Life in the Colonies
What were the three regions of the 13 Colonies?
New England, Middle, and Southern Colonies
Who usually made up the upper class in colonial society?
Wealthy landowners, merchants, and church leaders.
What was the system of trade between Africa, the Americas, and Europe called?
The Triangular Trade
What war left Britain in debt and led them to tax the colonies?
The French and Indian War
What phrase became the colonists’ rallying cry against British taxes?
"No taxation without representation!”
What was the main economy of the New England Colonies based on?
Fishing, shipbuilding, and trade
What was an indentured servant?
Someone who worked for a set time to pay off the cost of their passage to America.
Why did many colonists resent British trade laws?
They limited freedom to trade and forced colonists to buy and sell only with Britain.
What was the Stamp Act?
A British law that taxed printed materials like newspapers and legal papers.
What event marked the start of the American Revolution?
The battles of Lexington and Concord in 1775.
What type of farming was most common in the Southern Colonies?
Plantation farming (large farms using enslaved labor)
How did colonial family life differ from today?
Families were large, children worked at home or on farms, and roles were very traditional.
What were cash crops, and where were they mostly grown?
Crops grown for sale (like tobacco, rice, indigo) — mostly in the Southern Colonies.
What was the Boston Massacre?
A clash in 1770 where British soldiers killed five colonists during a protest.
Who were the Minutemen?
Colonial militia ready to fight at a moment’s notice.
What are three jobs that were useful in early colonial life?
Blacksmith, trapper, farmer, cooper, cook
What were town meetings, and why were they important?
Gatherings where colonists made local decisions — early examples of self-government.
What was the Middle Passage?
The brutal voyage that enslaved Africans took across the Atlantic to the Americas.
What did the Boston Tea Party protest?
The Tea Act — a law giving the British East India Company control over tea sales.
What were the Intolerable Acts?
Punishments for the Boston Tea Party — closed Boston Harbor and took away self-government.
What did apprentices do in colonial towns?
Learned a trade or craft by working for a skilled person
What was the role of women in the colonies?
They managed homes, raised children, and sometimes worked in family businesses or farms.
What were the navigation acts?
Laws passed by England to control colonial trade and ensure it benefited Britain.
What was the First Continental Congress?
A 1774 meeting where colonial leaders united to oppose British policies and organize boycotts.
Who wrote Common Sense, encouraging independence from Britain?
Thomas Paine