Boston for protection. In time the Puritans allied with other Indians and went after the winter food supplies of the natives. In the
waning days of the war, Metacom’s wife and son were captured and sent into slavery in the Caribbean. When they finally caught Metacom,
they cut off his head, had him drawn and quartered (tie his arms and legs to horses and have the horses run… tearing the body into pieces), and
carried his head on a pike back to Plymouth where it was displayed for years. This war broke the power of the natives to resist further
expansion in the Northeast.
ECONOMICS, GENDER & WITCHCRAFT
(What were Jeremiads? What were the causes of events that occurred in Salem, Massachusetts in 1691? Explain causes, events and
effects. What finally ended the trials? … )
Jeremiads – sermons berating congregations
Social and economic changes challenge idealism… Friction between towns and outlivers… Uneven distribution of wealth – jealousy
Salem Events: Farmers lost money and power to merchants… Salem Village—Porters and Putnams – rivalry
1691: Tituba (slave) – fortune telling-- girls react strangely – accused Tituba of witchcraft – 2 other white women… Other incidents of witchcraft in New
England… Pact with the Devil… maleficium… Often assertive women accused… There was belief… More accusations – spectral evidence… Jails
overflowed – 141 indictments… The accused lived on the east side, the accusers lived on the west… Side… Anxieties about age and gender too…
Implicate others and win forgiveness… 7 year old girl accused mother who was hanged on the gallows – 20 who would not implicate were executed…
Increase Mather and others called for an end to the use of spectral evidence…An end to the executions … Governor Phips suspended trials
AREA OF FOCUS: THE WITCHCRAFT TRIALS IN SALEM – 1692
COLONIAL ATTITUDES TOWARDS WITCHCRAFT: There were numerous witch trials in England at this time… and there had been
several hangings in the colonies for the crime. People believed in the power of the devil and feared those who might be in his service…
It
is sometimes interesting here to recognize that many people today believe in the devil… and, if so, might believe in people who might help the
devil. While they would laugh at the witches as portrayed at Halloween, if people believe in the Devil, they probably believe in the possibility
of witchcraft. What would they call the actions of those who support the Devil otherwise…
ARTICLE: WITCHCRAFT IN COLONIAL NEW ENGLAND… BY JOHN DEMOS (HISTORICAL VIEWPOINTS NO. 1)
THE STORY OF LYDIA GILBERT: In 1651, Thomas Allen cocks his gun and trips… the gun goes off and kills Henry Stiles, an unlucky
bystander. Thomas Allen is convicted of “sinful neglect and careless carriages” and pays a fine of 20 pounds sterling. In 1654, three
years later, the court meets again to try a case of witchcraft against Lydia Gilbert. The charges state that she does “not have the fear
of God before her eyes…” and that she “hast of late years or still dost give entertainment to Satan, the great enemy of God and
mankind, and by his help has killed the body of Henry Stiles…” Lydia Gilbert was accused of making Thomas Allen’s gun go off.
As the story goes, Stiles was a border at Lydia Gilbert’s home. They often quarreled and Goodwife Gilbert did not
conceal her sense of grievance against Stiles… Gilbert, with her quick, easy temper and her assertive personality was accused of
using the “Devil’s Means” to provoke the incident. The woman, Lydia Gilbert, was convicted of witchcraft and sentenced to hang.
A few days later, the sentence was carried out.
WHICH PEOPLE WERE ACCUSED OF WITCHCRAFT: Lydia Gilbert was not the first or last to be executed for the crime. Colonial
records in New England show that hundreds were accused and at least 40 were put to death for the crime. Dozens of other cases and
executions were unrecorded… In general, the typical witch was a woman of middle age. She could be a wife and mother, although
often, she was a widow or childless woman. Generally, she was cantankerous and feisty… easy to take offense. Occasionally a man
might be accused as in the case of Jonathon Moulton who was just too rich and too successful in his business (He must have been
helped by the devil…). Numerous events might raise the suspicions about witchcraft. If a person died under questionable
circumstances or if a cow became strangely ill or if a boat capsized in a storm or if the bread failed to rise or if the beer went bad in
the barrel… the list goes on…. These Puritans were God fearing people who believed in the Devil. They believed that if there was
a devil, he might have people aid him and these people might be witches. (It is interesting to point out to students that if they believe
in the devil, would it be possible for the devil to work with people on earth. Some might well agree with this statement. (I do not ask
for students to raise their hands here… I just point out that many of them might so agree.) If they do agree with this statement, could
they possibly believe in witchcraft. The Puritans were not stupid people and they certainly did believe.
