Unit 1 – CBA 1 Study Notes
1.We will be studying many historical eras of American History this school year. An era is a time when a
particular idea or series of events is happening and most prominent. The first era we have been studying is
called the Era of Exploration and Colonization. This was the time when countries were sending out explorers to
gain new knowledge of the world in an attempt to gain riches, glory, and territory to increase the power and
empires of those countries.
1.We know many of the first colonists wanted to get rich. They came in hope so finding gold. But, there was a
bigger reason. One of the major reasons for English Colonization in America had to do with Religious Freedom.
1.The French were much more interested in access to the Great Lakes and the Mississippi River because they
were much more interested in fur trapping and trading than anything else.
1.Jamestown, the first permanent English settlement, was located on the James River, just below the mouth of
the Chesapeake Bay in the colony of Virginia. Boston was located north of Cape Cod where the Plymouth
colony was started. Boston was the farthest north of the early settlements. The Chesapeake Bay area
attracted farmers because of the fertile soil.
1.There have been many stories about Pocahontas and the leader of Jamestown, John smith. Stories of her
saving his life when he had been captured by the Indians may or may not be true. However, one thing that has
been documented as true is that Pocahontas definitely helped John Smith and the colonists survive the difficult
Virginia climate. She brought food to them when they were on the verge of starvation and convinced her tribe
to treat the colonists better. After John Rolfe discovered tobacco could be grown, the first cash-crop of the
English colonies helped Jamestown succeed.
1.The Virginia House of Burgesses was the first elected legislative assemble in the American Colonies. It was
one of the first forms of self-government in the colonies. The unique thing about the House of Burgesses is
that the representatives were elected by the people.
1.There were three major reasons that representative government developed in the colonies. One was the fact
that the people in America had a familiarity with parliamentary government. Parliamentary distance from
England. It did not make sense to have to wait for months for answers to problems that needed immediate
action. Finally, many communities were very isolated. They were far remove even from local governmental
bodies. This meant it was better to be able to make their own decisions on matters that needed action right
then.
2.The Fundamental Orders of Connecticut were very important to the development of democracy in the
English Colonies. It was a written constitution and is considered the first in the colonies. This set the stage for
writing of the United States Constitution years later.
2.Religion and virtue were very important because these ideas put people on a course to doing what was right
and fair for people. Religion and virtue played a role in the growth of representative government in the
colonies. Religious groups were the first to establish self-governing communities. Many of the first settlements
were religious in makeup. Because they were so far from England, they had to make decisions for themselves.
Therefore, they had to create some form of self-government and their ideas were influenced by their religion
and the virtues that went along with it.
2.North Carolina, New Jersey, Virginia, New York, and Massachusetts Bay colonies were all located along the
Atlantic coast. As a result, they developed very quickly.
2. New York was originally settled by England. It was originally settled by the Dutch for economic gain. They
had traded for the island of Manhattan and they intended it to be a place where they could set up markets in
the New World. They later lost it to England.
2.There were economic differences between the colonies of North America. One of the main reasons has to do
with geography.
2.The Maryland colony was founded so Catholics would have a place to settle without being discriminated
against. Religious freedom for Catholics was why Maryland was colonized.
2.Pennsylvania was colonized to give Quakers a place to settle free from persecution. William Penn was the
person who founded the colony. He got permission to settle this area in part because his father had loaned
money to the King. In turn the king granted Penn’s request for an area to settle people.
3.William Penn, the creator of the Pennsylvania Colony, believed in representative government and his actions
supported his beliefs. First, Penn wrote Pennsylvania’s first constitution. He also granted the colonists the right
to elect representatives to a legislative assembly. Then, Penn also granted the Three Lower Counties the right
to form their own Legislature. Doing all three of these things proved how strongly Penn believed in
representative government.
3.The transatlantic slave trade grew because there was a great demand for labor in the West Indies
plantations.
3.Slavery grew in the southern colonies for a variety of reasons. However, the most important reason was that
the economy was agrarian, based on agriculture and slaves kept the planation system profitable. Without
slaves the plantations could not make as much money. The cash-crops they raised required a lot of labor, and
these labor intensive cash-crops made the most money.
Percent of African Slave Imports to the Americas by 1800
AREA
Brazil
British Caribbean
French Caribbean
British North America
Spanish Central and South America
Other Caribbean areas
PERCENT
33
22.5
20.3
5.4
11.6
7.2
3.Study the table above. What area were most of the slaves taken to? The Caribbean is considered a part of
Central America. Brazil is in South America. So, what is a conclusion about where most slave were taken? Was
it North America or was it Central & South America? (your sentence stem is…) “From the table I can conclude
that most slaves from Africa were taken to…..”
We have studied about the 3 regions of colonies in America; The New England colonies, Middle colonies, and
Southern colonies. Each one had certain specific political, economic, social, and religious characteristics along
with unique geographic features. Imagine you are a colonist. Determine which region you would choose to
move to and give reasons for your choice that use the characteristics and features mentioned. Write a short
essay describing which region you would choose. This will be due on test day as part of your CBA 1.