Chapter 2
headright system
- The idea that land should be given out to people based off of the availability of labor to farm it.
For each “head” (person) entering a colony, authorities issued a “right” to take any 50 acres of
unoccupied land. The headright holder had to mark their land’s boundaries.
Quitrent
- An annual tax that was about a shilling per 50 acres. People resented this tax and they were
difficult to collect.
indentured servitude
- Indentured servants worked for someone for a predetermined amount of time in return for
transportation to America from England. They were subject to strict rules from their master and
got no compensation. They lacked incentive to work hard and had zero political or civil rights,
meaning their masters could physically abuse them legally. Once their years of labor were
completed they became free.
“peculiar institution”
- A concept that had an economic, social, and physical effect on American way of life. The thought
that black slavery was a fact of life, and that black people were made to be enslaved. The Quakers
tried to go against this principle, but even some of them owned slaves.
Covenant
- An agreement that ensured the upright behavior of all who took up residence in a Puritan
town/colony
- Family covenant: children must honor their parents. Families were like hierarchies.
town meeting
- A purely democratic form of government common in the colonies, and the most prevalent form of
local government in New England. In general, the town's voting population would meet once a
year to elect officers, levy taxes, and pass laws.
Half-Way Covenant
- A system that provided limited membership to New England churches to anyone who was not
known to be a sinner and was willing to accept the rules of the church’s covenant. People with
this halfway membership could be baptized along with their children. They could not, however,
receive communion or have a voice in the church. After a few years of this system being in place,
halfway members were given the right to vote.
Dominion of New England
- Massachusetts and all other colonies north of Pennsylvania became part of the Dominion of New
England in 1684. It was led by Edmund Andros. The Dominion of New England fell apart in
1688 after the Glorious Revolution in England because people in Boston seized Andros and put
him in jail. Massachusetts was reinstated as a royal colony two years later.
Edmund Andros
- The leader of the Dominion of New England, he arrived in Boston in 1686 with orders from
England to make the northern colonies act more like colonies. He abolished popular assemblies ,
he changed the land-grant system, and he enforced religious toleration. He was jailed after the
Glorious Revolution in England.
Bacon’s Rebellion
- Nathaniel Bacon led a rebellion in 1676 against natives who had been attacking local plantations,
and against governor William Berkeley, whom he and the people despised. An army of 500 was
formed and they began going and attacking natives. In September, Bacon and his men burned
Jamestown to the ground. Bacon eventually contracted dysentery and died.
headright system
- The idea that land should be given out to people based off of the availability of labor to farm it.
For each “head” (person) entering a colony, authorities issued a “right” to take any 50 acres of
unoccupied land. The headright holder had to mark their land’s boundaries.
Quitrent
- An annual tax that was about a shilling per 50 acres. People resented this tax and they were
difficult to collect.
indentured servitude
- Indentured servants worked for someone for a predetermined amount of time in return for
transportation to America from England. They were subject to strict rules from their master and
got no compensation. They lacked incentive to work hard and had zero political or civil rights,
meaning their masters could physically abuse them legally. Once their years of labor were
completed they became free.
“peculiar institution”
- A concept that had an economic, social, and physical effect on American way of life. The thought
that black slavery was a fact of life, and that black people were made to be enslaved. The Quakers
tried to go against this principle, but even some of them owned slaves.
Covenant
- An agreement that ensured the upright behavior of all who took up residence in a Puritan
town/colony
- Family covenant: children must honor their parents. Families were like hierarchies.
town meeting
- A purely democratic form of government common in the colonies, and the most prevalent form of
local government in New England. In general, the town's voting population would meet once a
year to elect officers, levy taxes, and pass laws.
Half-Way Covenant
- A system that provided limited membership to New England churches to anyone who was not
known to be a sinner and was willing to accept the rules of the church’s covenant. People with
this halfway membership could be baptized along with their children. They could not, however,
receive communion or have a voice in the church. After a few years of this system being in place,
halfway members were given the right to vote.
Dominion of New England
- Massachusetts and all other colonies north of Pennsylvania became part of the Dominion of New
England in 1684. It was led by Edmund Andros. The Dominion of New England fell apart in
1688 after the Glorious Revolution in England because people in Boston seized Andros and put
him in jail. Massachusetts was reinstated as a royal colony two years later.
Edmund Andros
- The leader of the Dominion of New England, he arrived in Boston in 1686 with orders from
England to make the northern colonies act more like colonies. He abolished popular assemblies ,
he changed the land-grant system, and he enforced religious toleration. He was jailed after the
Glorious Revolution in England.
Bacon’s Rebellion
- Nathaniel Bacon led a rebellion in 1676 against natives who had been attacking local plantations,
and against governor William Berkeley, whom he and the people despised. An army of 500 was
formed and they began going and attacking natives. In September, Bacon and his men burned
Jamestown to the ground. Bacon eventually contracted dysentery and died.
