Land of the Brave

Colonial Work

Colonial America - Land of the Brave

Colonial Work

The people who took the decision to move from their homeland to the uncertainties of life in the New World were looking for a better life in the colonies. The country had not been fully explored so people did not know what the natural resources and raw materials were available in the New World.

The one certainty was that America offered vast amounts of land. Land was a commodity in short supply in England. The system of enclosure (fencing in the land) meant there was limited land for the poor and working classes.

There were high levels of unemployment in England with little prospects of getting a job. Young, working class men and women turned towards America for a better life - even if they had to give five or seven years of their lives to pay for the journey by the system of Indentured servitude refer to .The second sons of wealthy families, without the prospect of an inheritance, were looking for opportunities to make money. For additional facts and info refer to .

Colonial Work - Land and the Headright System
The Headright System was introduced in 1691. Headrights were given by the London Virginia company that gave 50 acres of land to colonists who paid their own way to Virginia, or paid the way for someone else to go. The prospect of owning land, an impossible prospect in England, was a great incentive to travel to America.

Colonial Work and Jobs
There were many different types of colonial work and jobs. Climate and natural resources determined the colonial work and jobs required in the different regions of the first . A pattern of work, jobs and industries emerged in colonial America and trade and exports were basically divided as follows according to the different regions:

: Fish, timber, furs, ships and livestock
: Grain, flour, livestock, iron and furs
: Tobacco, rice, indigo (dye) furs and farm products

Colonial Trades
Trades in Colonial America included The Apothecary, The Architect, The Blacksmith, The Brewer, The Brick Maker, The Carpenter, The Caulker, The Chandler,  The Cooper (Barrel Maker), The Gunsmith, The Farmers, The Fur Traders, The Hatter, The Iron Makers, The Joiner, The Milliner, The Overseer, The Publican (Taverns), The Printer, The Sawmill Workers, The Shipbuilders, The Shoemaker (Bootmaker, Cobbler), The Tanner, The Trappers, The Warehouse workers, The Whalers and the Wheelwright.

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Updated 2018-01-01

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