Colonial Society and Culture: 17th and 18th centuries

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Colonial Society and Culture 17th and 18th
centuries

• American Society Transformed
• Diversity Racial, Ethnic, Religious
• Population Growth and Demographics
• Gender Family Life
• Colonial cultures

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Diversity in Colonies

• The American Indian population shrank
  dramatically as tribes were decimated by
  epidemics of European disease, and by the
  warfare, displacement, and forced expulsion that
  accompanied colonial expansion.
• The European population soared, an increase fed
  both by waves of immigration from Europe and the
  relatively high birthrate and life expectancy in
  the thriving colonies. The New England colonies,
  unlike those in the Chesapeake Bay region, began
  with a fairly even ratio of men to women,
  facilitating marriages and new families.
• Africans arrived in the colonies later and in
  smaller numbers than the Europeansfirst as
  indentured servants and later as slaves. A small
  population of free blacks also existed in New
  England.

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Diversity in Colonies

• Religious diversity
• Colonial religious dissent thrived even in the
  presence of the most stringent regulation.
• Roger Williams of Rhode Island and Thomas Hooker
  of Connecticut founded their own settlements in
  reaction to the Puritan theocracy.
• In Virginia, membership in the Anglican Church
  was required by law. However, during the 1700s,
  intellectuals like Thomas Jefferson and James
  Madison lobbied for reform and succeeded in
  passing the Statute for Religious Freedom in
  1786, guaranteeing the free exercise of religion.
• Middle Colonies were noted for religious
  pluralism from their founding. By 1750 these
  colonies were home to more churches per capita
  than any other region in colonial America.
  Church as major public ritual.

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Racial Diversity

• New Immigration in 1700s
• Involuntary immigration
• African cultures
• Page 90 shows diverse cultures and regions that
  slaves were taken from
• Various religions, traditions, language
• American-born people of African descent soon
  numerically dominated the enslaved population
• Why were female slaves considered more valuable
  than male slaves?

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Ethnic Diversity

• Immigrants from Europe
• 585,000 moved to North America during 1700s
• Corresponded with colonists
• Most came prepared for conditions
• German immigrants - Protestants (85,000)
• Largest group 150,000
• Came from Ireland and Scotland

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Population

• 1700
• 250,000 European and African Americans
• 1775
• 2,500,000 European and African Americans
• Mostly natural increase
• Rate of growth unparalleled in history (at that
  time)
• Young age of childbearing
• Healthier lives, living longer
• On average, women bore 5-10 children

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Demographics

• Most concentrated period of immigration was
  1760-1775
• New immigrants forced to live in cities or the
  edges of settlements other land was taken by
  that time
• Development of cities and urban life
• Migration patterns and concentration of
  slaveholding in South
• Half of colonial population south of New England
  had non-English origins by 1775

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Ethnic Diversity

• European immigrants
• Factors that influenced whether or not immigrants
  assimilated easily
• Patterns of settlement
• Size of the group
• Ties to common culture
• Maintained ethnic and religious identities

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Ethnic Diversity

• European immigrants
• Assimilation why? How did assimilation and/or
  maintaining own culture/heritage affect
  immigrants lives in America?

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Ethnic Diversity

• Immigration and threat of immigrants
• Anglo-American elites feel threatened
• Why?
• How do these elites respond?
• Why would Anglo-American elites foster animosity
  between and among different ethnic groups?

