A.P. U.S. HISTORY
CHAPTER 5: COLONIAL
SOCIETY ON THE EVE OF
REVOLUTION
1700-1775
• Britain had 32 colonies
in North America in
1775, and only 13 of
them opted for
Revolution and
Independence.
• In 1700 the 13 colonies
had less than 300,000
people.(but had rapidly
growing populations) •
In 1775 the 13 colonies had 2.5 million people, of
which 500,000 were black.
• 400,000 of these were immigrants (both free and
forced) but the rest had been born in the
colonies through remarkable natural fertility.
• The colonies were doubling their numbers every
25 years.
• The average American in 1775 was about 16.
 In 1700 the English outnumbered
the colonists 20 to 1, but that
margin fell to 3 to 1 by 1775
 In 1775 the most populous colonies
were VA, MA, PA, N.C., and MD., in
that order.
 90 percent of Americans were rural
in 1775.
 America had only 4 real cities in that
year: Philadelphia (34,000), N.Y.C.,
Boston, & Charleston.
 See map on page 85
6% of Americans were
Germans in 1775 making up
about 1/3rd of Pennsylvania’s
population.
Germans were primarily
Lutherans by faith.
Scots-Irish- made up about
7% of the population in
1775.
 Most were Scottish lowlanders who
had been transplanted to Northern
Ireland where they were not treated
well by the Irish Catholics.
 Many squatted on Indian and Whiteclaimed land on the frontier, provoking
many clashes with Indians and the
white owners.
 Most Scots-Irish hated the British
government who had mistreated their
people in Scotland and Ireland for
decades.
 About a dozen future American
presidents were from this Scots-Irish
stock.
DIVERSITY IN THE COLONIES
 Most other non-English
immigrants including: Huguenots,
Welsh, Dutch, Swedes, Jews, Irish,
& Swiss felt no loyalty to the
British crown.
 See percentages on page 86
 The population in the 13
colonies was probably the most
diverse on Earth at that time. A
true “melting pot” of
nationalities.
New England remained
mostly English puritan and
was the least diverse region.
The middle colonies were
the most diverse.
Not counting New England,
the colonies were about ½
English and non-English in
1775.
Of the 56 signers of the
Declaration of Independence
18 were non-English and 8
had not been born in the
colonies.
• Most colonial Americans were
•
•
•
•
•
small farmers.
Ministers were the most
respected in the communities.
No titled nobility existed in
America.
Colonial America had a high
degree of social mobility. Rags to
riches stories were fairly
common in America and very
rare in England.
A thriving minority of rich
merchants emerged in America in
the late 1600s-early 1700s.
By the mid 1700’s the number of
poor people in the American
colonies remained tiny compared
with the number in England.
 By 1750 10% of Bostonians and
Philadelphians owned 2/3rds of
the wealth.
 Almost all slaves owned in the
south were held by the elite few
plantation owners. Most small
farmers in the South owned no
slaves or were tenant farmers
themselves.
 The English dumped thousands of
prisoners on American soil.
 Slaves, of course, made up the
lowest class of Americans.
90% of Americans were involved
in agriculture.
The middle colonies grew grain,
the Chesapeake colonies grew
tobacco, and the South grew rice
and indigo, New England had
small farms and many were
engaged in whaling and fishing.
On average, life in America was
more prosperous than in Europe,
or in any nation in the history of
the world, up to that time.
See map on pg 91.
TRIANGULAR TRADE
 The triangular trade made up
only one small part of colonial
commerce.
 New England rum was shipped to
Africa where it was sold for
Slaves, who were transported to
the West Indies in exchange for
molasses, which was shipped
north to New England to be
distilled into rum.
 Each leg of the triangle made the
merchant money.
INDUSTRIES IN THE COLONIES
• Although manufacturing in the
colonies was only secondary
to agriculture they did
produce, rum, beaver hats,
lumber, and iron ore.
• Shipbuilding was one of the
most important manufacturing
segments in the colonies.
• One feature of the American
economy that strained the
relationship between Britain
was the growing desire of
Americans to trade with other
nations (not just England)
 By 1770 about 400 ships a year
were being made in the colonies,
and about 1/3 of the British
merchant marine were made in
America.
 Britain’s limited population was
saturated with American goods
by the 1770s.
 Americans stood to make a lot
more money if they could trade
with other European nations.
