American Pageant 16th edition Vocabulary Words and Definitions
*You are responsible for all terms in your Guided Reading Questions as well as the terms below.*
Chapter 5: “Colonial Society on the Eve of Revolution”
1. Paxton Boys (1764)—Armed march on Philadelphia by Scots-Irish frontiersmen in protest against the Quaker
establishment’s lenient policies toward Native Americans
2. Regulator movement (1768-1771)—Eventually violent uprising of backcountry settlers in North Carolina against
unfair taxation and the control of colonial affairs by the seaboard elite
3. New York slave revolt (1712)—Uprising of approximately two dozen slaves that resulted in the deaths of nine
whites and the brutal execution of twenty-one participating blacks
4. South Carolina slave revolt (Stono River) (1739)—Uprising also known as the Stono Rebellion, of more than 50
South Carolina blacks along the Stono River; the slaves attempted to reach Spanish Florida but were stopped by
the South Carolina militia
5. Triangular trade—Exchange of rum, slaves, and molasses between the North American Colonies, Africa, and the
West Indies. A small but immensely profitable subset of the Atlantic trade
6. Molasses Act (1737)—Tax on imported molasses passed by Parliament in an effort to squelch the North American
trade with the French West Indies. It proved largely ineffective due to widespread smuggling
7. Arminianism—Belief that salvation is offered to all humans but is conditional on acceptance of God’s grace.
Different from Calvinism, which emphasizes predestination and unconditional election
8. Great Awakening (1730s and 1740s)—Religious revival that swept the colonies. Participating ministers, most
notably Jonathan Edwards and George Whitfield, placed an emphasis on direct, emotive spirituality. A Second
Great Awakening arose in the nineteenth century
9. old lights—Orthodox clergymen who rejected the emotionalism of the Great Awakening in favor of a more rational
spirituality
10. new lights—Ministers who took part in the revivalist, emotive religious tradition pioneered by George Whitefield
during the Great Awakening
11. Poor Richard’s Almanack (1732-1758)—Widely read annual pamphlet edited by Benjamin Franklin. Best known
for its proverbs and aphorisms emphasizing thrift, industry, morality, and common sense
12. Zenger trial (1734-1735)—New York libel case against John Peter Zenger. Established the principle that truthful
statements about public officials could not be prosecuted as libel
13. royal colonies—Colonies where governors were appointed directly by the King. Though often competent
administrators, the governors frequently ran into trouble with colonial legislatures, which resented the imposition of
control from across the Atlantic
14. proprietary colonies— Colonies—Maryland, Pennsylvania, and Delaware—under the control of local proprietors,
who appointed colonial governors
15. Michel-Guillaume Jean de Crevecoeur (1735-1813)—French settler whose essays depicted life in the North
American colonies and described what he saw as a new American identity—an amalgam of multiple ethnicities and
cultures
16. Jacobus Arminius (1560-1609)—Dutch theologian who rejected predestination, preaching that salvation could be
attained through the acceptance of God’s grace and was open to all, not just the elect
17. Jonathan Edwards (1703-1758)—New England minister whose fiery sermons helped touch off the First Great
Awakening; Edwards emphasized human helplessness and depravity and touted that salvation could be attained
through God’s grace alone
18. George Whitefield (1714-1770)—Iterant English preacher whose rousing sermons throughout the American
colonies drew vast audiences and sparked a wave of religious conversion, the First Great Awakening; Whitefield’s
emotionalism distinguished him from traditional, “Old Light,” ministers who embraced a more reasoned, stoic
approach to religious practice
19. John Trumbull (1756-1843)—Connecticut-born painter who, like many of his contemporaries, traveled to England
to pursue his artistic ambitions; Trumbull was best known for his depictions of key events in the American
Revolution, including the signing of the Declaration of Independence
20. John Singleton Copley (1738-1815)—Massachusetts-born artist best known for his portraits of prominent colonial
Americans, including Samuel Adams and Paul Revere; loyalist during the Revolutionary war, Copley spent the rest
of his life in London, painting portraits of British aristocrats and depicting scenes from English history
21. Phillis Wheatley (ca. 1753-1784)—African-American poet who overcame the barriers of slavery to publish two
collections of her poems; as a young girl, Wheatley lived in Boston, and was later taken to England where she
found a publisher willing to distribute her work
22. John Peter Zenger (1697-1746)—New York printer tried for seditious libel against the state’s corrupt royal
governor; his acquittal set an important precedent for freedom of the press