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Economy

• Rising population
• Demand for goods and services
• Development of small-scale colonial manufacturing
  and a complex network of internal trade
• Roads, bridges, mills and stores
• Lively coastal trade more than half of ships in
  1760s leaving Boston sailed to other mainland
  colonies
• Iron production surpassed Englands
• Heavily dependent on foreign trade
• Economy grew significantly during 1700s

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Class

• Wealth and poverty
• Arrival of luxury items
• Property-owning Americans got rich
• New leisure class in America for first time
• Wealth was unevenly distributed
• Social stratification
• New immigrants didnt have same chance for
  economic advancement as in early years

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Genteel Culture

• Extremes of wealth and poverty visible in cities
• Native-born colonial elites sought to distinguish
  themselves from ordinary folk in variety of ways
• refinement of America
• Dressed fashionably
• Traveling in horse-drawn carriages
• Lavish parties
• Built large houses with rooms designed for
  dancing, card playing and drinking tea
• Came up with proper manners and ways of living
• Leisure time

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Genteel Culture

• Sought to distinguish themselves
• First leisure class
• Leisure was new concept
• Concerts, theater, horse races, billiards, other
  games
• Education and connection to Europe important
• Consumer goods rise of consumerism by 1700s
• empire of goods
• Retail establishments
• Small towns had stores
• Set aside time to go shopping
• How this affected life

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Politics

• By 1763, there were three types of colonies
  self-governing, proprietary, and royal (king
  queen controlled).
• Proprietary colonies were established through
  large land grants to individuals.
• The charters of self-governing colonies were
  granted to individual political or religious
  leaders on behalf of colonists already
  established in those areas.
• Representative government
• Upper house - often the wealthy elite were
  appointed by the governor or proprietor.
• Lower house administered local governance and was
  elected by, and composed of, male property
  owners.

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Gender

• What role did gender play in colonial life?
• Review of discussion of gender prior to late
  1600s
• First, look at Witchcraft Trials has become
  associated with women in our national imagination

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Salem in 1692

• Problems in Salem
• Economy not good Difficult war with Indians
• Effect of Puritan beliefs and the strict moral
  code
• Desperation
• Young women do not have many options and lack any
  real power in this society
• Families tension between generations
• Time of change, disorder, instability, insecurity
• Feeling powerless and insecure need to blame
  someone/something

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What to do?

• Start accusing people of witchcraft
• Not as far-fetched a solution as it now sounds
• Societal beliefs much different then
• Belief that the Devil would possess women (and
  some men) and make them witches
• Religious leaders worried about the moral decay
  of the community
• Want to reinforce particular values and get a
  tighter control over the community

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Salem Witchcraft Trials

• January 20
• Nine-year-old Elizabeth Parris and
  eleven-year-old Abigail Williams began to exhibit
  strange behavior, such as blasphemous screaming,
  convulsive seizures, trance-like states and
  mysterious spells. Within a short time, several
  other Salem girls began to demonstrate similar
  behavior.
• Mid-February
• Unable to determine any physical cause for the
  symptoms and dreadful behavior, physicians
  concluded that the girls were under the influence
  of Satan.
• Late February
• Pressured to identify the source of their
  affliction, the girls named three women,
  including Tituba, Parris' Carib Indian slave, as
  witches. On February 29, warrants were issued for
  the arrests of Tituba, Sarah Good and Sarah
  Osborne.

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Timeline (cont)

• March 1
• Magistrates John Hathorne and Jonathan Corwin
  examined Tituba, Sarah Good, and Sarah Osborne in
  the meeting house in Salem Village. Tituba
  confessed to practicing witchcraft.
• Over the next weeks, other townspeople came
  forward and testified that they, too, had been
  harmed by or had seen strange apparitions of some
  of the community members. As the witch hunt
  continued, accusations were made against many
  different people.
• Frequently denounced were women whose behavior or
  economic circumstances were somehow disturbing to
  the social order and conventions of the time.
  Some of the accused had previous records of
  criminal activity, including witchcraft, but
  others were faithful churchgoers and people of
  high standing in the community.
• March
• Martha Corey, Rebecca Nurse, Elizabeth Proctor,
  Sarah Cloyce, Abigail Hobbs, Bridget Bishop,
  Giles Corey, and Mary Warren are accused of
  witchcraft. Abigail Hobbs confessed

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Timeline (cont)

• April May More people were accused and examined
• May 10
• George Jacobs, Sr. and his granddaughter Margaret
  were examined before Hathorne and Corwin.
  Margaret confessed and testified that her
  grandfather and George Burroughs were both
  witches.
• Margaret Jacobs"... They told me if I would not
  confess I should be put down into the dungeon and
  would be hanged, but if I would confess I should
  save my life."