PROBLEMS WITH TRANSPORTATION
 Transportation was very slow in
colonial America with very poor
dirt trails and roads connecting
various points in the colonies.
 Travelers of all ethnicities, places
of origin, occupation, religion, etc
frequently jammed into taverns
dotting places of travel where the
mixing groups talked about all
sorts of subjects, especially
politics.
 While a minority of American
colonists belonged to an established
church, two denominations stood
above the others in numbers and
power; the Anglican and
Congregationalist.
 The Anglican (Church of England) was
the official faith in Georgia, North and
South Carolina,Virginia, MD, and part
of N.Y.
 See chart on “estimated religious
census, 1775” pg 95.
 The Anglican faith was less radical and
more worldly than that which was
established by the Puritans of the
early colonial period.
 The Congregational Church grew
out of the Puritan church and
was the established faith of all
New England states except
Rhode Island (which was always
fiercely independent).
 Many American ministers talked
about politics and denounced
British policies. They were prorevolution
 Despite the colonial sponsorship
of many official religions, America
was still very religiously tolerant
compared to most places on
earth at that time.
The Great Awakening- a series
of religious revivals that swept
through the colonies in the
1730s and 1740s.
A reaction to over a century of
loosened Puritanism and
Calvinism.
An attempt to “wake up”
Christians in America with zeal.
George Whitefield helped start
and then spread the movement
with fiery sermons in a new
evangelical style.
Sermons were very emotional
and theatrical. (Fire and
Brimstone!)
 Many “Ivy League” colleges like
Princeton, Brown, Rutgers, and
Dartmouth were founded as
“new light” centers of higher
learning during the Great
Awakening
 The Great Awakening broke
down sectional boundaries as
well as denominational lines and
helped many colonists feel united
that they were “Americans”
united by a common history and
shared experiences.
EDUCATION
 Traditionally, the English believed
that education was for the elite
leaders of society not common
citizens, and mainly for males.
 The colonies slowly drifted from
this norm and encompassed
more and more people into
education.
 The Congregational Church in
New England thought that all
children should know how to
read so that they could read the
Bible.
EDUCATION IN THE COLONIES
 Elementary education varied
widely in the colonies, but was
especially strong in New England,
although very present in the
middle and southern colonies as
well.
 9 local colleges were established
during the colonial era (see chart
on pg 98), primarily to train future
ministers.
 Many colonists sent their sons
back to England for college
education.
CULTURE & THE ARTS
• Most artists and writers had to
travel to Europe for education and
later for most of their work.
• Self taught Benjamin Franklin
published Poor Richard’s Almanac
from 1732 to 1758 which was full
of home spun advice emphasizing
thrift, industry, morality, and
common sense.
– Only the Bible was read by more
people in the colonies.
– Known as the “first Civilized
American”
THE COLONIAL PRESS
By 1776 the colonies had:
about 50 public libraries
40 colonial newspapers and
many more printing presses.
Most papers and essays bent
the truth a bit.
COLONIAL GOVERNMENT
By 1775:
 8 of the 13 colonies had
royal governors appointed by
the king.
 3 colonies (MD, PA, and DA)
were under proprietors who
chose the governor.
 2 colonies (CONN, and RI)
elected their own governors
and had self-governing
charters.
Almost every colony had a
bicameral (2 house) legislature.
The upper house was usually
appointed by:
 the crown in the royal colonies
 the proprietor in the proprietary
colonies
 the voters in the charter colonies
The lower house was chosen by
the people in the individual
colonies (although most colonies
required property ownership to
vote).
 Self-taxation through local
representation was a rare
privilege that Americans
cherished above most others.
 Although many were able, most
governors (appointed by the
King) were resented by the
colonists.
 Many colonial legislatures
withheld the governor’s salary
until he came to terms with what
they wanted.
 Local government varied widely
among the colonies.
COMPARED TO ELSEWHERE ON EARTH…
Americans enjoyed a high
standard of living
They had more political,
religious, and economic
opportunity
They almost certainly ate
better too.
COLONIAL COMPARISONS
Similarities between colonies:
• some degree of self-rule
• some religious toleration
• 3,000 miles away from
Great Britain
Differences:
• Economy
• patterns of settlement
• Traditions
• government
• Religion:
•
Ex. :Puritans in New England
did not celebrate Christmas
because they thought it was an
offensive reminder of “popery.”
– “Yuletide is
fooltide…”