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CHAPTER 4

American Life in the Seventeenth Gentury,1607-1692

PART I: REVIEWING THE CHAPTER

A. CHECKLIST OF LEARNING OBJECTIVESAfter mastering this chapter, you should be able to

l. describe the basic economy, demographics, and social structure and life of the seventeenth-century colonies.

2. compare and contrast the different forms of society and ways of life of the southern colonies andNew England.

3. explain how the practice of indentured servitude failed to solve the colonial labor problem, andwhy colonists then tumed to African slavery.

4. describe the slave trade and the character of early African American slavery.

5. summarize the unique New England way of life centered on family, town, and church, anddescribe the changes that overcame this comfortable social order in the late seventeenth century.

6. describe the role of family life and the roles of women in the seventh century colonies, andindicate how these chansed over time.

B. GLOSSARYTo build your social science vocabulary, familiarize yourself with the following terms:

I . headright The right to acquire a ceftain amount of land granted to the person who finances thepassage of a laborer. "\{n5fs1s-not servants themselves-thus reaped the benefits offandownership from the headright system." (p.67)

2. disfranchise To take away the right to vote. "The Virginia Assembly in 1670 disfranchised mostofthe landless knockabouts. . . ." (p. 68)

3. civil war Any conflict between the citizens or inhabitants of the same country. "As this civil warin Virginia ground on . . . ." (p. 68)

4. tidewater The territory adjoining water affbcted by tides-that is, near the seacoast or coastalrivers. "Bacon . . . had pitted the hard scrabble backcountry frontiersmen against the haughtygentry of the tidewater plantations." (pp. 68, 70)

5. middle passage That portion of a slave ship's journey in which slaves were carried from Africato the Americas. ". . . the captives were herded aboard sweltering ships for the gruesome 'middlepassage. ' . . . " (p.71)

6. fertility The ability to mate and produce abundant young. "The captive black population of theChesapeake area soon began to grow not only through new imports but also through its ownfert i l i ty . . . ; ' (p.72)

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Chapter 4: American Life in the Seventeenth Century, 1607-1692 29

7. menial Fit for servants; humble or low. "But chiefly they performed the sweafy toil of clearingswamps, grubbing out trees. and other menial tasks." (p. 73)

8. militia An armed force of citizens called out only in emergencies. "[They] tried to march toSpanish Flor ida, only to be stopped by the local mi l i t ia." (p.73)

9. hierarchy A social group arranged in ranks or classes. "The rough equality . . . was giving way toa hierarchy of wealth and status. . . ." (p. 73)

10. corporation A group or institution granted legal rights to carry on certain specified activities.". . . the Massachusetts Puritans established Harvard College, today the oldest corporation inAmerica. . . . " (p.79)

I l. jeremiad A sermon or prophecy recounting wrongdoing, warning of doom, and calling forrepentance. "Jeremiads continued to thunder from the pulpits. . . ." (p. 80)

12. lynching The illegalexecution of an accused person by mob action, without due process of law."A hysterical 'witch-hunt' ensued, leading to the legal lynching in 1692 of twentyindividuals. . . . " (p. 80)

I 3. hinterland An inland region qet back from a port, river, or seacoast. '1. . . th.i, accusers camelargely from subsistence farming families in Salem's hinterland." (p. 80)

14. social structure The basic pattern of the distribution of status and wealth in a society. ". . . manysettlers . . . tried to re-create on a modified scale the social structure they had known in the OldWorld." (p. 83)

15. blue blood Of noble or upper-class descent. ". . . would-be American blue bloods resented thepretensions of the 'meaner sort.'. . ." (p. 83)

PART II: CHECKING YOUR PROGRESS

A. True-FalseWhere the statement is true, circle T; where it is false, circle F.

L T F Life expectancy among the seventeenth-century sefflers of Maryland and Virginia wasabout sixty years.

2. T F Because men greatly outnumbered women in the Chesapeake region, a fiercecompetition arose among men for scarce females.

