Exploration, Native Cultures, and Colonial Foundations in American History

Age of Exploration

Time period when European countries explored and expanded into the Americas.

Bering Land Bridge

Land bridge that connected Asia and North America and allowed people to migrate into the Americas.

1492

Christopher Columbus's voyage marked the beginning of major European contact with the Americas.

Native American cultures

Varied greatly depending on geography, climate, and available resources.

Aztecs

Lived in Mexico and grew crops; their farming supported permanent settlements.

Incas

Lived in Peru and used year-round farming and a division of labor.

Pueblos

Lived near the Colorado River in desert/rocky areas and used clay, multi-level housing, and irrigation.

Iroquois

Lived in a seasonal climate, had a blend of cultures, and relied on trade during winter.

Plains Native Americans

Lived in cold weather regions and depended heavily on buffalo.

Buffalo

Provided Plains peoples with meat, bones, fur, and materials for warmth and other needs.

Plains migration

Many Plains groups followed buffalo migrations for food and resources.

European Contact Exchange

The exchange of plants, animals, people, diseases, and goods between Europe, Africa, and the Americas.

Columbian Exchange

The transfer of crops, animals, people, diseases, and goods between the Old World and New World after European contact.

New World

The Americas.

Old World

Europe, Africa, and Asia.

New World crops

Crops such as potatoes, tomatoes, corn, and tobacco.

Old World goods

Items such as wheat, sugar, and livestock.

Old World diseases

Diseases such as smallpox that Europeans brought to the Americas.

Effect of European diseases

Native populations suffered massive deaths because they had little immunity to many European diseases.

Spanish Empire

Spanish territory in the Americas controlled by Spain and its conquistadors.

Conquistadors

Spanish explorers and soldiers who conquered Native American lands.

Spanish treatment of Native Americans

Spanish colonizers often fought, enslaved, converted, or forced Native Americans to work.

Bartolomé de las Casas

Spanish priest who argued that Native Americans should be treated with respect and opposed their abuse.

Encomienda System

A system in which Spanish colonists received control over Native labor and were supposed to protect and convert Native people.

John Smith

A leader of Jamestown who helped organize the colony and encouraged settlers to work.

Jamestown

First permanent English settlement in Virginia, founded in 1607.

Starving Time

The winter of 1609-1610 in Jamestown when food shortages caused many settlers to die.

Tobacco

Jamestown's major cash crop that helped the colony become economically successful.

House of Burgesses

First representative legislative assembly in the English colonies, established in Virginia.

Anglo-Powhatan War

Conflict between English settlers and the Powhatan Confederacy over land and resources.

Treaty of 1614

The treaty temporarily ended conflict between the English and Powhatan and increased English settlement.

Plymouth Colony

English colony founded by the Pilgrims in 1620.

Mayflower

Ship that carried the Pilgrims to North America in 1620.

Pilgrims

English settlers who traveled to North America seeking religious freedom.

Mayflower Compact

Agreement in which Plymouth settlers created a government and agreed to follow laws.

Wampanoag

Native people who lived in the area around Plymouth and interacted with the Pilgrims.

Maryland Colony

English colony founded in 1632 that provided religious toleration to Catholics.

Maryland Act of Toleration

Law passed in 1649 that provided religious toleration to Christians.

The Puritans

English Protestants who wanted to reform the Church of England.

Great Awakening

A period of religious revival in the American colonies that emphasized personal religious experiences.

Colonial labor

Colonies relied on indentured servants and eventually enslaved Africans for labor.

Tuscarora War

War from 1711-1713 between the Tuscarora and English settlers in North Carolina.

Tuscarora

Native American people in North Carolina who fought English settlers over land and mistreatment.

Bacon's Rebellion

1676 rebellion in Virginia led by Nathaniel Bacon against Governor William Berkeley's government.

Beaver Wars

A series of conflicts from about 1628-1701 over control of land, trade, and beaver resources.

Cause of the Beaver Wars

European powers competed for the profitable fur trade and Native groups fought for territory and resources.

Beaver Wars impact

Native communities were displaced, ecosystems were damaged, and the Iroquois gained territorial power.

King Philip's War

Conflict from 1675-1676 between New England colonists and Native Americans led by Metacom.

Metacom

Also known as King Philip; Native leader who led resistance against English settlement.

