Chapter 4 Life in the Colonies

Life on a Farm • 9 out of 10 colonists lived

on small family farms • Life centered around the

fireplace (warmth & cooking)

• Up at sunrise • Chores included

• cutting wood, • feeding animals, • clearing land, tending

crops, making tools and furniture

Colonial Cities • 1 out of 20 colonists lived in a city • Cities were noisy, smelly places • Heart was the waterfront: goods and news arrived from

Europe • Shops • Homes were closely packed together. Fire was a constant

threat

Rights of the Colonists • Colonists expected same

rights as people in England • Magna Carta: limited the

power of the king • Parliament: Representatives

who made laws & set taxes • English Bill of Rights

• Laws and taxes would be established by Parliament, not the king

• Examples of protected rights: • petition the king • trial by jury

Crime & Punishment • Colonial assemblies passed laws

on crime and punishment • Murder & treason punished by

death • Theft, forgery, highway robbery

punished by jailing, whipping, branding with irons

• Lesser crimes punished with public humiliation (stocks)

• Salem Witch Trials in Massachusetts: 20 people were falsely accused and executed

Religion • Religion was VERY important in colonial life • Vast majority of colonists were Christians (either Catholic or

Protestants) with just a few Jews and atheists • Puritan church services could last five hours • First Great Awakening

• Outdoor church services that spread the idea that everyone was equal in the eyes of God

• Helped spread ideas of liberty, equality, and resistance to authority, which led to the Revolution

Class Differences • Upper Class: Wealthy

landowners • Middle: Farmers & craftsmen • Lower: farmhands (couldn’t

vote) • Bottom: Indentured servants &

slaves • Style of clothing showed social

class • Could move up or down based

on financial success

African Americans

• Slaves in every colony, but especially the Southern Colonies • Triangular Trade: 1) sugar/crops from colonies to Europe 2)

manufactured goods from Europe to Africa in exchange for slaves 3) Africans taken to the colonies as slaves

• Middle Passage: Enslaved Africans’ voyage to the colonies

Family & Leisure • Indentured servants had

to wait until they were free to marry

• Men outnumbered women in all the colonies

• Large families • 7-10 children • about half died before

adulthood • Communities shared labor

• Bees, barn raisings and frolics