TITUBA AND WITCHCRAFT: Fortune Telling… The Girls act strangely… bewitched… Tituba is accused… and in turn accuses others
ACCUSATIONS AND ANXIETY: Hundreds are accused… Many arrested and held for trial (141 indictments)… use of spectral evidence
(heresay… I saw Mabel type evidence)… The Forgiving Puritans: If you would confess & give up other witches, they would spare your
life… If you resisted, you could be sentenced to hang… 20 People will be hanged: 19 women were hanged… One man was pressed to
death (the put him in a hole and placed stones upon him until he died from the weight…)… Even two dogs were hanged (Can you picture that
in your mind)...
When the Governor’s wife was accused, the trials are suspended… Also, the leading Minister, Increase Mather, came
out against the use of spectral evidence in these trials. His opposition was important in ending the hysteria.
WHY DID THE SALEM WITCHCRAFT TRIALS OCCUR
Superstition of the Age: The Puritans did believe in the power of Satan and the work he might do through helpers… These helpers were called
witches…
Insecurity on the part of women: Women, especially young girls, were uncertain of their future and their role in Puritan
society… that might contribute to accusations and anxiety… Social Conditions: It was found that women from the prosperous merchant
families were accused of witchcraft, primarily by the women who lived in less prosperous farm families. When you look at a map of Salem,
almost all of the accused lived on the east side and almost all of the accusers lived on the west side.
Some have argued funny
mushrooms, strange fungus (it was argued that it caused Hallucinations) or lead in the drinking cups might have caused the phenomenon…
Mass hysteria: Do people do things in groups that they would never do as individuals.
CHESAPEAKE SOCIETY
STATE AND CHURCH IN VIRGINIA
(What type of government was created in Virginia? House of Burgesses… County Court System...)
Charles I maintains democracy: Charles I allows the representative assembly, The House of Burgesses, to remain… ANeed for new taxes
The Government: Governor (appointed by the King)… Governor’s Council (appointed by Governor)… House of Burgesses (elected by colonists)
Military officers and judges appointed… County Court system like in England created… not democratic
Church of England (Anglican Church)… Taxes paid for the church… A Chronic shortage of ministers
VIRGINIA’S FIRST FAMILIES
(How did the First Families earn their status?)
First cycle of elites – Early leaders… they either died or returned to England…
2nd Cycle of Elites: middle class – became wealthy… Influence died with them
3rd Cycle of Elites: political power -- planters… Bequeathed their wealth to families… the Lees, Byrds, Carters, Randolphs…
WHAT WAS GOVERNMENT LIKE? (The Bailey Textbook)
The Government in most Colonies: Eight colonies including Virginia had royal governors… (3 had proprietors [Maryland, Pennsylvania &
Delaware] and 2 elected their own governors (Connecticut and Rhode Island… Massachusetts elected their own governor until the 1680s and
the events of the Glorious Revolution [see the next chapter]) Practically every colony had a two house legislature with the upper house
appointed by the Governor and the lower house (in Virginia, it was the House of Burgesses… in Massachussets, it was called the General
Court) elected by the voters. Often the frontier areas were vastly underrepresented in the legislature… the tidewater and urban elite in control.
Most of the Governors were capable… some were not: The worst was probably Lord Cornbury who was made governor of New Jersey in
1702. He was a “drunkard, a spendthrift, a grafter, an embezzler, a religious bigot, and a vain fool, especially when he appeared in public
dressed like a woman.” (He argued that since he represented Queen Anne, he should dress like her… Oh, well.)
MARYLAND
(What type of colony did Lord Baltimore try to establish in Maryland? What happened to the colony over time?
What did the Maryland Act of Religious Toleration call for? Why was it passed and was it successful?)
