The American Journey Early Years © 2011

Chapter 4: Growth of the Thirteen Colonies

Chapter Overviews

Section 1: Life in the Colonies

Farming was the main economic activity in all of the colonies. Shipbuilding and fishing were the New England region’s important industries. New England’s coastal cities were centers of trade. In a triangular route linking three continents, American and European goods were shipped to West Africa and traded for enslaved Africans. Those enslaved Africans were sold in American ports.

In the Middle Colonies, the soil was more fertile and the climate milder than in New England. The economies of the Middle Colonies depended on the sale of cash crops, such as wheat and corn.

The Southern Colonies had very little industry. Here, the economies were based on cash crops of tobacco and rice. Enslaved Africans worked on the plantations in the South’s Tidewater region. Slavery played a role in the economic success of the Southern Colonies.

Section 2: Government, Religion, Culture

England viewed its North American colonies as an economic resource, and passed Navigation Acts to prevent colonists from trading with other countries. English colonists, however, brought with them a belief in limited and representative government and would come to resent these imposed restrictions. As they grew, the colonies established forms of self-government. They consisted of charter, proprietary, and royal. An American culture began to develop that valued education, religion, family life, scientific curiosity, and a free press.

Section 3: France and Britain Clash

Both Great Britain and France wanted control of lands west of the Appalachian Mountains. The rivalry between them grew tense in the 1740s. Although the French had many Native American allies, the Iroquois Confederacy finally sided with the British. The American colonists prepared to defend themselves against the French, but were not willing to approve the Albany Plan of Union and fight together against the French and their Native American allies.

Section 4: The French and Indian War

Though the French and Indian War raged through the early 1760s in North America, it was part of a larger, global struggle between the British and French for control of trade. Native Americans easily defeated British troops under General Edward Braddock. British Prime Minister William Pitt helped turn the tide to the colonists’ favor. He decided that Britain would pay for the war – no matter the cost.

The fall of Quebec and Montreal ended the French and Indian War. With the Treaty of Paris, France gave up Canada and other lands to Great Britain. The treaty also left the Native Americans without allies and trading partners. Pontiac, a prominent Ottawa chief, united Native American forces, but they were defeated in their fight against the British. To prevent more fighting, the British issued the Proclamation of 1763, calling for a halt to the settlers’ westward expansion.

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