Crime and Punishment in the American Colonies Essay

  • Length: 2 pages
  • Subject: American History
  • Type: Essay
  • Paper: #54587691
Download This Paper Download this Essay in word format (.docx)

Excerpt from Essay :

What crime existed in the colonies? How was this different or the same as in the lands from where colonists came?



Although the early colonists clearly brought with them vestiges of their previous culture and country, living in the New World produced new social and economic factors that gave rise to new worldviews and also new forms of crime. But initially, there was relatively little crime. For many early colonists, religious cohesion, the lack of diversity within their society, and above all a desire for survival meant that crimes such as murder and robbery were scarce, particularly in Puritan New England (p. 39). The most common crimes were so-called vice crimes, or violations of the very strict standards which governed colonial society. Gambling had been very popular in England and existed within the colonies, as did heavy drinking. But while this was tolerated in the Southern colonies, in the Northern and more religiously-based colonies, these crimes were regarded as moral abominations that must be stopped, as they were not in keeping with the true intention of the colony’s founding.

Another unusual form of crime could be considered political crimes, such as rebellions against the dominant order. Bacon’s Rebellion began as a result of what were regarded as pro-Indian...
...Many new settlers wished to encroach upon Indian land far faster than would be allowed by the Crown. Additionally, settler violence against the Native Americans and vice versa was common throughout the colonial period. Economic crimes were common as piracy on the high seas was a constant threat to commerce. And economic and social divisiveness, in combination with religious fervor, led to the so-called crimes of the Salem Witch Trials, in which a variety of members of the Massachusetts colony were accused of witchcraft (p.43).

How did the growth of the colonies affect crime?



When societies grow and become more diverse and more economically stratified, crime often increases. The American colonies were no different. Property thefts such as robberies and housebreakings in particular were on the rise, perhaps because certain individuals showed notably greater profits in their enterprises than other individuals, inspiring jealously and dissent between citizens of different means. There had also been an influx of immigration into many of the colonies, resulting in greater diversity. Some of the initial religious fervor that had begun some of the colonies had begun to dissipate, and there were also accounts of “Horse-Riders, Whores, and Thieves” involved in attacks in less savory areas of towns (p.62). Newspapers of the later colonial era contain accounts of more murders than earlier colonial documents. For the first time, effective policing was needed and in the absence of this as well as an absence of effective government…
Read Full Essay

Cite This Essay:

"Crime And Punishment In The American Colonies" (2018, February 06) Retrieved February 25, 2021, from
https://www.paperdue.com/essay/crime-and-punishment-in-the-american-colonies-essay-2169069

"Crime And Punishment In The American Colonies" 06 February 2018. Web.25 February. 2021. <
https://www.paperdue.com/essay/crime-and-punishment-in-the-american-colonies-essay-2169069>

"Crime And Punishment In The American Colonies", 06 February 2018, Accessed.25 February. 2021,
https://www.paperdue.com/essay/crime-and-punishment-in-the-american-colonies-essay-2169069

Related Documents:

  • American Government Politics

    • Words: 2631
    • Length: 10 Pages

    American Government Politics. Discussed is the fourth amendment and the current policies of searches and seizures. Four sources used. Footnotes. Fourth Amendment Americans hold very dear the Bill of Rights. Among the ten amendments that make up the Bill of Rights is the Fourth, one many refer to as the most ambiguous of the all the amendments. Search and seizure law is drawn from the Fourth and over the years the

  • Latin American History for the First Two

    • Words: 2979
    • Length: 8 Pages

    Latin American History For the first two generations of Latin America's radicals, liberals and democrats, the legacy of the colonial past was a terrible burden that their countries had to overcome in order to achieve progress and social and economic development. That legacy included absolutism, arbitrary rule, aristocracy, feudalism, slavery, oppression of the indigenous peoples, lack of public education and the overwhelming power of the Catholic Church, backed by the state.

  • American Criminal Justice Systems and Policies

    • Words: 3251
    • Length: 13 Pages

    History U.S. Criminal Justice Systems/Police It is undeniable that criminal justice and police activities are integral parts of every relatively peaceful nation in the world. Without the actions and standards set forth by the agencies that "protect and serve" many wrongs would go not only unpunished but possibly unnoticed as well. The basic purposes of policing in democratic societies are: 1. To prevent and investigate crimes; 2. To apprehend offenders; 3. To

  • Crime in America - The Racial and Class Implications

    • Words: 4614
    • Length: 14 Pages

    Race, Class & Crime The confluence of race, class and crime is a hot topic nowadays. This is especially true when discussing events or topics of various types. Very or fairly specific examples of this would include the recent shooting of Mike Brown in Ferguson, MO and the subsequent non-indictment of the officer who shot him despite the fact that Brown was not armed and the ongoing discussion about how paying

  • Extinction of the Native American Indians

    • Words: 4659
    • Length: 15 Pages

    Extinction of the Native American The area of the world that is now known as the United States of America used to belong to various tribes of people which are now known as Native Americans as opposed to their old name, Indians, which was a misnomer based on the erroneous idea that explorers from Europe did not know that such a large land mass existed and that by crossing the Atlantic

  • Privatization of American Prisons the

    • Words: 4789
    • Length: 17 Pages

    This gave the immediate need to contract the prison facilities. Literature review Extant literature has been dedicated to the topic of privatization of the rather publicly run correctional facilities in America. These literatures have been mixed and contain mixed views of proponent for privatization and its opponents alike. The literatures therefore have expressed favors of the system as well as critical of it. There also exists another category expressing pure criticism.