Proprietors… Lord Baltimore was one: Rewards to the King’s supporters… Proprietors – Lord Baltimore (Calvert)… Total control to the proprietor
Baltimore’s Goals: Haven for the Catholics in England… Headright system
Early Success: No starving time – colony established
Protestants migrate: More Protestants than Catholics came…. Little religious tension at first… Over time religious tensions built
Act of Religious Toleration, 1649… Freedom of Conscience for all Christians
Effects of the Act: Catholics soon barred from voting – Battle of Severn River – hanged 3 Catholics
MARYLAND COLONY (The Bailey Textbook) In 1634, Lord Baltimore was granted land on the Chesapeake to create his
colony which he hoped would become a refuge for Catholics who were still persecuted in England (For example, two people could
not be legally married by a Catholic priest). Lord Baltimore hoped to have a feudal society dominated by rich Catholic landlords
(mostly his relatives). However, to get people to migrate to his colony he had to grant headrights (land) and many Protestants settled
in Maryland. In time the Protestants outnumbered the nervous Catholic land barons. Lord Baltimore proposed the Maryland Act of
Religious Toleration to protect the Catholics. It guaranteed toleration to all Christians… sounds good… but it also decreed the death
penalty for any who denied the divinity of Jesus (all Jews and atheists). It was not so tolerant after all…
TOBACCO SHAPES A WAY OF LIFE
(Why did cities never significantly develop in the South? What was the nature of life on the tobacco plantations?)
Types of Plantations: Few Neighbors – plantation life isolated and self-sufficient…
Boom – Bust Tobacco Economies: Dependence on the price of tobacco… Boom – bust
Where plantations were established: Fertile soil near navigable water… Wharves – depots for exports and imports… Stunted the growth of towns
Workers were indentured servants: Sizeable work force – indentured servants
MORALITY, GENDER AND KINSHIP
(Why was the death rate so high in Virginia? What also contributed to the low population growth? Compare it with New England)
Why the low population growth: Scarcity of women… Death ravaged Virginia until 1650s…Contaminated water (Typhoid, Dysentery, salt poisoning)
(malaria after 1650)… Life Expectancy: 48 for men, 44 for women… Servants died at horrifying rates
Women in Virginia: Chesapeake widows – property rights… Multiple marriages – step children… Retarded population growth in Virginia as opposed
to New England
TOBACCO’S TROUBLES
(What was the plight of Indentured Servants? How might that have contributed to a gap between rich and poor?)
Rich and Poor gap on plantations
Indentured Servants: Indentured Servants life was often harsh… Little pay, little savings, little freedom dues
Maryland policy – 50 acres of land – most colonies did not have this policy
Little upward mobility – this was partly caused by tobacco price decline… Tried to grow corn & cattle but landowners were often poor
THE TOBACCO ECONOMY (Bailey Textbook): The Chesapeake might not be healthy for people… but tobacco loved it. Seeking
more and more land for tobacco, huge fortunes could initially be made. Eventually so much was produced that prices were depressed.
Farmers, to make up for lost incomes, simply planted even more tobacco which did you know what. Both Virginia and Maryland offered
headrights… fifty acres of land for each settler brought to America (If you and your wife and two children migrated, you got 200 acres…)
Masters often brought over indentured servants to expand their acreage. This was partly how plantations developed along the James River.
The plantations were not always as scenic as you saw in Gone With the Wind. One land agent in 1622 described it like this:
“I found the plantations generally seated upon mere salt marshes full of infectious bogs and muddy creeks
and lakes, and thereby subjected to all those inconveniences and diseases which are so commonly found in the
most unsound and most unhealthy parts of England.”
BACON’S REBELLION
What were the causes and events of Bacon’s Rebellion? What caused it to fail? What were the effects of this rebellion?)
English settlements encircled Indian tribes… Tensions on frontiers… Governor Berkeley wanted to maintain his profitable fur trade with Indians…
Disputes between the frontiersmen & Indians: Frontiersmen wanted to exterminate Indians… Berkeley wanted to build forts (cost of taxes)
Nathaniel Bacon led frontiersmen – massacred peaceful tribe that they found… did not find the hostile Indians
Bacon demanded the power to wage war against all Indians – Berkeley forced to agree… Frontiersmen allowed to plunder Indian lands
Berkeley rescinded his order – called Bacon back… Bacon then moved on Jamestown – burned it… looted plantations
Bacon died of dysentery – his rebellion dissolved
Causes: Tensions with the Indians… Tensions between the elite and the frontiersmen… High taxes, lack of elections
Problems with freed Indentured Servants… Anxiety due to low tobacco prices … An excuse to plunder
AREA OF INTEREST: BACON’S REBELLION
(Jordan: The Americans )
WHY BACON’S REBELLION
Tidewater versus Frontier Farmers
The Headright System: When planters could bring indentured servants to Virginia, they were given fifty acres of land… Some
planters were gaining rather large plantations. The extra labor helped grow more tobacco which led to greater profits. Some of these
planters became fairly powerful.
