Colonial America: Jamestown, Slavery, and Racial Laws

Jamestown, 1607

England's first permanent settlement in North America, founded in Virginia.

Tobacco in Virginia

Cash crop that saved Jamestown from collapse and drove labor demand.

Indentured Servants

Mostly white Europeans who worked 4-7 years to pay for passage and maintenance.

Early Africans in Chesapeake

Arrived in small groups, worked alongside whites, sometimes gained freedom and intermarried.

John Punch Case (1640)

First major legal distinction between white and African servitude; Punch sentenced to life slavery.

1662 Virginia Law

Made slavery hereditary; children inherited mother's status (free or enslaved).

Chattel Slavery

System treating enslaved Africans as property with no rights or autonomy.

Interracial Marriage Law (1691)

Virginia law outlawing marriage between whites and 'Negroes, mulattos, or Indians'; white offenders exiled.

Christian Conversion Law

Virginia declared baptism did not change enslaved status.

Decline of White Servants

Fewer indentured Europeans → planters turned to enslaved Africans for labor.

Growth of Black Population (1650-1680)

Black population rose from a few hundred to about 4,000 in Virginia.

Bacon's Rebellion (1676)

Revolt by landless whites and enslaved Africans against elite planters; led to stronger racial divisions.

Black Population in 1750

Virginia's population was 44% Black, up from 7% in 1680.

"New Negroes"

Africans newly imported from interior Africa after 1680; unfamiliar with English, harshly treated.

New Negro Mortality

About one-quarter of 'New Negroes' died within a year of arrival.

Creole Language

Language combining English and African dialects developed among enslaved people.

1730 Dismal Swamp Revolt

300+ enslaved Africans fled plantations in Virginia; recaptured with Indian assistance.

Free Blacks & Mulattos (1720s)

Disarmed and disfranchised by Virginia laws due to fear of rebellion.

Carolina Colony

Founded 1663; later split into North and South Carolina in 1729.

Barbadian Influence

Many settlers came from Barbados, bringing enslaved laborers and plantation culture.

Rice Cultivation in South Carolina

Flourished due to African agricultural knowledge and skills.

Conversion in Carolina

Planters avoided converting enslaved people to Christianity to prevent gatherings and rebellion.

Enslaved Communities in Carolina

Lived on large plantations, preserved African traditions, spoke Creole, built own quarters.

Country Marks

Facial or body scars marking African origins and cultural identity.

African Religion

Belief in one Supreme God, ancestral spirits, and use of magic/conjure for healing or protection.

Barbadian Slave Code (1690)

South Carolina adopted harsh punishments for runaways—whipping, branding, mutilation.

Slavery by Late 1700s

Deeply entrenched across colonies, especially in Virginia, Maryland, South Carolina, and Georgia.

Economic Impact of Slavery

Created immense wealth and a white ruling class in colonial America.

Revolutionary Irony

Colonists fought for liberty while maintaining slavery.

African American Responses

Some fought for the British or Patriots to gain freedom during the Revolution.

Freedom vs. Slavery Paradox

The birth of American liberty was built on the foundation of racial slavery.