chapter 7Short Responses

1. After 1790, agricultural changes such as replacing the sickle with the scythe required men to work in the field more then the women. The Women mostly did the household work. Few farmer possed tools, labor and food. So, neighbors met together and trade these tools and food. The womemn traded herbs, butter, eggs, material for spinning wheel and looms.


The population of the Woodland Indian decreased dramatically due to wars between the white colonists and mixed-blooded indians, decrease in food supply, a decrease in fur trade, and europeans diseases. By 1790 much of indian lands were ceded to the Americans. The Indians had to face not only individual colonists but the U.S. Army. They only had one victory where 630 soldiers died. In 1794 President Washington sent a thrid army which defeated the Indians at Fallen Timbers. Also the Treaty of Grenville forced the Indian to give up 2/3 of Ohio and southeastern Indiana. The indians also had conflicts with other indian who were mixed blood. For the most part, these didn't speak the native language anymore and wanted their people to adopt american ways. Murder and revenge increased between the two groups. The few settlers that the indians were able to defeat killed or scared off many of the animals. This destroyed their hunting grounds and decreased their food supply. The woodlands indians depended alot on Europeans fur trade, but due to competion with the settlers and other indians, fur trading was becoming hard. European diseases attacked so many native americans because they were vey sedentary, which made them vulnerable to diseases. In the end, due all of these factors the population of the woodland indians depleted.



3. To easterns, the life in the Backcountry seemed all backwards and were mostly offended by it. they saw no difference between backcountry men and the indians. The easterns saw both of them as savages. The backcountry was filled with poverty, lice, filth and drunken men. Of all the things, the biggest offens the easterns felt was the fact that women worked the fields in the Backcountry. While the women did the field work, the men went on long hunts to find animal skin for trading. Many whites in the back country blended the indian ways with the american ways. For example, Daniel Boone braided his hair, dressed indian legging and went on long hunts like many native Americans. During the 19th century every american was drinking but the fronteirsmen drank the most. They were very drunk and violent. The frontiers men got into serious fights where they tore apart the opponents body parts. In all, life in the backcountry is to find food, get drunk and getting into violent fights.



4. The industrial Revolution creates a demand for cotton. If planters could mass produce cotton then their profits would skyrocket. The issue was that long-staple cotton only grew on the Sea Islands off Georgia and South Carolina and short-staple cotton had very sticky seeds which had to be removed by hand. Short - staple cotton was a very time taking and back-breaking job. In one day only one pound of cotton could be cleaned. When Eli Whitney created the cotton "gin" 50 pounds of short-staple cotton could be cleaned. This invention made cotton an american cash crop. As the demand of cotton increased the demand for slaves also increased. The chesapeake planters who could not grow cotton changed to mixed agriculture. To finance this transition they sold their slaves to cotton frontier planters.



5. There was a division of labor in the Chesapeake while there was the task system in the lower south. In the Chesapeake the males slaves did the hard work which required alot of upper body strenght. The male slaves did the plowing, mowing, sowing, ditiching and carting. these were usually done by the artisan slaves in the lower south. Slave women in the lower south worked as domestic servants to the planter's house. In the Chesapeake female slaves did farm work which required little skill. The women slaves did the hoeing, weeding, spreading manure, and cleaning stables. In the lowers south slaves were organized in a task system. In the morning, each slave was given a task and the slave could work at his own pace. When the task was completed the slave could cultivate his own land and sell the crops for profit. Slavery in the lower south was quite different from slavery in the Chesapeake because in the lower South the slaves had a little freedom.



6.Baltimore, Charleston, Boston, New York and Philadelphia are the five seaport cities that played a key role in the international commerce of the United States. These five cities handle imports from Europe and exports from the United States. The seaports were facing a period of economic collapse due to wars, British ban on reexport trade, Jefferson's ban of importation and the war of 1812. But from 1815 the seaports thrived and increased in wealth. The increase in wealth increased the facilities of Docking and warehousing, created insurance and banking companies and bookkeepers were replaced by accountants. With the prosperity of seaport cities the status of artisans was also changing. Artisans in the seaport were very respected. Artisans worked just enough to support their family. Most of the male workforce in the seaport cities were artisans but as maritime economy grew they were being replaced by wage workers. Wage workders worked for less money and were semiskilled. As artisans were being replaced by wage labor, the status of artisan was decreasing. Very few artisan were able to support their family without the wife or the children working.



7. After the declaration of Independence the patriachal republic created by the Founding Fathers slowly disappeared and a democracy formed. There was decline in authority and an increase in equality and importance to individual ideas. The first place where the Patriarchal Authority was declining in households. Alexis de Tocqueville, a French visitor says," ...As soon as the young American approaches manhood, the ties of filial obedience are relaxed day by day; master of his thought, he is soon the master of his conduct..." Childer were being given the freedom of choice which they didn't have under the patriachal republic. After a certain age the boys were let go. they had to find their own way in life. Under the patriarchal republic the oldest son recieved the family farm but after the revolutionary war the sons grew up knowing that they won't recieve any land. Before the Revolutionary war, the husbands for young women were choosen by the father and when married the women were given a great amount of money or property. After the war, the women were able to choose their own husbands because the father was only able to give a small dowry. Marriages were based on affection instead of property.

8. The First amendment of the Constitution states the seperation of chruch and state and also, freedom of religion. Due to this amendment each state now had to support its own chruch and different democratic sects have developed. The number of established chruchs were starting to decrease because the states could not support the chruch. Without any strong established chruches, different democratic sects such as Methodists, Baptists, disciples of Christ and mormonism. After the revolutionary war, the american's view of religion changed. At this time, americans believed that religion was in your heart not in your mind. The clergy no longer needed a college degree. The new preachers used storytelling instead of theological lectures which attracted more people. Of the different sects, Baptists and Methodists were the successfull at preaching. Baptist was based on localism and congregational democracy. Methodist was based on simplicity. Methodist preachers spoke plainly and carried hymnbook with simple tunes that anyone could sing.

9. The French Revolution and the creation of the black Republic of Haiti sprouted ideas of liberty, equality and freedom in the mind of the slaves. Slaves were starting to wonder about their natural rights and some even revolted to get these natural rights. One of the revolts were led by a slave blacksmith named Gabriel. His plan was to march into Richmond with a 1,000 slave soldiers in three columns. The out side column would start fires in the ware house district to prevent the militia from entering the city. The center column seize the treasury, the arsenal and Governor James Monroe. In the end, the plan didn't work.

10. As the economy increased, the demand for slaves increased. The middle class men had more jobs. The wealthier became even more wealthier and it created more work for women and children. City merchant provided farmer with raw material which the women and children on the farms created into shoes, furniture, cloth and other handmade goods.