The Frontier Farmer: As more settlers moved to Virginia, the good lands were taken. Slowly they moved further west to less
desirable lands. This was the Piedmont area – a plateau of forests and rolling hills near the Appalachian Mountains. These people
resented the power and prosperity of the tidewater elite that lived near the coast.
Unfair taxes and Voting System
Taxes: Taxes fell most heavily on poor people… Some wealthy governing council members paid very little in taxes… They passed
the laws, so they could write taxes as they saw fit… The laws benefited the wealthy, needless to say.
Elections: In northern colonies, leaders and legislators were elected every year. However, in Virginia, the governor called elections
when he saw fit. Once he got a council that supported his laws, he just never called for any more elections. It had been 14 years since
the last election. The poor never had the chance to vote for fair legislators.
Disagreement over Natives
Governor Berkeley’s protection of Indians: Berkeley felt like the natives were among his subjects… subject to his protection.
However, there was another reason for protection. He had a sweet fur trade arrangement. He did not want that trade disturbed.
The Frontiersman’s view of the natives: The frontier settlers did not have enough land… they saw Indian lands as accessible.
However, they did not want to pay for it… they would prefer to fight for it. When bloody encounters occurred, the frontiersmen
wanted protection from Berkeley. Berkeley refused.
Nathaniel Bacon: A frontiersman of some wealth and good social connections (he was a cousin of Governor Berkeley), Bacon led
an attack against the Indians. One of his overseers had been killed in a raid and he wanted revenge. He also sympathized with the
backwoods farmers.
THE REBELLION
The March on Jamestown: Bacon, with his armed farmers and ex-indentured servants, marched against Governor Berkeley and Jamestown
to demand that the government protect them and hear their other grievances. The Governor made some promises of reform… but as
soon as Bacon’s men had withdrawn, he withdrew his promises of reform. Time went by and nothing happened.
Bacon decided
to form his band and march on Jamestown once again. Berkeley and his followers fled across the Chesapeake Bay to Maryland.
There was a period of chaos as frontiersmen fought against fellow Virginians in Jamestown. Perhaps over 100 men died.
Collapse of the Rebellion: Finally, when Nathaniel Bacon died of a fever, the rebellion collapsed. Eleven hundred troops from England
arrived restore order. The British were willing to pardon the rebels… but not so Governor Berkeley. He ordered 23 leaders of the
rebellion to be hanged. Even the King was shocked… He remarked, “That old fool has hanged more men in that naked country than I
have done for the murder of my father.” Berkeley was recalled back to England.
(BACK TO THE KEY – WORD TEXTBOOK OUTLINE)
SLAVERY
(How were slaves treated in the early 1600s in Virginia? How about the middle 1600s? How about the later 1600s?
Why did slavery replace indentured servants in the late 1600s and early 1700s?)
Tensions: freed indentured servants offered little but poverty – potential for class conflict
Racial Slavery developed over time… (1) Early 1600s: perhaps treated as indentured… race distinguished them from others
(2) 1640 – 1660: Africans started to be treated as slaves – children inherited the status
(3) 1670s: strict legal codes established
Few slaves in Virginia before 1660… Increase in the 1680s… By 1700, 20 thousand slaves (22% of people)
Slavery replaced indentured servants – Why? (1) harder to import indentured servants (2) Royal African Company lost its monopoly
(3) Fear of Bacon’s Rebellions
Area of Interest: The Middle Passage for Slavery
“THE MIDDLE PASSAGE” BY DANIEL MANNIX AND MALCOLM COWLEY (HISTORICAL VIEWPOINTS, VOL 1)
WHERE DID THE SLAVES COME FROM: By far, the slaves obtained by European slavers were purchased by the slave ships from
other African tribes. Only one or two per hundred slaves were actually captured by Europeans. The risks were far to high to go
into Africa and capture your own slaves. The possibility of being killed by the tribe if you tried to kidnap Africans… the chance of
catching a disease… the lack of geographic knowledge… there were many reasons why Europeans did not kidnap their own cargoes.
