Why did the population grow so rapidly in the eighteenth century colonies?
In this section we capture a snapshot of the British Atlantic colonies around the turn of the 18th century. In 1700 Jamestown was 93 years old, Charleston 37 years old, and Philadelphia only 19 years old. There were two Jerseys but only one Carolina, and Georgia wouldn't be settled until 33 years later. Note that all the readings in this section, except the travel journal, were written to inform a European audience to promote emigration, provide status reports, or, in one case, to accuse the governor of abuse of power. What overall view do they give of the colonies at this time?
• What factors fostered or hindered the growth of the British Atlantic colonies (that later became the United States of America) from 1690 to 1763? • How did the European colonists respond to the growing diversity among them—by religion, ethnicity, economic status, and country of origin? • How did the colonies’ growth affect Native Americans and enslaved Africans? • How were the inhabitants’ concepts of liberty and rights affected by the colonies’ growth? • List the power relationships that influenced the colonies in this period, e.g., between the colonies and England, the colonies and the French and Spanish on their borders, the settlers and the Native Americans, the clergy and their congregants, the southern planters and their servants and slaves, etc. How did the totality of these power relationships affect the colonies’ growth and self-perception? Massachusetts: 4Connecticut: 6New York: 4Pennsylvania: 7Virginia: 8Carolina:10TOTAL39 pages NOTE ON THE SCOPE OF THIS TOOLBOX: In American Beginnings: 1492-1690, the first toolbox in the Toolbox Library, we study all the peoples who settled North America—Native Americans, Norse, Spanish, Portuguese, French, English, Dutch, Swedish, and Russians. In this toolbox, Becoming American, we narrow our focus to the British Atlantic colonies from 1690-1763, especially those that became the United States of America. Listing the colonies as of 1690 reveals how fluid were the boundaries and political dynamics of the British Atlantic colonies. In that year, the colonies that would become the United States of America 86 years later were:
One final note on the names "England" and "Britain." In 1707 England and Scotland united to form the Kingdom of Great Britain, so we will use "England" when referring to pre-1707 texts and events, and "Britain" for texts and events from 1707 forward. |