Period 2 APUSH VOCAB

Santa Fe

Established in 1610, Santa Fe was the capital of the Spanish colony of New Mexico, serving as a center for Spanish administration and missionary efforts among Native Americans in the Southwest.

Quebec

Founded by Samuel de Champlain in 1608, Quebec became the first permanent French settlement in North America, crucial for fur trading and French expansion.

Mayflower Compact

A 1620 agreement signed by the Pilgrims on the Mayflower, establishing a framework for self-government and majority rule in Plymouth Colony.

The Chesapeake

A colonial region comprising Virginia and Maryland known for its plantation economy based on tobacco cultivation and use of indentured servants.

Indentured servants

Laborers who agreed to work for a specific period (usually 4-7 years) in exchange for passage to America, room, and board, mainly in the Chesapeake colonies.

Henry VIII

King of England (1509–1547) who initiated the English Reformation by breaking from the Catholic Church and establishing the Church of England.

Massachusetts Bay Company

A joint-stock company chartered in 1629 that established the Massachusetts Bay Colony, led by Puritans seeking religious freedom.

Pope’s Rebellion

An uprising of Pueblo Indians in New Mexico against Spanish colonists and missionaries, temporarily driving the Spanish out of the region.

George Calvert

Also known as Lord Baltimore, he founded Maryland as a proprietary colony for English Catholics.

New Netherlands

A Dutch colony in North America (1624–1664), centered on the Hudson River and New Amsterdam, later taken by the English and renamed New York.

Quakers

A religious group also known as the Society of Friends, advocating for pacifism, equality, and inner light of God, primarily settling in Pennsylvania.

Harvard

Founded in 1636, Harvard College was the first institution of higher education in America, initially established to train Puritan ministers.

New France

The French colonial empire in North America focusing on fur trade, exploration, and missionary work, stretching from Quebec to Louisiana.

Cotton Mather

A prominent Puritan minister known for his involvement in the Salem Witch Trials and his advocacy for smallpox inoculation.

Navigation Acts

A series of English laws starting in 1651 regulating colonial trade to benefit England’s mercantilist policies.

Molasses Act

A British law that imposed high taxes on imported molasses from non-English colonies, aiming to protect British sugar producers.

Virginia House of Burgesses

Established in 1619, it was the first representative assembly in the American colonies, marking the beginning of self-government in Virginia.

Roanoke/Jamestown

Roanoke: The 'Lost Colony' established in 1585 that mysteriously disappeared. Jamestown: Founded in 1607, it was the first permanent English settlement.

Charter colony

A type of colony established by a charter allowing significant self-governance, examples include Massachusetts and Connecticut.

Sir Walter Raleigh

An English explorer and sponsor of the Roanoke Colony, playing a key role in early English colonization.

Headright system

A land grant program used in Virginia and Maryland offering 50 acres of land to settlers who paid their or another's passage.

William Bradford

A Pilgrim leader and governor of Plymouth Colony, known for authoring 'Of Plymouth Plantation', detailing the colony's history.

Anne Hutchinson

A Puritan dissenter banished from Massachusetts Bay Colony for her antinomian beliefs, leading to her settlement in Rhode Island.

Bacon’s Rebellion (1676)

An armed rebellion in Virginia led by Nathaniel Bacon against Governor Sir William Berkeley, stemming from grievances over Native American policies.

Leisler’s Rebellion (1689-91)

A rebellion in New York led by Jacob Leisler against the colonial elite in the aftermath of the Glorious Revolution.

Restoration colonies

Colonies established after the English monarchy was restored in 1660 under Charles II, including Pennsylvania, New York, and the Carolinas.

Dutch West India Company

A Dutch trading company that controlled New Netherlands, focusing on fur trade and commerce in the Atlantic world.

William Penn

A Quaker and founder of Pennsylvania, established to promote religious freedom and good relations with Native Americans.

George Whitefield

A notable preacher of the Great Awakening known for his emotional sermons and revivalist preaching style.

Mercantilism

An economic policy that views colonies as existing to benefit the mother country through supplying raw materials and markets.

Paxton Boys

Frontiersmen in Pennsylvania protesting government leniency toward Native Americans after Pontiac’s Rebellion.

Royal Colony

A colony directly controlled by the English Crown, overseen by a royal governor appointed by the king, e.g., Virginia after 1624.

John Smith

An English leader of Jamestown who imposed strict discipline, aiding the colony's survival.

Sir William Berkeley

Governor of Virginia during Bacon’s Rebellion, criticized for policies favoring wealthy planters and leniency toward Native Americans.

John Winthrop

Leader of the Massachusetts Bay Colony, known for his 'City upon a Hill' sermon envisioning a model Christian society.

Roger Williams

A Puritan dissenter who founded Rhode Island after being banished for advocating religious tolerance.

Calvinism

A Protestant theological system emphasizing predestination and God's sovereignty, influential among early settlers.

Salem Witch Trials

Witchcraft accusations and trials in Salem, Massachusetts, in 1692, leading to the execution of 20 people.

Glorious Revolution

The overthrow of King James II in England, establishing constitutional monarchy and influencing colonial resistance.

The Great Awakening

A religious revival movement in the 1730s–1740s emphasizing emotional faith and challenging established churches.

The Middle Passage

The brutal journey enslaved Africans endured when transported to the Americas.

James Oglethorpe

Founder of Georgia, established as a haven for debtors and a buffer against Spanish Florida.

Nathaniel Bacon

Leader of Bacon’s Rebellion, challenging the authority of Virginia’s elite.

Salutary neglect

A British policy of loosely enforcing colonial regulations, allowing economic and political autonomy.

Voyageurs

French-Canadian fur traders and explorers who worked in New France.

Johnathan Edwards

A leading preacher of the Great Awakening known for his sermon 'Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God'.

Coureurs de bois

French fur traders and adventurers who explored wilderness areas and lived among Native Americans.

Proprietary Colony

A colony governed by individuals or groups granted land by the king, such as Maryland and Pennsylvania.

Virginia Company

A joint-stock company that funded the establishment of Jamestown in 1607.

Martin Luther

The German theologian who sparked the Protestant Reformation by challenging the Catholic Church with his 95 Theses.

Plymouth

The settlement founded by the Pilgrims in 1620 in modern-day Massachusetts.

Pequot War/King Philip’s War

(1636–1638) A conflict between New England colonists and the Pequot tribe, nearly destroying the latter, and (1675–1676) a war led by Metacom, devastating for all involved.

Antinomianism

The belief that faith alone is necessary for salvation, associated with Anne Hutchinson.

Maryland Toleration Act

(1649) A law granting religious freedom to all Christians in Maryland, penalizing non-Christians.

Dominion of New England

A centralized administrative unit imposed by James II, uniting New England colonies under a royal governor.

The Enlightenment

An intellectual movement emphasizing reason, science, and individual rights, influencing American political thought.

Zenger Trial

(1735) A landmark trial establishing freedom of the press, where John Peter Zenger was acquitted for criticisms of a colonial governor.

Elizabeth I

Queen of England (1558–1603) who supported early English exploration and colonization, including the Roanoke Colony.

Stono Rebellion

(1739) A major slave uprising in South Carolina, leading to stricter slave codes.

Half-Way Covenant

A Puritan policy allowing partial church membership for descendants of church members to maintain religious influence.

Old lights vs. New lights

Terms describing divisions during the Great Awakening; Old Lights opposed emotional revivals, while New Lights embraced them.