Slavery in the United States Colonies

Slavery in the Colonies

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"Need" for Slavery in the Colonies

Americans have equal rights today. That makes it hard to imagine slavery being real! Believe it or not, it was real for many years in America. So, how did slavery get started in the first place? Why did some colonists think slavery was "needed?"

Open Ended

Why do you think that slavery was "needed" in the colonies?

Settlements in the New World were all about farming. Farms and plantations were set up all over. Plantations were large areas of land where crops were grown. These crops were called cash crops. Cash crops are crops that are grown to sell for money. Plantation owners wanted to grow as many crops as they could. The more crops they grew, the more they could sell. Settlers knew they could make lots of money if they could grow lots of crops!

Multiple Select

Check which boxes have words we have talked about before.

• Cash crops

• Slavery

• Plantations

• Triangular Trade Route

The trip to the New World cost a lot. Most early colonists had to be wealthy to pay for the trip. These rich colonists hadn't been farmers in Europe. So, they wanted to find people to work the fields for them in the New World.

At first, the colonists tried to enslave Native Americans. The Native Americans did not like it one bit! They ran away often because they knew the land well. Many that didn't run away died from diseases they caught from the colonists. Using Native Americans to work the fields didn't work out very well.

Multiple Choice

Who did the colonists try to use as slaves first?

• British

• Spanish

• Texans

• Native Americans

Next, the colonists tried to use poor Europeans. These people needed help getting to the New World. They didn't have enough money for the trip. Wealthy colonists offered to help them by offering a deal. The poor Europeans would work for free in the New World for the wealthy colonist for a few years. Poor people who agreed to this were called indentured servants.

At first, indentured servants were excited about life in the New World. Sadly, things in the New World weren't always so great. Many indentured servants were not treated well. The work was hard. Eventually, people stopped wanting to be indentured servants.

Multiple Choice

Choose the correct definition for the term indentured servant.

• Someone who worked for someone for free.

• Someone who worked for someone under force.

• Someone who agreed to work for someone in return for passage to the New World.

• Someone who agreed to work for someone in return for passage from the New World.

Colonists became willing to do anything to get workers for their land. So, they started paying for slaves from Africa. In 1619, a Dutch ship captain kidnapped a group of Africans. The Africans were brought to Jamestown and sold. This was the first group of slaves sold in the colonies. The Africans didn't run away like Native Americans. Africans had nowhere to go in the New World. They didn't know anything about the land.

Open Ended

Why did the Africans not run away?

After 1619, thousands of Africans became slaves in the colonies. Colonists wanted to make lots of money but didn't want to do the work themselves. So, they thought they "needed" slaves. To need something means you have to have it for a certain reason. Did the colonists need slaves to stay alive? No. Did colonists need slaves to make money? No. Did colonists need slaves to pay for food? No. Did colonists need slaves to make lots of money without having to do the work themselves? Yes.

Fast Fact: The first African slaves were purchased in 1442. The first African slaves were brought to the New World in 1619.

Today, America is a free country. However, it has not always been that way. There were slaves in America for hundreds of years. It all started with European settlers. First, they used Native Americans as slaves. That didn't last long. Next, they tried indentured servants. Again, that didn't work out. Finally, they began enslaving Africans. Slavery lasted over two hundred years. It didn't end until the Civil War period.

Multiple Choice

What settlers brought slavery to the New World?

• European

• Asian

• Antartica