Southern Colonies
Colonial Times
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The southern colonies include Maryland, Virginia, North Carolina, South Carolina and Georgia. The soil was good for growing and growing seasons were longer than in any other region. The southern colonies economy was based primarily on farming. The land was flat making it easier to plant crops. In Virginia and Maryland the main cash crop was tobacco. In South Carolina and Georgia the main cash crops were indigo and rice. The first slaves were purchased in Jamestown in 1619. Plantation owners needed workers and thus began the slave trade.
Daily life in colonial America was extremely harsh for the first settlers. They were in a new country and did not have friends or relatives to help them in this unknown territory. As the American colonies grew large cities began to grow as well. These cities became centers of trade for the surrounding rural areas. People worked as farmers, merchants, and as tradesmen. Children living in colonial cities have access to schools and education to a higher degree than those living on farms. Churches were well attended and often served as a meeting place for the locals to get together and discuss the news of the day. The wealthy often wore large powdered wigs in an attempt to emulate the latest fashions that were popular in England. Rural farmers socialized in taverns and at dances and festivals.
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