Cause of King Philip's War

English expansion, loss of Native land, and increasing colonial control.

King Philip's War impact

It caused heavy casualties and destruction and resulted in Native Americans losing more land.

Chickasaw Wars

Conflicts involving the Chickasaw and European powers and Native allies over land, trade, and power.

Chickasaw

Powerful Native group in the Mississippi region that became involved in conflicts between European powers.

French and Chickasaw

France had conflicts with the Chickasaw because of their alliances and control of trade.

British and Chickasaw

The Chickasaw had a strong trade relationship with the British.

Why were European powers competing in North America?

They wanted land, resources, trade, and political power.

Native alliances

European powers formed alliances with Native nations to strengthen trade and military power.

English Colonies

Colonies established by England in North America for reasons including trade, land, religion, and economic opportunities.

13 Colonies

The English colonies that eventually became the original United States.

Chesapeake Colonies

Virginia and Maryland; focused heavily on tobacco farming and plantation agriculture.

Virginia

English colony founded at Jamestown in 1607; tobacco became its major cash crop.

Jamestown's location

Jamestown was built along the James River, which provided access to water and trade.

Joint-Stock Company

A business where investors pooled money to fund a colony or other venture.

Virginia Company

The joint-stock company that funded the settlement of Jamestown.

John Rolfe

Colonist who helped make Jamestown profitable by growing tobacco.

Importance of the House of Burgesses

Allowed colonists to participate in making laws and was an early example of representative government.

Plymouth

Colony founded by the Pilgrims in 1620 for religious reasons.

Importance of the Mayflower Compact

It was an early example of self-government in the English colonies.

William Bradford

A leader of Plymouth who helped the colony survive and served as governor.

Massachusetts Bay Colony

Colony established by Puritans who wanted to practice their religion.

Puritans

English Protestants who wanted to reform the Church of England.

Maryland

English colony founded in 1632 and associated with Lord Baltimore; it provided a place for Catholics and other settlers.

Act Concerning Religion (Maryland Act of Toleration)

1649 law that provided religious toleration to Christians in Maryland.

Religious Toleration

Allowing people with different religious beliefs to practice their religion.

Georgia

Colony founded in 1733 by James Oglethorpe.

James Oglethorpe

Founder of Georgia who wanted to create a colony for debtors and protect the southern colonies.

Georgia's purpose

Served as a buffer between the English colonies and Spanish Florida and provided opportunities for settlers.

Georgia in 1733

Georgia was the last of the original 13 colonies to be founded.

Colonial Economy

Colonies made money through farming, trade, fishing, and natural resources.

Cash Crop

A crop grown mainly to be sold for profit rather than eaten by the farmer.

Tobacco Cash Crop

Tobacco became an important cash crop in Virginia and Maryland.

Plantation

Large farm where cash crops were grown, often using enslaved or other forced labor.

Indentured Servants

People who worked for a set number of years in exchange for passage, food, and shelter.

Enslaved Africans

Africans who were forcibly brought to the colonies and made to work without freedom or pay.

Colonial Labor System

Colonies used indentured servants and increasingly enslaved Africans for labor.

Why did colonies need labor?

Colonies needed workers to grow crops, build settlements, and produce goods.

Colonial Trade

Colonies traded resources and crops with England and other colonies.

Mercantilism

An economic system in which colonies supplied resources to the mother country and bought manufactured goods.

England's colonial goals

England wanted land, resources, trade, wealth, and greater power in North America.

Colonial Self-Government

Colonists developed local governments and assemblies to make decisions.

Representative Government

A system where people elect representatives to make laws for them.

Charter

A document from a king granting permission to establish a colony.

Proprietary Colony

A colony granted by the king to an individual or group that had control over it.

Royal Colony

A colony directly controlled by the English king.

New England Colonies

Colonies in the northeastern region, including Massachusetts, Plymouth, Rhode Island, and Connecticut.

Middle Colonies

Colonies including New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, and Delaware; known for farming, trade, and diverse populations.

Southern Colonies

Colonies including Virginia, Maryland, North Carolina, South Carolina, and Georgia; relied heavily on agriculture and plantation farming.

New England economy

Focused on fishing, shipbuilding, trade, and small farms.

Middle Colonies economy

Focused on farming, trade, and manufacturing.

Southern Colonies economy

Focused heavily on cash crops and plantation agriculture.