Usually slaves came from intertribal wars where a tribe would capture other slaves and sell them to the Europeans. They might also
come from their own tribal members convicted of a crime. There were tribes that became experts at kidnapping other tribal members
and selling them to the slavers. (The Impact of slavery on the African economy… tribes moving from agriculture to the slave
business… that would be a fascinating study)
WHO WERE THE SLAVERS: The ships at various times were from England, France, the Netherlands, Denmark, Portugal, America…
Until England prohibited the practice, 3/7ths of all the slave trade was English. The profits were often over 30% and more than a few
people became rich from the practice.
HOW SLAVES WERE KEPT UNDER CONTROL DURING THE CROSSING:
Shackling the Slaves: Slave men were shackled two by two… the ankle of one to the wrist of the other… They were kept below
deck most of the time. Slave women were allowed to wander between decks (they were often considered “fair prey” for sailors…)
One of the main issues was whether to be a tight packer or a loose packer. If you took fewer slaves and treated them better, more
would survive the crossing and you would make more profit. On the other hand, if you took lots of extra slaves and packed them
tightly, perhaps enough would survive the crossing to make even more profit. By the end of the trade, most slavers were tight
packers. The tight packers on the worst ships put slaves in a space 6 feet long, 16 inches wide and two feet seven inches high.
There was only room for slaves to sleep on their side spoon fashion…
Dangers when the slave ship lay at anchor off the African Coast: While off shore, the slavers feared disease, the possibility of
being attacked by angry tribes, the chance of being taken by pirates or the threat of a slave mutiny. When ships sailed away from
Africa, there was a visible feeling of relief.
The Crossing: The captain usually wanted to cross as fast as he could… Thus, most slave ships sailed for the Caribbean or Brazil…
Not the American continent that was further away. The conditions were so brutal in the Caribbean that there was always a market
for new slaves to replace the ones that had just died. Why would a captain sail further than the Caribbean if he did not have to. (It
is good to look at a map here and point out the distance from Africa to America.) So, where did the slaves come from that came to
America. Most of them came from the Caribbean islands… not directly from Africa.
Slave ships crossed to the
Caribbean in differing amounts of time, depending on conditions. If things went well, you might cross in as little as three weeks. If
you ran into storms or the doldrums (where winds quit blowing), it could take more than three months. During long voyages, crew
and slaves were put on short rations. (There were records of ships took so long that starvation became a problem.)
Slave Mutinies were frequent: There are records of fifty five slave mutinies during the 1700s and early 1800s. There were no
doubt more undocumented uprisings. They were reasonably frequent on the coast and some were successful. One document reports:
“… soon after Captain Hopkins left the coast of Africa, the number of his men being reduced by sickness, he was obliged to permit
some of the slaves to come upon deck to assist the people: These slaves contrived to release the others, and the whole rose upon the
people, and endeavoured to get possession of the vessel, but was happily prevented by the Captain and his men, who killed, wounded
or forced overboard eighty of them, which obliged the rest to submit.” (FROM LETTERS FROM THE CAPTAIN BACK TO HIS
HOME PORT IN PROVIDENCE, RHODE ISLAND) Another occasion: English sailors went to the help of a French vessel on
which slaves had risen in rebellion. They pulled hard to help the French sailors, but by the time they got to the ship, there were “a
hundred slaves in possession of the deck and others tumbling up from below.” The slaves resisted the British and the report stated,
“The slaves put up a desperate resistance. I could not but admire the courage of a fine young black, who, though his partner in irons
lay dead at his feet, would not surrender fought with his billet of work until a ball finished his existence…”
Efforts to Keep Slaves healthy: Slaves were fed twice a day… generally boiled rice, millet or corn meal sometimes with some
lumps of salt beef. After the morning meal the slaves were forced to endure a ritual called “dancing the slaves”… the captives “were
ordered to stand up and make what motions they could, leaving a passage for such as were out of irons to dance around the deck.”
This was to keep them from “suicide melancholy” and also to prevent scurvy (which it would not do). Music was provided by a
Homemade drum or by bagpipes. The slaves were told to sing & most produced songs of sorrow…
It was also necessary to
clean the decks where slaves were kept. This required scraping and swabbing the areas as well as expelling the bad air. They used
red hot iron and perfume & vinegar to change the air… some even used sails to create a billows to force the bad air out. This was
supposed to be done once a week although there were certainly captains who ignored the procedure.
