Summary
From the first European explorations of the Americas to the coming of age of American cities in the 18th century, this volume vividly portrays the realities of daily life for those who came to the New World in search of a better life and settled a vast continent.
The book provides unparalleled coverage of the economy, politics, culture, society, art, and other elements that defined colonial life. Brief sketches and extended essays on a wide range of topics are used as appropriate to place quantitative data into perspective.
Topics covered include:
- The harsh weather extremes that tested the endurance of the earliest European settlers
- The impact of the Europeans' arrival on Native American populations and cultures
- Colonization and regional settlement patterns, including the first permanent English settlement in America founded at Jamestown in 1607
- The Mayflower Compact of 1607 and the establishment of a legal basis for a civil society
- The arrival of African Americans in Anglo-America
- Witchcraft in the 17th century, including the witchcraft craze in Salem Village
- Prominent and representative Americans of the period, such as Pocahontas, John Smith, Edward Teach (Blackbeard), and Benjamin Franklin
- Education and its value to Anglo-Americans, including the founding of Harvard in 1636
- Publishing and literature, including the colonies' first imprint in Cambridge, Massachusetts in early 1639, the publication of "Poor Richard's Almanac," and Boston's recognition as the cradle of colonial journalism
- The coming of age of American cities—Boston, New York, Philadelphia, Charles Town, and Newport—by the 1750s.
A chronology of colonial American history through 1763 documents significant developments as well as events related to social customs, law, and the economy, such as the first American woman denied the right to vote (Martha Brent of Maryland in 1647), and the earliest antismoking legislation passed by Massachusetts Bay in 1646 (which forbade smoking in town as a fire hazard). To enhance readers' appreciation of this period, the text includes more than 100 illustrations and maps.