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Timeline (cont)

• May 27
• These magistrates based their judgments and
  evaluations on various kinds of intangible
  evidence, including direct confessions,
  supernatural attributes (such as "witchmarks"),
  and reactions of the afflicted girls. Spectral
  evidence, based on the assumption that the Devil
  could assume the "specter" of an innocent person,
  was relied upon despite its controversial nature.
• June 2
• Initial session of the Court of Oyer and
  Terminer. Bridget Bishop was the first to be
  pronounced guilty of witchcraft and condemned to
  death.
• Early June
• Soon after Bridget Bishop's trial, Nathaniel
  Saltonstall resigned from the court, dissatisfied
  with its proceedings.

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Timeline (cont)

• June 10
• Bridget Bishop was hanged in Salem, the first
  official execution of the Salem witch trials.
• Bridget Bishop"I am no witch. I am innocent. I
  know nothing of it."
• Following her death, accusations of witchcraft
  escalated, but the trials were not unopposed.
  Several townspeople signed petitions on behalf of
  accused people they believed to be innocent.

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Salem Witchcraft Trials

• July 19
• Rebecca Nurse, Susannah Martin, Elizabeth Howe,
  Sarah Good, and Sarah Wildes were executed.
• Elizabeth Howe"If it was the last moment I was
  to live, God knows I am innocent..."
• August 2-6
• George Jacobs, Sr., Martha Carrier, George
  Burroughs, John and Elizabeth Proctor, and John
  Willard were tried for witchcraft and condemned.
• Martha Carrier"...I am wronged. It is a shameful
  thing that you should mind these folks that are
  out of their wits."
• August 19
• George Jacobs, Sr., Martha Carrier, George
  Burroughs, John Proctor, and John Willard were
  hanged on Gallows Hill.
• George Jacobs"Because I am falsely accused. I
  never did it."

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Salem Witchcraft Trials

• September 19
• Giles Corey was pressed to death for refusing a
  trial.
• September 21
• Dorcas Hoar was the first of those pleading
  innocent to confess. Her execution was delayed.
• September 22
• Martha Corey, Margaret Scott, Mary Easty, Alice
  Parker, Ann Pudeator, Wilmott Redd, Samuel
  Wardwell, and Mary Parker were hanged.

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Salem Witchcraft Trials

• October 8
• After 20 people had been executed in the Salem
  witch hunt, Thomas Brattle wrote a letter
  criticizing the witchcraft trials. This letter
  had great impact on Governor Phips, who ordered
  that reliance on spectral and intangible evidence
  no longer be allowed in trials.
• October 29
• Governor Phips dissolved the Court of Oyer and
  Terminer.
• November 25
• The General Court of the colony created the
  Superior Court to try the remaining witchcraft
  cases which took place in May, 1693. This time no
  one was convicted.
• Mary Easty"...if it be possible no more innocent
  blood be shed......I am clear of this sin."

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Salem Witchcraft Trials

• Who was accused? And why?
• Majority were women
• Important that men were accused and executed as
  well for a long time, this was ignored,
  especially by gender/women historians
• Interplay of gender, class and race as well as
  economic, political and religious factors
• Instability, insecurity, change, turmoil, fear
• Quest for power, order and control
• Instill fear in community and divide families and
  friends

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Why Salem?

• In this time period, most people believed in
  witches
• The belief that witches existed was not unique or
  shocking at the time
• However, New England was the only place that
  experienced an onslaught of trials and
  accusations of witchcraft
• New England family structure
• Long standing families
• Family feuds
• Daily interactions of close-knit neighbors and
  families

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Witchcraft Trials

• Fascination continues to this day
• Intriguing event from a historical standpoint
• Especially intriguing are the groups involved and
  some of the social issues that it raised
• Gender why were most accusers young women?
  What were these young women really suffering
  from? Why did they accuse those they did?
• Power What role did the concept of power play?

