In colonial America, the experiences of women and children varied widely, amid ethnic and social groups, and from colony to colony. They had fewer rights than women and children do today, yet they had many responsibilities and activities that contributed to their families and communities.

The starting time European women who came to the Southern colonies were indentured servants, arriving in the Jamestown colony in the early 1600s. Though the "platonic" European family was headed by a man who presided over his family and business while his wife just worked within the home, this model did not work well in the early Southern colonies. But surviving was difficult, and then all easily were needed to ensure that the colony could continue. Every bit a result, the social structure flattened a bit, with land-owning men and women doing the same work of farming and edifice settlements (alongside their servants and those they had enslaved, who were working on the same projects). Equally the Southern colonies became more than established, society reverted to the European model, and white women began focusing on running the household, and managing servants and those they had enslaved. This was not true in every colony, however. The people who founded the northern colonies, like the Puritans, adhered to strict religious rules, and brought their European gender roles into the new world from the very offset.

Regardless of the colony in which they lived, white women in colonial America had many responsibilities. They oversaw managing the household, including baking, sewing, educating the children, producing lather and candles, and more. In the 18th century, social classes began evolving, and a new "middling" grade arose. Sometimes women in that grade would assistance their husbands in their careers as tavern owners, tradesmen, or businessmen. Withal, white women all the same had few rights. They could not vote, and they lost all their belongings in marriage (though women had some belongings rights). Childbearing in colonial times was dangerous, and women and children frequently died during childbirth.

White children in colonial America also had many responsibilities. In well-nigh colonies, they were taught to read by their parents, ordinarily so they could study the Bible (the Christian holy book). Boys learned additional skills so they could go into business, farming, or trade, while girls learned household skills which varied depending on the family unit's social condition. For example, a girl from a higher form—a privileged socioeconomic background—would learn etiquette and manners, hosting guests, and dancing, while a girl from a lower grade—a resource-poor groundwork—would learn practical skills like soap-making. There was likewise time for play in middling and high-class families. Children played with board games, puzzles, and cards, and did activities like rolling hoops and playing an early on version of bowling. Overall, the main goal of parents in colonial America was to ready their children for machismo.

Women and Children in Colonial America

The freedoms and responsibilities afforded to white American women and children in the colonial era varied depending on their socioeconomic groundwork. Hither, a Dutch colonial family unit from a relatively privileged background is illustrated sitting around their tea tabular array in the New York colony of the 1700s.

colonialism

Noun

type of regime where a geographic area is ruled by a foreign power.

colony

Noun

people and land separated by distance or civilisation from the government that controls them.

aristocracy

Describing word

exclusive or the best.

ethnic group

Adjective

people sharing genetic characteristics, civilization, linguistic communication, faith or history.

etiquette

Noun

the rules indicating the proper and polite way to behave.

indentured servant

Substantive

person under contract to piece of work for another over a period of fourth dimension.

pious

Describing word

full of virtue and devotion.

privilege

Substantive

do good or special right.

settlement

Noun

community or village.

socioeconomic

Describing word

combination of social and economic factors.

socio-economic class

Noun

division in lodge based on income level and type of employment.