Bartering for a Living

Lesson Three

Background Information

During  Colonial times, individuals of all social classes within the colonies increased their demands for consumer goods and services.  Improved ways of conducting business, a high degree of specialization of labor, and the beginnings of industry allowed Great Britain to supply the colonists with a large portion of these goods. 

While most colonists engaged in agricultural work, there were a small amount of people who were involved in non-agricultural trades.  Most Colonial Americans were much more self-sufficient than people are today.  They raised their own food and wove their own cloth for clothes.  They built their own homes and barns, their own tools and furniture, and even made their own medicines.  Let's travel back in time to see what the colonists did for a living.

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