Unit 1: Indigenous Societies Pre-Columbus & Colonization of the Americas

Jamestown settlers

English settlers sponsored by the Virginia Company

Jamestown goal

To make profit through gold, trade, and natural resources

Jamestown tobacco

Tobacco farming made Jamestown profitable and increased reliance on enslaved labor

John Rolfe and Virginia Colony

Introduced tobacco cultivation, making Virginia economically successful

Joint stock company

A business where investors pooled money to share risks and profits of colonization

New England settlers

Puritans seeking religious freedom

New England goal

To build a godly, moral society

New England religion

Strict Protestant beliefs that influenced laws and daily life

Model community founded by Puritans

A city upon a hill meant to be an example of a Christian society

Separatists

Pilgrims who wanted to completely separate from the Church of England

Plymouth Colony

Founded in 1620 by Pilgrims seeking religious freedom

Mayflower Compact

Agreement establishing self-government and majority rule in Plymouth Colony

New England vs Southern colonies economic

New England relied on trade, fishing, and small farms while the South depended on plantation agriculture

New England vs Southern colonies political

New England used town meetings while Southern colonies were dominated by wealthy landowners

New England vs Southern colonies social

New England emphasized community while Southern colonies had rigid class systems and slavery

Original thirteen British colonies

New England colonies focused on trade, Middle colonies were diverse and agricultural, Southern colonies relied on plantations

Middle Colonies demographics

Ethnically and religiously diverse population

Middle Colonies economy

Farming and trade, known as the breadbasket colonies

Middle Colonies environment

Fertile soil and moderate climate

Southern Colonies environment

Warm climate and fertile land ideal for cash crops

English settlement impact on American Indians

Land loss, disease, warfare, and forced displacement devastated Native populations

Encomienda system

Spanish labor system that forced Native Americans to work for colonists

Columbian Exchange

Exchange of crops, animals, diseases, and people between the Old and New Worlds

King Philip’s War

Conflict between New England colonists and Native Americans over land

Chattel slavery

A system where enslaved people were considered property for life

Slavery role in North v South

The North gradually abolished slavery while the South depended on it economically

Slave codes

Laws that restricted the rights and freedoms of enslaved people

Mercantilism

Economic system where colonies existed to benefit the mother country

Transatlantic Slave Trade

Forced transportation of enslaved Africans to the Americas

Triangular Trade

Trade system connecting Europe, Africa, and the Americas

Stono Rebellion

1739 slave uprising in South Carolina that led to stricter slave laws

Bacon’s Rebellion

Revolt by poor farmers against colonial elites that exposed class tensions

Quakers

Religious group that promoted equality, peace, and religious tolerance