Disease: Needless to say, ships often had an incredible cargo of “microbes, bacilli, spirochetes, viruses and intestinal worms…”
From Europe came the very dreaded smallpox, the measles, gonorrhea & syphilis. From Africa came yellow fever, dengue, blackwater fever, and malaria. There was also dysentery (called the bloody flux), hook worms, elephantiasis, scurvy & leprosy. There
were records of whole ships that went blind from something which might have been trachoma. Smallpox was most feared for
therewas no cure. If a man showed the scabs of smallpox, he was tossed overboard before the disease spread. On one occasion,
“…Captain Wilson of the Briton lost more than half his cargo of 375 slaves by not listening to his surgeon. It was the last slave on
board who had the disease… The doctor told Mr. Wilson it was the small-pox… He (the Captain) would not believe it, but said he
would keep him as he was a fine man. It soon broke out amongst the slaves. I have seen the platform one continued scab. We
hauled up eight or ten slaves dead in the morning. The flesh and skin peeled off their wrists when taken hold of, being entirely
mortified.”
Mortality of Slaves: There are a number of studies of how many slaves died on the middle passage. If there was no disease, it was
estimated that 6% to 7% of the slaves would die. On other ships, 26% or more would die. An estimate was that around 12% died of
the total voyages. It was also estimated that 4% might die in the harbor waiting to be sold and that the seasoning against the new
diseases would claim another 33%. The estimates were that close to 50% of the slaves would die on the crossing or the getting used
to the new environment.
(BACK TO THE KEY-WORD OUTLINE)
THE SPREAD OF SLAVERY
THE CHAOTIC CARIBBEAN
English take Barbados: Spanish: Hispaniola, Cuba, Puerto Rico, Jamaica… English seize islands in the Caribbean – Barbados
Slave Revolts and tensions… Bubonic plagues, wars… most people died
SUGAR AND SLAVES
(What was the nature of the sugar plantation life in the Caribbean? How were slaves treated and why?)
Sugar Plantations: Initially a tobacco economy – bust… a shift to sugar… expensive to establish sugar plantations—large labor force needed
Incredible profits – hard life… Demand for slaves – driven very hard… Endure hot conditions – most toiled until death… Predominant slave society
WEST INDIAN SOCIETY
(What were the Slave Codes used in the Caribbean? How did Slaves react to these conditions? Who were the Overseers?)
Slave Codes: Codes of control of slaves… abused slaves… Slaves lacked legal rights… Terrorize through cruel punishments
Mortality among the Slaves incredibly high import more slaves
Slaves still tried to live lives under these conditions… Families, African music, ancestral religion
White society was weak – 80% bachelors… little religion – rum
Overseers (white foremen) hired to run plantations
CAROLINA: RESTORATION
(How was the Carolina Colony established? Why were John Locke’s ideas ineffective in Carolina?
What type of economy was established? Focus on North and South Carolina. Why did they develop so differently?)
Restoration Effect: Charles II – restored to the throne – gave land to supporters – Carolina was one of those areas
North Carolina area – grew slowly…
South Carolina: Anthony Ashley Cooper – Charleston … South Carolina established
John Locke’s Fundamental Constitution of Carolina – proprietors, landgraves & caciques… defer to nobility… too much land made Lockes’
scheme unworkable… poor did not have to defer, they could simply move on…
Rice economy – 25% profits… Mosquitoes – slaves used…not indentureds… Slaves grew rice in Africa – some immunity to malaria -- a black Majority
Treatment of Natives: Exploitation of Yamasees, Tuscarora Indians… Indian slavery
CAROLINA COLONY (The Bailey Textbook): Civil war convulsed England in the 1640s. Cromwell would rule for nearly a decade.
Finally, in 1660, Charles II, son of the executed King, was restored to the throne. Charles decided to grant land to supporters in his court.