3. T F By the eighteenth century, the Chesapeake population was growing on the basis ofnatural increase.

4. T F Chesapeake Bay tobacco planters responded to falling prices by cutting backproduction.

5. T F The "headright" system of land grants to those who brought laborers to Americaprimarily benefited wealthy planters rather than the poor indentured servants.

6. T F Most of the European immigrants who came to Virginia and Maryland in theseventeenth century were indentured servants.

7. T F Bacon's Rebellion involved an alliance of white indentured servants and Indians whoattacked the elite planter class.

8. T F African staves began to replace white indentured servants as the primary labor supplyin the plantation colonies in the 1680s.

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9. TF

30 Chapter 4: American Life in the Seventeenth Century, 1607-1692

IO. T F

I I . T F

12. T F

13.TF

14.TF

15. T F

Slaves brought to North America developed a culture that mixed African and Americanelements.

Directly beneath the wealthy slaveowning planters in the southern social structure werethe white indentured servants.

New Englanders' long lives contributed to the general stability and order of theirchildrearing and family life.

New England expansion was carried out primarily by independent pioneers and landspeculators who bought up large plots and then sold them to individual farmers.

New England women enjoyed fewer rights to inherit and own properry than women inthe South.

New England's commercial wealth was based on the export of agricultural crops toEngland and elsewhere.

Seventeenth-century American life was generally simple and lacking in displays ofwealth or elaborate class distinctions.

B. Multiple ChoiceSelect the best answer and circle the corresponding letter.

l. For most of their early history, the colonies of Maryland and Virginia

a. provided a healthy environment for child rearing.b. contained far more men than women.c. had harsh laws punishing premarital sexual relations.d. encouraged the formation of stable and long-lasting marriages.

2. The primary beneficiaries of the "headright" system were

a. landowners who paid the transatlanic passage for indentured servants.b. widows who acquired new husbands from England.c. indentured servants who were able to acquire their own land.d. English ship owners who transported new laborers across the Atlantic.

3. The primary cause of Bacon's Rebellion was

a. Governor Berkeley's harsh treatment of the Indians.b. the refusal of landlords to grant indentured servants their freedom.c. the poverty and discontent of many single young men unable to acquire land.d. the persecution of the colonists by King Charles II.

4. African slavery became the prevalent form of labor in the 1680s when

a. planters were no longer able to rely on white indentured servants as a labor force.b. the first captives were brought from Africa to the New World.c. blacks could be brought to the New World in safer and healthier condition.d. the once-clear legal difference between a servant and a slave began to be blurred.

5. The culture that developed among the slaves in the English colonies of North America was

a. derived primarily from that of the white masters.b. based mainly on the traditions of southern Africa.c. a combination of several African and American cultures.d. originally developed in the West Indies and spread northward.

6. Political and economic power in the southern colonies was dominated by

a. urban professional classes such as lawyers and bankers.b. small landowners.c. wealthy planters.

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7.

Chapter 4: American Life in the Seventeenth Century, 1607-1692 31

d. the English royal governors.Because there were few urban centers in the colonial South.

a. good roads between the isolated plantations were constructed early on.b. a professional class of lawyers and financiers was slow to develop.c. the rural church became the central focus of southern social and economic life.d. there were almost no people of wealth and culture in the region.Puritan lawmakers in New England prevented married women from having property rightsbecause

a. they believed that property should be held by towns, not private citizens.b. they feared that too much property would fall into the control of the numerous widows.c. they feared that separate properry rights for women would undercut the unity of married

couples.d. the Bible plainly prohibited women from owning properry.In New England, elementary education

a. was mandatory for any town with more than fifty families.b. failed to provide even basic literacy to the large majority of citizens.c. was less widespread than in the South.d. was oriented to preparing students for entering college.The Congregational Church of the Puritans contributed to

a. the development of basic democracy in the New England town meeting.b. the extremely hierarchical character ofNew England life.c. the social harmony and unity displayed throughout the seventeenth century in New England

