CHAPTER 3: THE ENGLISH COLONIES
EXPLORATION AND COLONIZATION
A NEW WORLD
Explorers to the New World
were looking for a Northwest
Passage in order to find a
shorter water route to Asia.
Exploration and Colonization is
a major historical era in
American history.
A NEW WORLD
European rulers wanted to
colonize North America as
they sought to expand their
power with riches from the
New World.
A NEW WORLD
The first permanent English
settlements were located in the
Atlantic Coast region. Settlements
were built near the coastline and
other bodies of water for ease of
transportation and trade.
Natural harbors led to the growth of
trade in the English colonies.
Most towns and villages developed in
and around areas of settlement.
A NEW WORLD
Geography was the primary
cause of economic differences
among the colonies in North
America.
A NEW WORLD
A result of the encounter
between Europeans and Native
Americans was that new
diseases were spread to Native
American populations.
SOUTHERN COLONIES
The first permanent English
settlement at Jamestown was
founded in 1607.
SOUTHERN COLONIES
The Southern Colonies had the
best soil and climate for largescale agriculture. Fertile soils led
to lower population density
because the fertile soils were ideal
for large plantations, rather than
the growth of big cities.
SOUTHERN COLONIES
The need for agricultural workers
in the tobacco fields led to the use
of enslaved people from Africa. The
transatlantic slave trade began
when plantations in the West
Indies needed labor. Besides
tobacco, the Southern Colonies
primarily grew rice and indigo.
SOUTHERN COLONIES
 The Virginia House of Burgesses
contributed to the growth of
representative government
because representatives were
elected by the people.
 Neither slave nor free blacks
were allowed the power of the
vote.
SOUTHERN COLONIES
Georgia was originally
settled as a place for
imprisoned debtors and
convicts.
NEW ENGLAND COLONIES
Pilgrims and Puritans settled the
New England colonies to escape
religious persecution in England.
Pilgrims landed at Plymouth Rock in
1620. The male passengers signed
the Mayflower Compact, providing a
basis for self-government in the
Plymouth Colony.
NEW ENGLAND COLONIES
The Mayflower Compact and the
Fundamental Orders of Connecticut are
most closely associated with steps
toward colonial self-government.
The Fundamental Orders of
Connecticut is considered the first
written constitution in the colonies. In
both documents, colonists agreed to
establish a community and obey its laws.
NEW ENGLAND COLONIES
The Mayflower Compact and
the Fundamental Orders of
Connecticut laid the
foundations for the growth of
representative government in
Colonial America.
NEW ENGLAND COLONIES
Boston became the largest
settlement in Massachusetts.
Higher population density in
the colonies was due to the
availability of ports and rivers
for trade and business, so the
population grew.
MIDDLE COLONIES
Many colonies provided safe haven
from religious persecution.
Maryland was settled by Catholics,
while Pennsylvania was settled by
Quakers.
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania was
one of the largest English
settlements.
MIDDLE COLONIES
The Dutch settled in New York
primarily for economic gains.
LIFE IN THE COLONIES
Religion played an important
role in the lives of all early
colonists.
STUDY FOR YOUR TEST!