Colonial life in America. The story of the American colonists tells of the men, women, and children who left behind the Old World of Europe for a new life in North America. It describes the everyday life of the settlers in the communities they developed. It also tells of the meeting of cultures, as Europeans and Indians came into contact with each other. The British American colonial period began in the late 1500's with English attempts to settle Newfoundland and Roanoke Island, off the coast of what is now North Carolina. It ended with the start of the Revolutionary War in America in 1775.
Many of the colonists came to North America from England, Scotland, Wales, and Ireland. But the New World attracted settlers from France, Germany, the Netherlands, Sweden, and other European countries as well.
The majority of settlers came to the colonies for economic opportunity or to avoid political and religious unrest at home. However, not all colonists arrived voluntarily. The slave trade brought large numbers of people from Africa against their will. Some orphans were sent from England to America under labor contracts over which they had no control. Some English convicts were transported to the colonies to become servants.
When the Europeans arrived in North America, the continent was already home to many groups of Native Americans with many different cultures. The Indians were originally helpful to the colonists, and trade developed between the two groups. This trade changed the society of both the Indians and the settlers. The Indians strongly resisted the settlers' attempts to claim more and more Indian land. From time to time, fighting broke out between the colonists and the Indians. Eventually, the colonists pushed most of the Indians to the west.
Among the European colonial powers, the English arrived late in the Americas. By the time England colonized the New World, Spain and Portugal had already staked their claims there. Spain's colonial empire, established during the 1500's, stretched from South America to California. It also included Cuba, several other islands in the Caribbean Sea, and Florida. Portugal controlled what is now Brazil. In eastern North America, the English, French, Dutch, and Swedes competed for land and riches. For most of the colonial period, France claimed Canada and the Mississippi Valley. By the end of the period, the British controlled nearly all of North America from the Atlantic Ocean to the Mississippi River. They also held several Caribbean islands.
The Spanish and French in North America were interested chiefly in sending furs, gold, and other riches back to Europe. They also wanted to convert the Indians to Roman Catholicism. The early French and Spanish settlements served as outposts for soldiers and traders and as missions run by priests. The English colonies, on the other hand, were settled by people from many walks of life who wanted to set up permanent homes.
The English colonists built farms that grew crops which were sold overseas. They built schools and churches and founded thriving port towns. By the mid-1700's, the colonists had a general standard of living equal to the wealthiest European nations. Also by then, the colonists had developed strong forms of self-government.
