Life in the Colonies

Life on a Farm

9/10 people in Colonial America lived on a farm.

Families lived in one room home with a fireplace for food and warmth.

Chores included:

• cutting wood
• feeding animals
• clearing land
• tending crops
• building fences
• gathering eggs

Chores included:

• sewing
• making soap
• making candles
• cleaning
• caring for babies

Life in the Cities

In 1750, 1/20 people lived in cities

The heart of the city was the waterfront.

Beyond the docks was a marketplace with:

Untitled Slide

• shoemakers
• clockmakers
• silversmiths
• tailors
• wig makers

The cities were dirty places.

Animals ran loose in the streets and there were open sewers.

Garbage was disposed of outside, and there were flies and mosquitos everywhere.

Homes in the city were made of wood and thatch as they had been in Europe.

People used torches made of pine and burned grease in metal "betty lamps."

Fire was a constant threat. People kept fire buckets by their doors.

If there was a fire people would get their buckets and form a line from a pond or river to the fire.