Themes in American History

Boston started the riots that swept colonial America

Boston and New York were two of the most prominant cities during colonial rule. They were both port cities and they were both business oriented. Both Boston and NYC had a large number of merchants and traders as well as local citizens and skilled laborers. When England imposed the Intolerable Acts, both cities fought against them. However, when they were repealed New York City stopped most of its resistance while Boston carried on with its rioting. Chudacoff and Homberger seem to disagree on which city played the most important role in the revolution. I would have to agree with Chudacoff that Boston made the greatest difference. Boston was the center of change. It fought gainst the crown to protect the interest of its citizens. In New York city, the merchants had more control, so when the taxes were reppealed, they went right back to business. Boston remained active and eventually became one of the leading causes for revolution against the crown

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Slavery existed both in New York and in Delaware. Both of these places turned to Africa to get hold of slaves but Delaware was pushed out by the more aggressive Europeans. Delaware eventually turned to Indian slaves, but did not have much success due to diseases and migration that left the land free of Indians. African slavery was not big until Peter Stuyvesant took over. By reclaiming the Delaware Bay, African slaves were brought across the Atlantic to work on the new colony, Delaware.  By 1776, the Revolutionary War disrupted the economy, so slaves were not as important anymore, and made slave trading and slave owning unprofitable. By 1810, 78 percent of Delaware’s blacks were free while only 63 percent was free in New York. In Delaware, slaves sold out of the states were automatically declared freed, and slave ships were barred from its ports. The Revolutionary War had an impact on slavery on both of these colonies. There was a huge decrease in the amount of slaves after the war. Unlike the other northern states such as New York, the freeing of black slaves have been done voluntarily and not with legal requirements (www.slavenorth.com).

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