APUSH English colonies

New England

Colonies Involved:

• Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, Connecticut

Why settle?:

• Wanted to practice puritanism

  • Religious persecution

• Well-ordered Small communities

Geography:

• Hard, rocky soil

  • No large-scale farming

• Fast rivers

  • No east/west navigable rivers

Climate:

• Cold, harsh winters

• Short growing season

Economy:

• Subsistent farming

• Timber

• Sea Industry

  • Trade

• Insurance and Banking

Political structure:

• Religion and politics are interwoven

• Each town ran its own laws

  • White men who went to church were allowed to vote

Middle colonies

Colonies Involved:

• New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Delaware

Why settle?:

• Wanted to make money

  • Wanted to establish trading zones

• Religious freedom

Geography:

• Rolling hills

  • Rich soil

• Large, slow rivers

  • Connected east and west

Climate:

• Mild winters

• Longer growing season

Economy:

• Farming

  • Indentured servants

  • Corn, wheat, rye, and barley

• Lumber Milling

• Grist mills

  • Ground Grains

• Bricks

Political structure:

• Diversity

• People elected representatives to the assembly

  • Assemblies allected govt officials

    • Govt officials made all the laws and decisions

Southern colonies

Colonies Involved:

• Maryland, Virginia, North and South Carolina, Georgia

Why settle?:

• Wanted to make money

  • Grow crops quickly for a profit

Geography:

• Maryland and Virginia

  • Flat, rich coastline

    • Farming

• Deep south

  • Swampy

    • Good for rice

• Interior

  • Rich, fertile soil

• Rivers

  • Large and slow

    • East and West trade

Climate:

• Warm and humid

• Year-long growing season

Economy:

• Farming

  • Western lands

    • Small, family-owned farms

    • Fruits, vegetables, corn, and grain

    • Enough for trade

  • Eastern lands

    • Large Plantations

      • Rice, tobacco, and indigo

        • cash crops

      • Used slaves and indentured servants

• Very little manufacturing

Political structure:

• Gov’t decisions made by large landowners

  • House of Burgesses in Virginia

Plymouth vs Jamestown

Similarities:

• Plagued by disease and hunger

• Self-governed

• Chartered by the Virginia company

• Difficult journeys

• Received assistance from NAI

Differences:

• Motivations

  • Economic (Jamestown) vs Religious (Plymouth)

• Fewer setbacks in Plymouth

  • History of cooperation

• Relations with NAI

• Geography

  • Virginia

    • Warmer, good soil

  • Mass

    • Cold and Rocky