American History: A Survey (Brinkley), 13th Edition

Chapter 2: TRANSPLANTATIONS AND BORDERLANDS

Primary Sources

1
An expedition under Captain Christopher Newport began the Jamestown settlement in May 1607. In June, Captain Newport sailed for England, leaving behind 104 settlers. In September, only forty-six of them were still living. One of the survivors, George Percy, wrote an account of the terrible time at Jamestown.

George Percy

2
Having read George Percy's account of the terrible time at Jamestown, examine the excerpt from a letter from one John Pory, written from Virginia in 1619. What obvious changes had taken place between the times the two accounts were written? What caused these changes? In answering this question, reread the section in the text on Jamestown and Virginia, paying special attention to the incentives offered at various times by the company. How does the comparison and contrast of these two documents help to explain what was needed to succeed in Virginia? Do you feel that Pory's letter is an accurate description of what really existed in Virginia? Explain your answer.

John Pory

3
In 1679, a formal synod (church council) made up of the leaders of the Puritan oligarchy under Increase Mather met in Boston and, after examining the conditions of the colony, issued the report that historian Perry Miller describes here. What conditions gave rise to the synod's attack on the way the people in Massachusetts were living? Were these Puritans concerned only with religious failings, or was there something else behind their actions? What was happening to the Puritan oligarchy at this time?

Perry Miller

4
Below are links to the Fundamental Agreement for New Haven (1639) and the Fundamental Constitutions of Carolina (1669). Judging from the legal formalities and rhetoric in each, what can you discern about the concerns of the writers regarding colonial government? What powers are being granted—or not being granted—in these new colonies, and to whom? Do you notice any difference in emphases and language and, if so, what do these differences suggest about the two respective colonies?

http://avalon.law.yale.edu/17th_century/ct01.asp

http://avalon.law.yale.edu/17th_century/nc05.asp

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