Ch 5 PPT
Colonial Society on the Eve of
Revolution
Population Growth
• Huge population growth caused shift in
balance of power between colonies and
England (mother country)
• Population: 1700 = 300,000, but by 1775 =
2.5 million
• 1775 Average age = 16
• Only 4 major cities: Philadelphia, New
York, Boston, and Charleston
Philadelphia (largest in the
1750’s)
Urban Population Growth
1650 - 1775
Ethnic Groups
Other Races
• New societies created out of diverse ethnic groups:
English, Africans, Scots-Irish, Germans, French.
• Scots-Irish didn’t like British government.
• Out of 56 signers of Declaration of Independence 18 = non-English and 8 weren’t born in the
colonies.
• Which non-English group was the largest?
Ethnic & Racial Composition of
American People: 1790
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British
African
German
Scottish
Scots Irish
Dutch
Irish
French
Swedes, Jews, Swiss
49%
19%
7%
7%
5%
3%
3%
.4%
.3%
Scots-Irish
• Not really Irish, but Scottish Lowlanders
• Were Presbyterians (hated by Catholics)
• Early 1700’s – tens of thousands came to
America.
• Most went to Pennsylvania - settled in
frontier areas.
• Also spread to back country of Maryland
and parts of Virginia and Carolinas
Government Attempts to Control Trade
• Map Pg 92: What are 2 products the colonies
produced and at what location?
• 1651 Navigation Acts: passed to guarantee
England alone would profit from trade with
colonies
• English government tried to inhibit colonial
trade to French West Indies by passing 1733
Molasses Act
• Colonists ignored it/smuggled (triangular trade)
Molasses Act 1733
• British law imposed tax on molasses,
sugar, rum imported from non-British
foreign colonies (French W. Indies) into N.
American colonies.
• Aimed at creating a monopoly of American
sugar market
• Smuggling occurred
Colonial Trade (Pg 93)
• Triangular Trade: Rum traded to Gold
Coast of Africa in exchange for African
slaves. Slaves traded to West Indies for
Molasses. Molasses taken back to New
England and made into rum. (rum taken
to Coast of Africa, etc.)
• Other items traded: food, forest products
(timber/lumber), tobacco, indigo, furs,
meat, grains.
Mercantilism
• AKA: English Trade System
• Goal - Mother country wants to:
• Be self-sufficient
• Expand trade to increase gold reserves to
become rich
• To limit foreign imports and to encourage a
favorable balance of trade
• Policy in which colonies existed for the
benefit of the mother country, exchanging
raw materials for manufactured goods
Mercantilism – How did it work?
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Export raw materials from America
Make finished product in England
Make colonists buy products only from England
Export more products from England than England
imports
• Enumerated goods: Goods that England needed, but
didn’t have the natural resources to produce: Sugar,
Tobacco, cotton, indigo, rice.
Too Many Products
• Colonies produced too many products for
England so they started selling to other
countries
• English govt “turned a blind eye” to
colonies trading outside of England =
Salutary neglect: Didn’t enforce
Navigation Acts
But after French & Indian War
• French and Indian War is also known as:
.
• Changed economic policy….
• From Salutary Neglect to strict
enforcement of Navigation Acts1660 and
1663
– All products must be sold through England,
no direct sales to other countries
Getting Around
• 1700’s: roads built to connect major cities
• Roads poor (dirt roads) - transportation
slow
• First “Holiday Inns” were called taverns:
sprang up along the main travel routes.
• Taverns = information exchanged, rumors
spread, public opinions discussed,
agitation for revolution stirred, all classes
were accepted.
• For amusement – pool tables, bowling,
gambling
TMWK CH 5
• 1. chart Pg 95: What sect of protestants
had the greatest # of followers in 1775 and
where were they located?
• 2. Which colonies were mostly Anglican?
• 3. Which colonies had no tax supported
churches in 1775?
1775 Denominations
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Congregational Church – Puritans, Congregationalists
Anglicans - Church of England
Presbyterians- Scots Irish
German churches- Lutherans
Dutch Reformed
Quakers - Society of Friends
First Great Awakening: 1730s & 1740s
• Religious revivals in the English colonies spreading
evangelistic fervor. Challenged the control of
traditional clerics over their congregations.
• Pastor Jonathan Edwards: salvation isn’t given by
doing good, but by the grace of God.
• George Whitefield: Gifted preacher – stirred
emotions of the audience.
