United States History Student Edition

Two Carolinas Carolina did not develop as planned. Eventually, it split into northern and southern Carolina. Farmers from inland Virginia settled northern Carolina. They grew tobacco and sold timber and tar. Northern Carolina lacked a good harbor, so farmers transported their goods to Virginia’s ports to get them to market. Settlers in southern Carolina took advantage of fertile land and the harbor at Charles Town (later Charleston). Settlements there spread, and trade in deerskin, lumber, and beef thrived. Two crops came to dominate Carolina agriculture. In the 1680s, planters discovered that rice grew well in the wet, coastal lowlands. Because growing rice required much labor, the demand for enslaved labor rose. The other important crop was indigo. A young English woman named Eliza Lucas originated the planting of this crop in the 1740s in Carolina. Indigo, a flowering plant, is used to dye cloth blue. Enslaved Africans, who were familiar with growing indigo, were instrumental to the crop’s success. The process of extracting the color from the leaves of the plant and creating the dye was labor intensive, so indigo farming led planters to increase their labor force by acquiring more enslaved Africans. Over the years, Carolina’s settlers and the British government became increasingly dissatisfied with the proprietors’ rule. In 1719, southern Carolina was taken from the proprietors and made a royal colony.

Bacon’s Rebellion challenged the colonial government of Virginia. This woodcut shows Bacon’s army setting fire to Jamestown.

army also marched to Jamestown and burned the town to the ground. Bacon seemed on the verge of taking over the colony when he suddenly became ill and died. With his death, the rebellion faded. England recalled Berkeley and sent troops to restore order. Bacon’s Rebellion showed that government could not ignore the demands of its people. 7 CHECK FOR UNDERSTANDING Comparing and Contrasting What were the differences between indentured servants and enslaved people? In what ways were they similar? The Carolinas and Georgia GUIDING QUESTION What factors contributed to the growth of the Southern Colonies? In 1663, King Charles II created a proprietary colony south of Virginia called Carolina—Latin for “Charles’s land.” The king gave the colony to eight nobles, who set up estates and sold or rented land to settlers brought from England. John Locke, an English philosopher, wrote a constitution for the colony. Locke’s constitution covered topics such as land divisions and social rank. extract to pull or draw out of

In 1729, Carolina was divided into two royal colonies—North Carolina and South Carolina.

» Indigo was an important crop in Carolina.

(t)North Wind Picture Archives/Alamy Stock Photo; (b)Lamnoi Manas/Shutterstock

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The English Colonies Are Settled and Grow