Name:
Early European Settlements in North America
Directions: Read the following information, and stop to complete the mapping while you are reading. Be careful and
neat. You must use colored pencils.
First, set up your map:
1___. Title your map something appropriate like “European Settlements in the New World”
2___. Decide the colors you will use in your key. Be neat and shade lightly.
3___. Write the following bold definition of colony at the bottom of your page in your own words:
COLONY: a permanent settlement in a new land that is controlled by another nation. Colonists are people living in the settlement but still
under the rule of the controlling nation.
The Spanish Settlements: Where did they settle? What did they do? What were their settlements like?
In 1565, the Spanish established their first permanent North American settlement at St. Augustine in Florida. The Spanish
settlements in the Americas were referred to as New Spain and were concentrated in the southwest United States, nearly all of
Mexico and much of South America. The Spanish sent missionaries and conquistadors to the New World in search of
GOLD, silver, and convert to their Catholic God. At its height, New Spain consisted of colonies from Central America to
modern-day Kansas and even west to California. The Spanish also claimed islands in the Caribbean Sea. Most of New Spain
was warm compared to the areas settled by France and England. New Spain also included the Rocky Mountains, deserts, and
California’s Pacific coast. These were large tracts of land for the Spanish in the beginning. At first, the Spanish found tons
of gold and accumulated great wealth. Overtime, they changed their focus to agriculture and large plantations.
What were the Spanish settlements like? New Spain was divided into five provinces governed by a member from the
Council of the Indies in Spain. These council members were called viceroys (i.e. a governor). Under Spanish law, provinces
were made up of three kinds of settlements: pueblos (little village centers for trade), missions (religious centers) and
presidios (forts – you’ve probably heard of one mission called the Alamo). Write a caption below each image – either
pueblo, mission or presidio:
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The Spanish were the first to develop a plantation system that would become common in the English colonies later. A
plantation was an extremely large farm with forced labor that typically produced cash crops (crops for to make a profit).
Spanish plantations primarily exported crops such as tobacco and sugarcane. Plantations were often found near missions.
At first, Native Americans were forced to work on plantations until their populations dwindled. Eventually, the Spanish
imported Africans to work the plantations. Some of the very first Africans enslaved in the Americas came to these Spanish
plantations. This was much earlier than the African slaves that came to the English colonies.
Find the Spanish territory using the map key and what you’ve read above and use a soft color to lightly shade it in.
Don’t forget to color the Caribbean Islands owned by Spain (marked as #1 on the map)
4___. Find the Spanish territory using the map key and what you’ve read above and use a soft color to lightly shade it in. Don’t forget
to color in the Caribbean Islands owned by Spain (Marked as #1 on the map.
5___. Add 3 gold or silver symbols throughout Spanish territory to remind you of the minerals they looted.
6___. Add 3 symbols to represent tobacco and sugar plantations and write underneath each of them, “Farmed by slaves”
7___. Add 3 Catholic crosses throughout the Spanish territory to represent the Spanish missionaries who were always trying to convert
the Native Americans to Catholicism.
8___. Place your symbols in the map legend/key and label them accordingly.
BONJOUR. The French Settlements: Where were they? Why did they settle in the New World?
At first, the French started exploring the Americas in hopes of finding a Northwest Passage to Asia. The French were
hoping to find an all water route through North America. Sadly, no such passage existed. However, the French found
other waterways and unclaimed land in Canada near the Hudson Bay and around the Great Lakes, land in what would
become the Louisiana Territory, and land in the Ohio River Valley. The French also controlled a few islands in the
Caribbean Sea. In the 1600s, French traders began setting up small forts in Canada and along the Mississippi River. The
first permanent French city was Quebec, which is still a large city in Canada today. In general, there were not very many
people or large settlements in New France but the French did eventually claim and keep more land than any of the other
Europeans in North America.
On the mainland of North America, the French were focused fur trapping and trading with the local natives. These
traders did not settle in one particular area. Instead, French trappers moved around in search of fur and their Native
American business partners. During this time period, animal furs were trendy to wear in Europe and so the French were,
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naturally, primarily focused on this enterprise. There were a few French forts that settlers could stay in, but, by and
large, it took many years for the French to populate New France.
There was no gold in New France. Few French missionaries came to this region and typically followed fur traders around
and tried to convert the natives in the process. French fur trappers and traders became great allies with the Huron tribe
in the Ohio River Valley. They worked as business partners for many years. In fact, the French eventually helped the
Huron fight their rival tribe, the Iroquois. Later, the Huron would help the French fight against the English in the French
and Indian War. In general, the French had a better relationship with the natives than the Spanish or the English did..
In the French Caribbean Island colonies, the French maintained large sugar plantations. The French purchased slaves
from Dutch slave traders and used this cheap source of labor to run profitable sugarcane plantations like the Spanish.