• “Old Light” preachers: opposed the emotionalism of
the revivalists
• “New Light” preachers: New type of ministers upset
the Orthodox clergy. Had intensely emotional
sermons in order to revitalize American religion.
First Great Awakening Cont.
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Challenged patterns of traditional religion
Individual can choose their religion
1st genuine united movement in the colonies
Helped nurture seeds of independence as people
felt united by a common history and shared
experiences.
Results of Great Awakening
• Undermined prestige of the learned clergy in the
colonies
• Congregationalists and Presbyterians split:
many became Baptists and other sects who
were more accepting of emotion in religion.
• Led to founding of Princeton, Brown, Dartmouth,
and Rutgers colleges – “new light” centers.
• Encouraged a wave of missionary work among
Native Americans and Black slaves.
Schools and Colleges
• Education: mainly for boys - most zealously
promoted in New England colonies
• New England - Education for religious reasons:
Reading the Bible, learn doctrine, preparing men
for ministry
• Classical languages: Latin and Greek
• Middle Colonies had some tax-supported
schools
Today’s Ivy League Schools
• 1636 Harvard: Cambridge, Mass.
Congregational
• 1693 College of William and Mary: VA –
Anglican
• 1701 Yale: Connecticut - Congregational
• 1746 Princeton: NJ – Presbyterian
• 1751 University of Pennsylvania: PA –
nonsectarian
• 1754 Columbia: NY – Anglican
• 1764 Brown: RI – Baptist
• 1766 Rutgers: NJ – Dutch Reformed
• 1769 Dartmouth: NH – Congregational
Deism
• Lord Edward Herbert: founder of Deism
• God set universe in motion and left it to natural law
without intervening again
• Deists believed in God, but rejected organized
religion
• Most famous Deist was Benjamin Franklin
• Morality could be achieved by following reason
rather than teachings of the church
Ben Franklin:
“First Civilized American”
1754 Political Cartoon
Franklin’s Political Cartoon
Impacted History
• Urged colonies to join
together to support
Albany Plan of Union
during French and Indian
War
• 1754 cartoon published
in Pennsylvania Gazette
showed disunity of the
colonies
• Later used as a symbol
of colonial freedom
during the Revolution
Ben Franklin – “First Civilized
American”
Ben Franklin–“First Civilized American”
• Apprenticed as a printer
• Lived in Philadelphia (London-2 years)
• Started Univ. of Pennsylvania: 1st American
college not controlled by a denomination
• Established 1st privately supported lending
library in Philadelphia
• Improved the post office - became 1st
Postmaster General
• Organized 1st fire dept
• Reformed the police dept
Ben Franklin – Inventor/Scientist
• Invented bifocals, Franklin Stove,
Glass Harmonica, Lightning rod
• Discovered electricity
• Built 1st electric battery
Founding Father and “First Civilized
American”
• Signed Declaration of Independence,
1783 Treaty of Paris, U.S. Constitution
• Published Pennsylvania Gazette
• Wrote “The Autobiography of Ben
Franklin” and “Poor Richard’s Almanac”:
has many pithy sayings - “Honesty is the
best policy”
Pioneer Presses
• John Peter Zenger – newspaper printer
• Jail for 9 months for printing article that was
critical of Royal Gov. of NY.
• Charged with seditious libel.
• Zenger argued he had printed the truth. Jury
found him innocent.
• Important case for freedom of press - helped
establish the doctrine that true statements about
public officials couldn’t be prosecuted as libel.
• Encouraged editors to be more critical of public
officials.
Politics of 1775
• 8 colonies: had royal governors appointed by king.
1) Two-house legislator: Upper house appointed
by the crown in the royal colonies. 2) Lower house:
elected by property owners.
• 3 colonies: proprietary – proprietors chose
governors (MD, PA, DE) Two-house legislature:
voted for in the proprietary colonies
• 2 Self governing colonies - elected their own
governors (CT, RI)
• Had religious or property qualifications to vote
• Taxes: voted on for necessary expenses of colonial
govts.
• 1775: Colonies not yet a true democracy
Structure of Colonial Society
• Gentry Class
– South = Plantation Owners: wealthy, educated
– North = Lawyers (had a lot of power), Officials,
Clergymen (most honored profession), Merchants
• Middle Class
– Yeomen Farmers: small, family owned farms
– Physicians (least honored and not highly trained)
– Tradesmen/Artisan: blacksmith, tinsmith, printer
– Merchants: shop owner
• Poor Class
– Indentured servants, free laborers, lesser tradesmen, poor
farmers
• Slaves: lowest class