towns.d. the growing movement toward women's rights in New England.In contrast to the Chesapeake Bay colonists, those in New Englanda. had fewer women and more men in their population.b. had shorter life expectancies.c. practiced birth control as a means of preventing overpopulation.d. enjoyed longer lives and more stable families.The focus of much ofNew England's politics, religion, and education was the institution ofa. the colonial legislature.b. the town.c. the militia company.d. the college.The "Half-Way Covenant" provided

a. baptism but not "firll communion" to people who had not had a conversion experience.b. partial participation in politics to people who were not church members.c. admission to communion but not to voting membership in the church.d. partial participation in church affairs for women.Those people accused of being witches in Salem were generally

a. from the poorer and more uneducated segments of the town.b. notorious for their deviation from the moral norms of the community.c. outspoken opponents ofthe Puritan clergy.d. from families associated with Salem's burgeoning market economy.English settlers greatly altered the character of the New England environment by

a. raising wheat and oats rather than the corn grown by Indians.b. their extensive introduction of livestock.c. beating trails through the woods as they pursued seasonal hunting and fishing.d. building an extensive system of roads and canals.

8.

9.

10.

i l .

12.

t3.

14.

15.

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32 Chapter 4: American Life in the Seventeenth Century, 1607-1692

G. ldentificationSupply the correct identification for each numbered description.

l

2.

3.

4.

5.

6.

Early Maryland and Virginia settlers had difficulty creating them and evenmore difficulty making them last

Primary cause of death among tobacco-growing settlers

Immigrants who received passage to America in exchange for a fixed term oflabor

Maryland and Virginia's system of granting land to anyone who would paytrans-Atlantic passage for laborers

Fate of many ofNathanielBacon's followers, though not of Bacon himself

American colony that was home to the Newport slave market and many slavetraders

English company that lost its monopoly on the slave trade in 1698

African American dialect that blended English with Yoruba, Ibo, and Hausa

Uprisings that occurred in New York City in 17l2 and in South Carolina in1739

Wealthy extended clans like the Fitzhughs, Lees, and Washingtons thatdominated politics in the most populous colony

Approximate marriage age of most New England women

The basic local political institution of New England, in which alt freemengathered to elect officials and debate local affairs

Formula devised by Puritan ministers in 1662 to offer partial churchmembership to people who had not experienced conversion

Late seventeenth-century judicial event that inflamed popular feelings, led tothe deaths of fwenty people, and weakened the Puritan clergy's prestige

Primary occupation of most seventeenth-century Americans

1

8.

9.

l l .

t2.

10.

r3.

14.

15.

[rlt . IL iEi

81.

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Chapter 4: American Life in the Seventeenth Century, 1607-1692 33

D. Matching People, Places, and EventsMatch the person, place, or event in the left column with the proper description in the right column byinserting the correct letter on the blank line.

l .

2.

3.A

5.

6.

'7.

8.

9.

10.

l l .

12.talJ.

14.

t5.

Chesapeake

Indentured servants

NathanielBacon

Governon Berkeley

Royal African Company

Middle passage

Ringshout

New York City slave revolt of17 t2

Nathanael Hawthorne

"New England conscience"

Harvard

William and Mary

Half-Way Covenant

Salem witch trials

Leisler's Rebellion

a. Major middle-colonies rebellion thatcaused thirty-three deaths

b. Helped erase the earlier Puritandistinction between the converted "elect"and other members of society

c. Smal l New York revolt of 1689-1691that reflected class antagonism betweenIandlords and merchants

d. Primary laborers in early southerncolonies unt i l the 1680s

e. Experience for which human beings werebranded and chained, and which only 80percent survived

f. Author of a novel about the early NewEngland practice of requiring adulterersto wear the letter "A"

g. West African religious rite, retained byAfrican Americans, in which participantsresponded to the shouts ofa preacher

h. Phenomena started by adolescent girls'accusations that ended with the deaths oftwenty people

i. Virginia-Maryland bay are4 site of theearl iest colon ial settlements

j. The legacy of Puritan religion thatinspired idealism and reform among latergenerations of Americans

k. ColonialVirginia official who crushedrebels and wreaked cruel revenge

l. The oldest college in the South, foundedin 1793

m. Organization whose loss of the slavetrade monopoly in 1698 led to free-enterprise expansion of the business

n. Agitator who led poor former indenturedservants and frontiersmen on a rampageagainst Indians and colonial government

o. The oldest college in America, originallybased on the Puritan commitment to an

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34 Chapter 4: American Life in the Seventeenth Century, 1607-1692

educated ministry

E. Putt ing Things in OrderPut the following events in correct order by numbering them from I to 10.

l. "Legal lynching" of twenty accused witches occurs.