Eight of them were given the Carolina region. Carolina prospered by connecting with the Barbados and other sugar islands. They established
an Indian slave trade… soon manacled Indians was its main export… The Carolinas divided economically. North Carolina continued to
scratch a living by whatever means possible. South Carolina developed a rice economy. Rice had been grown in Africa and West African
slaves taught the colonists how to grow the exotic crop. Also, their relative immunity to malaria (thanks to a genetic trait that unfortunately
causes sickle cell anemia in African Americans today) made them excellent for the hot, swampy plantations. Absentee owners of these
plantations often moved to the city of Charleston and gave it an aristocratic flavor…. And what happened to North Carolina. They remained
very independent, very irreligious and a great place for pirates… They are still independent.
THE MIDDLE COLONIES
NEW NETHERLAND AND NEW SWEDEN
(What type of colony was established by the Dutch in New Netherlands? What happened that turned that colony into New York?
Why did the Jersey colonies revert from proprietary to royal colonies?)
The Type of Colony: Cosmopolitan – Dutch, German, French… All types of religions too… Profits – illegal furs, pirates
Beaver Wars: Allied with the Iroquois to defeat Huron… Indians and attack French Forts… Dutch had horrible relations with other Indians besides the
Iroquois… Greedy settlers, weak military
New Sweden: Dutch conquer New Sweden colony… Swedes accept annexation
NEW YORK AND THE JERSEYS
English take over: Takeover of New Netherlands – surrender by the colonyt… James, Duke of York, the new proprietor
Patroons: Hudson river patroons (rich landlords along the river given huge land grants… kept them under the new English rule)
Jersey given to two proprietors: Lord Berkeley & Sir Philip Carteret… Difficult to control the area – sold to some Quakers
Jersey became a Royal Colony: Continued problems led them to surrender powers to the Crown
NEW NETHERLANDS COLONY: (The Bailey Text) The 1600s was the gold age in Dutch history. Their Dutch East India Company was
almost like a state within a state. They had their own army of over 10,000 men and a fleet of 190 ships. They settled the region based on the
exploration of Henry Hudson (an Englishman in the employ of the Dutch). Much of the time they simply attacked rich Spanish ships (one raid
captured ships laden with loot worth over $15 million… an incredible fortune in those times). One of their best buys was the purchase of
Manhatten Island for worthless trinkets from the Indians (who did not own the land but were only traveling through… I can only imagine what
those Indians must have thought, being paid for land they did not own…) New Amsterdam, the city the Dutch built, had no enthusiasm for
religious toleration or democracy or free speech… the governors were despotic. Quakers and others were savagely abused. Patroons or rich
Dutch land owners along the Hudson River created huge landholdings.
THE ENGLISH TAKE OVER NEW YORK (The Bailey Text) Peter Stuyvesant, the energetic, hot-headed, wooden legged Governor of
New Amsterdam ably led the Dutch colony. Hardly the Democrat, he replied that he got his power from God and the company… not the
people. However, the Dutch colony was becoming a real thorn to the English (it was a source of illegal trade for English colonists). In 1664,
the King of England imperiously granted the land to his brother, the Duke of York. The Duke took a strong English squadron and appeared in
the Dutch harbor. Stuyvesant, fuming but without munitions, was forced to surrender without a shot. ( I can see him stamping with his peg
leg…) The city was renamed New York and the Dutch company officials withdrew. The city became a cosmopolitan city with people from all
over the world…
We gained much from the Dutch. Easter Eggs, Santa Claus, waffles, sauerkraut, bowling, sleighing, golf (a
dangerous game played with heavy clubs and very different for the golf we know today…)… all of these were gifts of the Dutch.
QUAKER PENNSYLVANIA
(What did the Quakers believe? Why was the Pennsylvania colony established? What type of colony was created?
What type of government, economy and society evolved? What led to the demise of the Quakers in their colony?)
William Penn: Admiral William Penn’s son… The king paid off a debt to his father by giving him land
Holy Experiment – Quakers… Fringe religious group – George Fox… “Tremble at the word of the Lord”… Society of Friends… Inner Light –
discussion meetings… Wait until they were moved to speak… Refused to recognize the elite – thee… Refused oaths, pacifists (oppose war)
Women with rights: Mary Dyer: hanged in Massachusetts
Industrious, hard working
Persecution of Quakers in England… Quaker migration to Pennsylvania… Difficult crossing (1/3rd died)
Create the City of Brotherly Love (Philadelphia)… Religious toleration
Liberal government… Strong executive – single legislative body
Prosperity: Excellent climate, good soil… good harbor -- good farming
Decline of Quakers: Religious Conflict – George Keith led opposition… Quakers withdrew from political leadership in the colony
What happened to William Penn: Never able to collect rents… was in debtor’s prison for a time… Died in debt
PENNSYLVANIA COLONY (The Bailey Textbook)
The Quakers: A religious group who developed in the mid-1600s, there name came from the report that they “quaked” in the presence
of God and the emotion of their religion… they became known as the Society of Friends. The Quakers made enemies everywhere.