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Who do you accuse?

• Who do you decide to accuse?
• Why?
• What are your reasons?
• What do you hope to gain?

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You are accused

• What do you do?
• Confess?
• Plead Not Guilty?
• Refuse to comment?
• Flee?

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Witchcraft Trials End

• Lasted a relatively short time in 1692
• 19 people executed
• Dramatic impact on nations development and
  dramatic legacy even today
• Modern witch hunts??
• McCarthy (1950s)
• Arrest of and Anger toward Arab-Americans after
  9/11
• Other examples?
• Why did the hunt for witches end?
• Societal and cultural factors
• Gender, race, class, politics, economics,
  religion . . . .
• All key factors in this and every event in history

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Family Life

• Roles of men and women
• Many ideas relate to new wealth
• Leisure time
• High tea
• Parties and status
• Family as social status
• European-American families had relatively stable
  structures average size of household was 5.7
  people
• Agriculture still dominant family business

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Family Life for African Americans

• African American families
• Slavery and family life
• 95 of colonial African Americans were enslaved
• Lived with European American family
• Did establish strong family ties, relationships
  and traditions (South Carolina, where majority of
  population was of African descent, strong
  traditions from African culture kept alive)
• Extended family particularly important for slaves
  why?

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African American families

• Tried to establish strong family ties
• Men and women who considered themselves married
  often lived on different plantations or houses
• Children usually resided with mother and saw
  fathers only on Sundays
• Started to work for themselves as well
  acquiring small areas of property, selling
  surplus produce
• Few options for escaping
• Some tried to return home or ran off to frontier
  regions to join Indians or establish independent
  communities
• Slave owners realized importance of family and
  tried to keep families together because it kept
  slaves from running away

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African American Resistance

• Escape was difficult
• Few slaves rebelled collectively
• Resisted enslavement in other ways
• Refused to work on Sundays without compensation
• Extended kin groups protested punishment of
  relatives and tried to live near one another
• Most slave families carved out a small measure of
  autonomy
• Working and spiritual lives
• Control own time after completion of tasks
• Planted own gardens, hunted or fished to
  supplement diet
• Some acquired property and goods to serve as
  legacy for children

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Colonial Culture

• Series of pictures of life in colonies during
  1700s
• Food, household appliances, everyday culture and
  living habits and traditions are essential to
  study of history
• Colonial culture greatly influenced by the
  various exchanges among cultures and by the
  population growth and by the environment and
  settlement patterns of American colonies

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Billiards GameBilliards appeared as a popular
diversion during the eighteenth century, but
their use was still largely limited to taverns in
the cities and larger market towns. This
eighteenth-century sketch suggests that devotees
of the game did not enjoy much public esteem.
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Colonial FireplaceMuch of the interaction in a
colonial family occurred around the fireplace.
This hearth scene was photographed at the Joseph
Gilpin house (built in 1695) in Delaware County,
Pennsylvania
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Restored Colonial KitchenAlthough the majority
of American colonists enjoyed a healthy and ample
diet, only a relatively small number were
fortunate enough to enjoy their meals in a
setting as well furnished as this kitchen (York,
Maine)
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Colonial Hall and Parlor HouseThis 1936
photograph shows the Peter Lutkins home, a
hall-and-parlor house built in 1760 on a 22-acre
property near Paramus, New Jersey. This
one-and-a-half-story building was typical of the
homes occupied by most American colonists south
of New England. It was exceptionally small by
modern standards, measuring just 16.75 feet by
15.75 feet in its original dimensions (a lean-to
kitchen was later added) so the total living
space on the ground floor was just 263.8 square
feet.
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Colonial HomesteadA colonial farmer could
increase the value of his homestead by
constructing outbuildings for specialized
functions, such as a smokehouse, storage sheds, a
detached kitchen, or a root cellar. An example of
how a prosperous homeowner might situate such
improvements around his home can be seen in the
this 1958 photo of the Joseph Gilpin house, which
dates from 1695, at Chadd's Ford in Delaware
County, Pennsylvania.
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Colonial TombstoneLife expectancy was high in
colonial America, despite the medical
profession's lack of knowledge about many
elemental aspects of health care, such as how
germs spread infection. People who escaped
childhood diseases like whooping cough or measles
usually lived as long as Joseph Renalls, who
survived into his sixty-ninth year.
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Half-Cape Cod House