2.

3.A1.

5.

6.

8.

9.

r0.

Cause

l. The severe shortage of females insouthern colonies

2. Poor white males' anger at theirinability to acquire land or startfamilies

3. Planters' fears of indenturedservants' rebellion, coupled withrising wages in England

4. The dramatic increase in colonialslave population after 1680s

5. The growing proportion of femaleslaves in the Chesapeake regionafter 1720

6. New Englanders' introduction oflivestock and intensive agriculture

7. The healthier climate and moreequal male-female ratio in NewEngland

8. The decline of religious devotionand in number of conversions inNew Ensland

Royal slave trade monopoly ends.

First colonial college is founded.

Landless whites in Virginia lose the right to vote.

Major rebellion by African Americans occurs in one of the middle colonies.

Southem slaves in revolt try but failto march to Spanish Florida.

Partial church membership is opened to the unconverted.

African slaves begin to replace white indentured labor on southern plantations.

Poor Virginia whites revolt against governor and rich planters.

First Africans arrive in Vireinia.

F. Matching Cause and EffectMatch the historical cause in the left column with the proper effect in the right column by writing thecorrect letter on the blank line.

a,

b.

c.

d.

t .

f.

oD'

Effect

Inspired passage ofstrict "slave codes"

Sparked Bacon's Rebellion

Produced large number of unattachedmales and weak family structure

Thwarted success in agriculture buthelped create the tough New Englandcharacter

Inspired the Half-Way Covenant andjeremiad preaching

Reduced forests and damaged the soil

Produced high birthrates and a verystable family structure

Fostered stronger slave families andgrowth of slave population throughnatural reproduction of children

Underlay the Salem witchcraftpersecutions

Caused southern planters to switchfrom indentured-servant labor toAfrican slavery

h.

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chapter 4: American Life in the seventeenth century, 1607-1692 35

9. Unsettled New England socialconditions and anxieties about thedecline of the Puritan religiousheritage

10. The rocky soil and harsh climateof New Encland

G Developing Historical Skil ls

Learning from Historical DocumentsThe illustrations on pp. 69 and79 reproduce parts of fwo colonial documents: excerpts from anindentured servant's contract and some pages from children's school materials.. By carefully examiningeven these small partial documents, you can learn more about early colonial culfure and ideas.

Answering the following questions will i l lustrate the kind of information that historical documents canprovide.

I ' What are the principal goals that both the master and the indentured servant are seekins in thecontract?

2. What potential problems does each side anticipate?

3. What does the reference to the mother's consent suggest about this servant's condition?

PART III: APPLYING WHAT YOU HAVE LEARNEDl. How did the factors of population, economics, disease, and climate shape the basic social

conditions and ways of life of early Americans in both the South and New England?

2. What was the underlying cause of the expansion of African slavery in English North America?

3. could the colonies' "labor problem" have been sorved without slavery?

4. How did African Americans develop a culture that combined African and American elements?What were some of the features of that culture?

5. How did the numbers and condition of women affect family life and society in New England,among southern whites, and among African American slaves? Compare and contrast the typicalfamily conditions and ways of life among various members of these three groups.

6. How did the harsh climate and soil, stern religion, and tightly knit New England town shape the"Yankee character"?

7. Compare the conditions of seventeenth-century social, economic, and religious life in NewEngland and the Chesapeake region.

8' How did the Salem witch episode reflect the tensions and changes in seventeenth-century NewEngland life and thought?

9. In what ways did the English and Africans who came to America in the seventeenth century haveto shape their society and way of life to fit the conditions they faced in the New World?

ri

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