9___.
Trace the Mississippi River, Missouri River, the Ohio River, and the Great Lakes with blue colored pencil. Place blue in your
legend.
10___. Color in the French territory in a new color. Don’t forget to color in the Caribbean Islands labeled #2.
11___. Add in 3 symbols to represent fur trading and write “HURON” next to each.
12___. Draw 1 cross to represent the few missionaries.
The Short Lived Dutch Settlements: Less than 70 years in America.
The Dutch (Settlers from Holland AKA the Netherlands) explorers first came to the Americas looking for the Northwest Passage
much like the French. Of course, they didn’t find a waterway across North America. They did, however, find good fur trading
with natives along the Hudson River. Like the French, the Dutch colonies began to prosper from the fur trade business. The
Dutch claimed a small region near the Hudson Bay along the Mid-Atlantic coast that they called New Netherlands around the
year 1624. The following year, the Dutch formed their capital and called it New Amsterdam (now called New
York City, the concrete jungle where dreams are made of). Overtime, their settlement grew slightly bigger; the Dutch
purchased Manhattan Island from the Manhates Indians for $24 and also established settlements in parts of Connecticut,
Delaware, and New Jersey. The Protestant Dutch were tolerant towards other religions and allowed colonists – and natives- to
practice any religion. They also invited other Europeans to settle in their colonies. In many ways, this set a precedent for New
York City being a diverse area.
The Dutch did not have missionaries like the Spanish or French; they were strictly economically focused. The Dutch weren’t big
into farming or plantations either. Instead, they partnered with the Iroquois tribe in the fur trading business. As their colony
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grew, tensions mounted between the Dutch and other natives in the areas. Skirmishes and bloodshed developed between the
natives and Dutch. Additionally, the Dutch trading business came to include the importing and trading of West African slaves.
The more the Dutch prospered, the more they expanded their territory until they came into conflict with rival European nations,
particularly the English. Unfortunately for the Dutch, the English Duke of York successfully attacked and overthrew the Dutch
colonies. The English took control of the short-lived Dutch settlement and it was renamed New York. This ended Dutch rule in
the America’s.
13___. In what current big city did the Dutch originally have their capital city before the English took over their settlement?
___________________________________
14___. VERY lightly shade the Dutch colonies in a new color since this area will be covered by the English color. There are no
major Caribbean islands to label.
15___. Draw a trading ship symbol near New York City. Draw an animal skin to represent the fur trading business with the Iroquois.
Place your symbols in the key.
The Early English Settlements
The English established their first successful settlements at Jamestown (Virginia – Southern US) in 1607, and in
Plymouth Massachusetts (Northern US) in 1620. By the 1750s, The English would go on to establish 13 colonies all
along the eastern coast of North America from what is Maine today all the way south to Georgia. The early
Jamestown settlers were hoping to find gold like the Spanish, but there was very little. Instead, they found the
land to be ripe for producing tobacco. Within just 12 years of first settling the colonies, the English brought
their own African slaves to the New World to work their tobacco plantations. Tensions also began between the
English and the natives in the area as the tobacco plantations encroached on more and more on native land. Far
north of the Jamestown settlers, the early settlers in Massachusetts came to the new world in search of religious
freedom. The land in those northern English colonies was not conducive to large farms. Instead, the colonists in
Massachusetts began to build a large trading industry based on shipping, whaling, and slaves. They eventually
fought with the natives too as they attempted to convert them to Christianity and settle more on their land.
16___. Find, color, and label the English Territory on the map and in the key. Use a new color. Label this region “Original 13 English
Colonies” on the map. Also, shade Northern Canada, Newfoundland and #4 in the Caribbean Islands.
17___. In the Southern colonies draw in some symbols for slavery and also some symbols to represent some of their cash crops (i.e. use your
symbol earlier for tobacco)
18___. In the north near Massachusetts draw a few trading ships on the water in this area. Also, place 3 crosses in the Northern region of the
colonies to represent their religious foundations.
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Unclaimed
Hudson Bay
Practice Quiz
British Claims
Quebec
NF
St. Lawrence River
Massachusetts
New
Spain
New France
New York/Dutch
13 English
Colonies
Jamestown
1
Caribbean
Islands
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Map Key
-New Spain #1:
1
-New France #2:
-New Netherlands:
-English Colonies #4:
2 1
4
Map Key for Items
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Final Thinking and Summary
(Use your map to process what you’ve learned)
19___. Write a one-sentence summary about each of the four European Countries that summarizes the
location, economics, and religion of each settlement. New Spain has been done for you as an example.
a) New Spain was located mainly in the western part of the United States and included many Catholic missionaries, the
taking of gold and silver, and large slave plantations.
b) New France…
c) New Netherlands…
d) The English colonies…
20___.
Write 1-2 questions about what you are still confused about or still want to know:
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