Jamestown
The first permanent English settlement in America, founded in Virginia in 1607
John Smith
English leader who helped Jamestown survive and wrote about his experiences in Virginia.
Cash Crops
Crops grown mainly to be sold for profit, such as tobacco, indigo, and rice.
Pilgrims
Separatists who sailed to America on the Mayflower to establish a new religious community.
Plymouth
The colony founded by the Pilgrims in present-day Massachusetts.
Virginia Company
English joint-stock company that received a royal charter to establish colonies in North America.
Powhatan
Chief of the Powhatan tribe who sometimes helped and sometimes opposed the Jamestown settlers.
John Rolfe
English colonist who married Pocahontas and helped introduce tobacco as a cash crop in Virginia
Mayflower Compact
Agreement made by the Pilgrims to govern themselves and create laws.
New England Colonies
Plymouth, Massachusetts Bay, Connecticut, Rhode Island, and New Hampshire.
Massachusetts Bay Colony
A Puritan colony founded by John Winthrop in present-day Massachusetts.
John Winthrop
Puritan leader and first governor of Massachusetts Bay Colony who wrote A Model of Christian Charity
Roger Williams
Religious leader who believed in religious freedom and founded Rhode Island.
Ann Hutchinson
Puritan woman who questioned religious authority and was banished from Massachusetts.
William Penn
Quaker leader who founded Pennsylvania as a proprietary colony.
Non-Separatists and Separatists
Non-Separatists wanted to remain in the Church of England; Separatists believed it was too corrupt and left to form their own communities.
Protestants / Protestant Reformation (1500–1648)
Religious movement to reform the Catholic Church that spread Protestantism throughout Europe and its colonies.
Bacon's Rebellion (1676)
Colonial uprising in Virginia led by Nathaniel Bacon against the colonial government over issues including taxes and land.
King Philip's War (1675)
Conflict between New England colonists and Native American tribes, led by Metacom, also known as King Philip.
Triangular Trade Route
Trade network connecting Europe, Africa, and the Americas.
Enlightenment (1685–1815)
Intellectual movement emphasizing reason, science, individual rights, and human equality.
John Locke (1632–1704)
Philosopher who argued that people have natural rights, including life, liberty, and property, and that government gets its power from the consent of the people.
John Peter Zenger Trial (1735)
Important trial that helped establish ideas about freedom of the press and fair trials.
Stono Rebellion (1739)
Slave revolt in South Carolina in which enslaved Africans attempted to escape toward Florida.
Ohio River Valley
Region disputed by Britain and France because of its land, resources, and importance for trade and expansion.