Pre-Columbian America and the Colonial Era

Arctic & Subarctic Natives

Relied on fishing, hunting, and portable dwellings; kin-based societies.

Northwest Coast Natives

Abundant salmon, totem culture, stratified social ranks.

Plains Natives

Nomadic bison hunters; horse culture after Columbian Exchange.

Southwest Pueblos

Irrigation farming, adobe dwellings, complex trade networks.

Eastern Woodlands (Iroquois/Algonquin)

Mixed agriculture, longhouses, powerful confederations.

Traditional Native Beliefs

Animism; balance with nature; communal land use.

Martin Luther

Started Protestant Reformation in 1517; faith alone for salvation.

Protestant Reformation

Religious upheaval breaking Catholic unity; led to new denominations.

Lutherans vs Calvinists

Lutherans stressed faith alone; Calvinists emphasized predestination.

Anglicans vs Quakers

Anglicans kept rituals; Quakers promoted pacifism and “inner light.”

European Exploration Motives

Search for wealth, trade routes, power, religious converts.

Triangular Trade

Europe→Africa→Americas exchange of goods, slaves, and raw materials.

Columbian Exchange

Transfer of crops, animals, and diseases across Atlantic.

Spanish Colonization

Conquest, missions, forced labor, intermarriage with Natives.

French Colonization

Fur trade and alliances with Natives; small settlements.

Dutch Colonization

Commercial trading posts, religious tolerance in New Netherland.

English Colonization

Settler colonies, displacement of Natives, self-government.

Roanoke

Failed English colony (1585–87); spurred use of joint-stock companies.

Pilgrims

Separatists who founded Plymouth in 1620 for religious freedom.

Mayflower Compact

Self-governing agreement by Pilgrims before landing.

William Bradford

Leader of Plymouth Colony; promoted cooperation with Natives.

Puritans

English reformers wanting to purify the Anglican Church.

Separatists

Believed in complete break from the Church of England.

John Winthrop

Puritan leader; envisioned Massachusetts Bay as a “city upon a hill.”

Massachusetts Bay Colony

Founded 1630; theocratic yet representative government.

Pequot War

1636–37 conflict; English + allies destroyed Pequot tribe.

King Philip’s War

1675–76 Native uprising; devastated New England towns.

Congregational Church

Central to New England governance; only “visible saints” voted.

Colonial Education

Harvard (1636), Yale; public schools to train ministers.

Roger Williams

Founded Rhode Island; advocated religious freedom and separation of church/state.

Anne Hutchinson

Banished for challenging Puritan ministers; symbol of dissent.

New England Family Life

Strong family units, town meetings, communal economy.

Salem Witch Trials

1692 hysteria revealing social tensions and religious fears.

New Netherland

Dutch trading colony; diverse, tolerant society.

New Sweden

Small Swedish settlement; competed with Dutch before English takeover.

English Takeover of NY/NJ

1664 seizure; retained Dutch influences, political tension.

William Penn

Quaker founder of Pennsylvania; promoted pacifism and tolerance.

Pennsylvania

“Holey experiment,” fair dealings with Natives, religious freedom.

Quakers

Pacifist sect emphasizing equality and inner light.

Delaware

Split from Pennsylvania in 1704 for its own assembly.

Joint-Stock Companies

Investor-funded colonies; shared risk and profit.

Royal Colonies

Controlled directly by the English crown.

Headright System

Land grants to attract settlers and labor to Virginia.

Jamestown

Founded 1607; struggled until tobacco cultivation.

John Smith

Leader who enforced discipline; helped Jamestown survive.

John Rolfe

Introduced profitable tobacco strain to Virginia.

House of Burgesses

1619 first elected colonial assembly in English America.

Lord Baltimore

Founded Maryland as a haven for Catholics.

Act of Toleration (1649)

Granted religious freedom to all Christians in Maryland.

Tobacco Economy

Created wealthy planter class; fueled labor demand.

Indentured Servants

Contract laborers; precursor to African slavery.

Bacon’s Rebellion (1676)

Frontier uprising; sped shift from indentured to enslaved labor.

Restoration Colonies

Carolinas, NY, NJ, PA founded after monarchy restored in 1660.

Carolinas

Rice and indigo cash crops; heavy enslaved African labor.

Georgia

Founded as a buffer colony; initially banned slavery.

James Oglethorpe

Founder of Georgia; sought debtors’ refuge and defense against Spain.

English Civil War (1642–51)

Parliamentary victory; temporary republic under Cromwell.

Oliver Cromwell

Leader of the Commonwealth; enforced Navigation Acts.

Glorious Revolution (1688)

William & Mary replaced James II; affirmed limited monarchy.

Iroquois Confederation

Powerful alliance balancing French and English interests.

Mercantilism

Economic policy: colonies supply raw goods, buy English products.

Navigation Acts

Laws restricting colonial trade to English ships.

Molasses Act

1733 tax on foreign molasses to protect British sugar interests.

Salutary Neglect

Lax enforcement of trade laws, fostering colonial self-rule.

Colonial Population Growth

High birthrates and immigration fueled rapid expansion.

Ethnic Diversity

Germans, Scots-Irish, Africans created a pluralistic society.

Colonial Social Structure

More land and mobility than England; emerging middle class.

Enlightenment

Reason and natural rights; influenced colonial leaders.

Great Awakening (1730s–40s)

Religious revival stressing personal faith and emotion.

Albany Plan of Union (1754)

Benjamin Franklin’s call for colonial unity; rejected but precedent for later cooperation.

French and Indian War (1754–63)

British victory over France; control of Canada gained.

Treaty of Paris (1763)

Ended French and Indian War; France lost North American holdings.

Proclamation of 1763

Forbade colonial settlement west of Appalachian Mountains.