Colonial Society on the Eve of Revolution

Colonial Society on the Eve of Revolution

Colonial Society on the Eve of RevolutionChapter 5Conquest by the Cradle1700 fewer than 300,000 people (20,000 were black)By 1775; 2.5 million (1.25 were black)Average colonist age in 1775; 16 years old.Conquest by the Cradle1700- 20 English for every American colonist.1775- 3 English for every colonist (power balance is shifting)Most populous colonies; Virginia, Massachusetts, Pennsylvania, North Carolina, and Maryland.A Mingling of the RacesGermans: 6% of the population (150,000 by 1775)Most in PennsylvaniaScots-Irish: 7% of population (175,000 by 1775)Most in PennsylvaniaLed the Regulators movement in North Carolina ( young Andrew Jackson)Europeans (French Huguenots, Welsh, Dutch, Swedes, Jews, Irish, Swiss, and Scots Highlanders): 5% of population by 1775.Clerics, Physicians, and JuristsChristian minister was the most honored profession.Most physicians were poorly trained and not held in high regard (1st medical school founded in 1765).If the physician was not available, the local barber was often summoned.Workaday AmericaAgriculture involved about 90% of colonial America.Fishing was less important than agriculture, but it was found in all the colonies.

Triangular TradeA ship would leave the colonies w/ rum and sail to the Gold Coast of AfricaThey would trade the liquor w/ African chiefs for captured slavesThey headed to the West Indies and traded the surviving slavesFor molasses, which would be distilled into rum in the coloniesTriangular TradeIn 1733, British Parliament passed the Molasses Act, aimed at squelching North American trade with the French West Indies.This act, if successful, would have dealt a striking blow to the American economy and standard of living for Colonists.Triangular TradeAmerican merchants responded to the act by bribing and smuggling their way around the law.This was a foreshadowing to the colonists revolting rather than submitting to colonial rule.Horsepower and SailpowerNot until the 1700s did roads connect even the major cities.News of the Declaration of Independence in 1776 reached Charleston from Philadelphia 29 days after the fourth of July.Population tended to cluster along the banks of navigable rivers.Horsepower and SailpowerTaverns sprang up along main routes and gave people the chance to enjoy bowling, pool, and gambling equipment.Taverns were also the de facto debate houses of the day for politics and the coming revolution.Samuel Adams often held court in Bostons Green Dragon Tavern.Horsepower and SailpowerAn inter-colonial postal system was established by the mid 1700s.Service was slow and infrequent, and mail carriers often passed the time by reading the letters entrusted to their care.

Dominant DenominationsTwo tax-supported churches were conspicuous in 1775; the Anglican Church (Church of England) and the Congregational Church (Puritan).The Church of England became the official faith in GA, NC, SC, VA, and MD.The Congregation Church was established in all New England colonies except RI.The Great AwakeningLiberal ideas began to challenge the old-time religion.Some worshippers now proclaimed that human beings were not necessarily predestined to damnation and might save themselves by leading a life of good works.The Great AwakeningArminianism was a threat to Calvinist predestination.Named after Dutch theologian Jacobus Arminius, it preached that individual free will, not divine decree, determined a persons eternal fate and all humans, not just the elect could be saved if they freely accepted Gods graceThe Great AwakeningThe Great Awakening of the 1730s and 1740s was ignited by Johnathan Edwards and George Whitfield who preached an emphasis on direct, emotional, spirituality.

The Great AwakeningA debate was sparked between the old lights- Orthodox clergymen, who were skeptical of the emotionalism and theatricality of the revivalists, and the new lights- who defended the Awakening for its role in revitalizing American religion.

The Great AwakeningThe Great Awakening led to the founding of new light centers of learning such as Princeton, Brown, Rutgers, and Dartmouth.It also broke down sectional boundaries as well as denominational lines and contributed to the growing sense that Americans had of themselves as a single people, united by a common history and shared experiences.Schools and CollegesEnglish education was seen as something reserved for the aristocratic few, and primary for leadership and males.In Puritan New England, education was seen as important in order to be a good Christian rather than a good citizen.Schools and CollegesPrimary and secondary schools were created in New England almost from the outset of the colonies.Elementary schools were present in the middle colonies and in the South, but because of geography, wealthy Southern families leaned on private tutors.College education, at least in New England, was geared toward preparing for ministry.Colonial FolkwaysDiet; Americans probably ate more meat than any people in the Old World.Lacking basic comforts; Churches were not heatedHomes poorly heated, No running water or indoor plumbing.Candles and whale oil lamps provided flickering illumination.Hogs roamed the streets to consume waste.Colonial FolkwaysLotteries were universally approved, even by the clergy, and were used to raise money for churches and colleges including Harvard.British North American by 1775 looked like a patchwork quilt- each part slightly different, but stitched together by common origins, common ways of life, and common beliefs in toleration, economic development, and, above all, self-rule.