They refused to pay taxes for the Anglican Church. They went to their simple meetinghouses with no ministers or preachers (people
sat at the meeting house until someone was moved to speak… if no one was moved, they would go home and try again tomorrow…)
Believing that everyone was a child of God, they kept their hats on and addressed each other as “thee” or “thou” … they would take no oaths
to anyone including the King… they were pacifists (opposed to violence or war) who believed that the Inner Light God was in all of us.
When attacked, they would simply rebuild their meetinghouse when enemies tore it down. When imprisoned, they would simply accept
their fate without complaint, industriously making their cell a living area… They were simple and devoted and drove others crazy…
I have met several of them in my time and I like them… They are the most feisty protestors you would ever meet. They have social
consciences and believe they must protest injustice (they were the first to protest slavery). In today’s world you would probably find them
protesting nuclear bomb tests.
William Penn: William Penn was the son of the King’s Admiral, William Penn Sr. When he was 16 he was attracted to the Quaker faith and
his father was not happy. After a sound flogging, he was placed in the army… After a time, Penn had firmly embraced the faith. The courts
found him impertinent but he was the son of the Admiral. Penn decided he wanted to provide asylum for his fellow friends. The king owed a
large debt to Penn’s father, and upon his death, that debt went to William Penn, Jr. The King granted Penn a huge segment of land instead of
paying the debt ... and Penn proposed a colony which would have a liberal government and still make a profit.
The Pennsylvania Colony: Pennsylvania was by far the best advertised of all colonies… Agents went throughout England, Germany, France
and the Netherlands recruiting colonists. The inducements, unlike much advertising, was generally truthful. They were looking for craftsmen
(carpenters, masons, shoemakers, etc.) Added to this was the large number of people who had simply moved to the region and started farms
(the squatters…)
Philadelphia was carefully planned with its wide streets… Land was fairly purchased from the Indians. The treatment
was so fair that Quakers (the wide brims as the natives called them) could move peacefully throughout the country unarmed… In time, other
immigrants, particularly the Scotch-Irish, undermined the Quaker peaceful work and ended amicable white-Indian relations.
The
government was very liberal. There was no state-supported church and freedom of worship was guaranteed to all (Later, London forced Penn
to discriminate against Catholics and Jews.)… No provision was made for defense (these were pacifist Quakers) nor were there restrictions
on immigration. Slavery was discouraged and the colony was very tolerant. That attracted a number of groups including religious misfits.
In time some “Blue Laws” (religious laws) were passed banning “ ‘ungodly revelers’, stage plays, playing cards, dice, games & excessive
hilarity.” Trade became more important… the crops were good (good soil and a longer growing season)… the colony grew rapidly.
What finally happened to William Penn: The government continually demanded more control and Penn often complied. His friendship
with James II led to his arrest of treason (three times). He seldom received the rents from his noble experiment and, for a time, was thrust into
debtor’s prison. When he finally died, he was full of sorrows.
RIVALS FOR NORTH AMERICA
FRANCE BUILDS A CONTINENT
(How did the French, Spanish and English colonies differ from one another?)
Mercantalism – colonies to support France… Colbert and Louis XIV
French war with the Iroquois to help fur trade… Kings Girls
Coureurs de bois – fur traders… live with the Indians…
TAOS PUEBLO (PLACE IN TIME)
(What was Pope’s Rebellion? -- Occasionally I like to read about the Indians winning... )
Pope’s rebellion… Taos… Spanish treatment of the pueblo… Taos efforts to maintain their independence
Christian Indians return to traditional beliefs… Governor Trevino orders the sacking of kivas
The siege of Sante Fe – expulsion of the Spanish for 12 years… Spanish reconquest
SPANISH BORDERLANDS
Preoccupation with New Mexico led to the neglect of Texas… Problems with Florida