• The Rowell House, a "half-Cape Cod structure,"
  was built at Wellfeet in Barnstable County,
  Massachusetts in 1731. This type of cottage
  conformed to the general floor plan typical of a
  hall-and-parlor house. New Englanders designed
  the Cape Cod to allow for expansion lengthways.
  The side addition shown here was not part of the
  original building.

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High TeaA rising standard of living allowed
American colonists to enjoy more sociable
amenities during the 18th century. Tea was
considered a luxury in the late 17th century, but
its use had become widespread among the middle
class by the 1760s. High teas, like the one
portrayed here, were starting to become a
diversion among the wealthiest circles of
Americans by that time.
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Old Tennent Presbyterian Church, New Jersey

• This photo of the Old Tennent Presbyterian Church
  (built in 1751) in Monmouth County, New Jersey,
  shows the typical interior layout of a colonial
  church. The ground level consisted of enclosed
  boxes, where member families sat as a group
  during services. The boxes were rented, with
  higher fees charged for the more prestigious
  places near the front. Single persons,
  nonmembers, and nonwhites were seated in the
  balcony, a portion of which is visible on the
  center-right side.

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Poor Richard's Almanac      Date 1733

• Shown here is the title page for the 1733 issue
  of Benjamin Franklin's Poor Richard's Almanac,
  the most successful almanac published in the
  colonies. The cover of this issue cites scholarly
  sources that estimate the earth to have been
  created no more than 7,241 years before 1733.

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Colonial Life and Culture

• Would you have enjoyed living in the 1700s?
• Why or why not?

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Settlement and Colonial Life

• Charts from Study Guide
• Small group activities 1 person should record
  and hand it in for group
• 3 Charts
• Chart A from p. 102 Population changes and
  effects
• Chart D from p. 105 American Families
• Chart C from p. 79 Slavery in American Colonies

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Videos

• Settling Middle Colonies Diversifying American
  colonies
• Middle Passage and African American life in the
  colonies

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Next week July 10th

• Quiz 1 study sheet
• Events leading up to Revolution
• American Revolution

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Questions for Discussion

• Discuss the factors responsible for the dramatic
  population increase in the American colonies in
  the eighteenth century and explain the economic
  impact of this increase.
• Identify and discuss the characteristics of the
  major non-English immigrants to the American
  colonies in the 18th century. What impact did
  each of these groups have on the emerging
  colonial society?

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Questions for Discussion

• Examine the impact of the following on the
  economic development of New England between 1720
  and 1750
• Nature of New England landscape
• Leadership in colonial shipping
• Impact of imperial wars

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Questions for Discussion

• Discuss the impact of tobacco cultivation on the
  social and economic development of the Chesapeake
  during the early 18th century.
• Discuss the impact of the Enlightenment on
  colonial America.

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Questions for Discussion

• Distinguish between the culture of upper-class
  colonists and the culture of ordinary colonists
  in 18th century colonial America and discuss the
  value conflict that emerged between the two.

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Questions for Discussion

• Discuss the importance of church attendance and
  of civic activities in the lives of 18th century
  colonial Americans. What values were expressed
  through involvement in public rituals?
• Examine the religious crisis that swept through
  the colonies from the late 1730s through the
  1760s. What factors gave rise to the Great
  Awakening? What were its consequences?