Information About Colonial Farm Life
Some 90% of colonial Americans lived in rural areas outside of towns and cities. The daily lives of every family member--men, women and children-- revolved around the work of the farm.
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Animals
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According to the PBS Show "Liberty!," a well-off American colonial farmer would have owned approximately six pigs, ten cattle, sixteen sheep, two horses and a team of oxen. (See References 1)
Crops
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Colonial farmers grew cash crops of corn, wheat and tobacco, says the Colonial Williamsburg website. They would also have grown fruits and vegetables such as apples, peaches, melons, potatoes, pumpkins, peas, beans and oats. (See References 2)
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Female Work
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The job of women and girls was to clean and maintain the inside of the home. They were also responsible for preparing food, smoking meat, milking cows, and growing food and herbs in the kitchen garden. Women's spinning, weaving and sewing provided fabric for clothing and household necessities.
Men's Work
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A man's duties on the colonial farm were the heavier labors of planting and harvesting crops, butchering livestock, and building structures and fences. The only tools used for farming, building or repairing were simple hand tools.
Income
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Forty percent of the population of colonial America were land owners who lived comfortably off their own property, possibly even owning slaves. A farm laborer who did not own land earned only 30 pounds per year.
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References
- Photo Credit Image by Flickr.com, courtesy of Keith Tyler
