Colonial America (1607-1763)

Triangle Trade routes

Click on the link below to see how the trading worked. What products were valuable and ultimately sold throughout Europe from slave labor?

http://www.nmm.ac.uk/freedom/viewTheme.cfm/theme/triangular

What a typical slave auction would look like. Notice the scars.

The fairy tale story of Pocohontas begging her father to spair John Smith's life when relations turned bad between the Jamestown colonists and local Pawhatan tribe.

Middle Passage conditions for slaves

What a colonists/Indian meeting might have looked like.

John Smith

"Croatoan"-the only known clue to the whereabouts of the Lost colonists of Roanoke

The Colonial Era in America history is the time period when England colonized and populated the east coast of the present-day United States. During this time period millions of English citizens will move to the American colonies looking to improve their life through economic advancement or/and religious freedom. The idea of the "American Dream" is created during this time period. Along with English citizens, millions of Africans will be brought to the American colonies as slaves to work on large plantations in the South. They would provide the labor source for cash crops such as tobacco, indigo, rice, and later cotton.

Not only were African slaves affected negatively during this time, but so were Native Americans (Indians). As more and more white men came to the colonies, tensions increased between Native Americans and English colonists. Because of the Old World diseases that the English brought, many native tribes were decimated early on and left the coastal region to find shelter and protection in the interiors of America. However, some warfaring tribes decided to fight for what was truly their land. Due to better technology and sheer numbers, no tribe succeeded in displacing the English colonists. By the mid 1700s most tribes knew the white men were here to stay and had to make some grave decisions.

Below you will find some links that will be of interest.

This is a hilarious spoof on the obstacles that the early settlers at Jamestown faced. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_mYw4NUXY7I

This is a trailer for a new movie called the Lost Colony. If anyone knows how to download please do and bring it in to class so we can watch it.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4XxNgGljaGE&feature=related

This is a pretty powerful short video about the trip slaves took to the New World known as Middle Passage. It uses actual photos of slave ships and slaves from the mid 1800s.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8WG-hX_n2Xs

Here is a short clip from the movie Amistad.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8nePOpkYwjY&feature=related

Age of Exploration

Significant European exploration and colonization between 1400 and 1800 will occur. During this period the "known" world will be revealed. This period known as the Age of Exploration will create long lasting changes across the world. Changes such as the exchange of new ideas and technology across the major oceans will transform areas dramatically. Crops and animals will be introduced to new areas as a result of exploration. Most important to note is the movement of millions of people (Europeans and Africans) to the Western Hemisphere. It is from this era that new political ideas will find their roots and grow into new nations. Ultimately, this time period is responsible for creating the modern world as we know it today.

By exploring the information and links below you will broaden your understanding of this unit.

You got to watch this. Can you rap knowledge like an O.G. (original gangsta:) on the Age of Exploration like this girl? Hopefully by the end of this unit you can.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s1NUlrfLwNU&feature=related

You can never go wrong with some additional background reading. This is the textbook-style history of exploration from wilkipedia. It also includes some good pictures, especially the two maps.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Age_of_Discovery

The link below is to the Mariner's (sailors) museum. Navigate through this site to get in depth biographies about famous explorers, a historical timeline of exploration, and related vocabulary of exploration.
http://www.mariner.org/educationalad/ageofex/

This is a very comprehensive resource about the Age of Exploration. Biographies, new technologies, history, etc. is all located on this site.

http://www.elizabethan-era.org.uk/the-age-of-exploration.htm

This website show the history of maps. From here you can see what early explorers were working with and how maps slowly progressed through the years.

http://academic.emporia.edu/aberjame/map/h_map/h_map.htm

This is an interesting video about the relationship between European explorers and the Ottoman Empire maps.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Xax5d4IKqrQ

Excellent video about Vasca De Gama. This is only the first part, it's 50 minutes long and broken into 3 parts. If you enjoy watching the first one then simply search for the others on YouTube and you will find the others.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jL2z2VCg5fw&feature=related