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Colonial Government in the Spanish Empire
The apparatus of colonial government in the Spanish Empire consisted of multiple levels, starting with the monarchy and Council of the Indies at the top and moving down to the viceroy, audiencias, mayors, and local councils. The system was...
Article
Colonial American Currency
Colonial American currency was a work in progress from the time of the earliest English settlements of the 1600s until the United States of America minted its own money in 1783. The monetary system was far from standardized, and trade within...
Image
Formal Attire in Colonial America
A drawing of a couple in traditional Colonial American formal attire. The woman wears a richly decorated brocade dress with floral designs, while the man is dressed in a suit of uncut velvet and holds a tricorne hat. From Historic Dress in...
Definition
Sugar Act
The Sugar Act of 1764, also known as the American Revenue Act, was legislation passed by the Parliament of Great Britain on 5 April 1764 to crack down on molasses smuggling in the American colonies and to raise revenue to pay for the colonies'...
Definition
Native Peoples of North America
The Native Peoples of North America (also known as American Indians, Native Americans, Indigenous Americans, and First Americans) are the original inhabitants of North America believed to have migrated into the region between 40,000-14,000...
Article
The Norse in America: Fact and Fiction
The idea that it was the Norse who discovered America first emerged in the late 18th century, long before there was any public awareness of the sagas on which such claims were based. In the course of the 19th century, evidence for a Norse...
Video
Understanding Money in Colonial America
Michael Goudket, the Adjutant General of the Order of the Ancient & Honorable Huntington Militia, explains currency used in 18th Century Colonial America. To better understand daily life and material culture in Colonial America, one must...
Article
Virginia Slave Laws and Development of Colonial American Slavery
Racialized chattel slavery developed in the English colonies of North America between 1640-1660 and was fully institutionalized by 1700. Although slavery was practiced in the New England and Middle colonies, and Massachusetts Bay Colony passed...
Video
The History of Colonial America
The video describes characteristics of the the three main groups of the 13 colonies: New England, Middle and Southern. Students will learn about geography, education, religion, economic systems, social patterns, and treatment and enslavement...
Interview
Interview: Living in Silverado: Secret Jews in the Silver Mining Towns of Colonial Mexico
Professor Emeritus David Gitlitz is one of the world’s leading experts on Jewish-Catholic interactions in Iberia and the Americas. While initially drawn to the literature of the Spanish Golden Age as a student at Oberlin and Harvard, the...