4.2 Life in Cities

Before we learn what life was like in the cities, let's review what life was like on a farm in the 1700s.

4.2 Life in Cities​

In 1750, about one out of every 20 colonists lived in a city. Compared to the peaceful farm life, cities were exciting places.

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The heart of the colonial city was the waterfront. There, ships brought news from England as well as eagerly awaited items, such as paint, carpets, furniture, and books.

​Just beyond the docks, a marketplace bustled with fishers selling their catch and farmers peddling fresh eggs, milk, and cheese.

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Close by were taverns, where food and drink were served and people could gather to exchange gossip and news from other colonies.

​The nearby streets were lined with shops. 

Sparks flew from the blacksmith's block as he hammered iron into tools, while shoemakers, clockmakers, silversmiths, tailors, and other craftspeople turned out goods based on the latest designs from England.
There were also barbers to cut colonists' hair and wigmakers to make it look long again.

​Cities were often noisy, smelly places. Church bells rang out several times a day, while carts clattered loudly over streets paved with round cobblestones where animals ran loose.
During hot weather, clouds of flies and mosquitoes swarmed about, and the air was filled with the stench of rotting garbage and open sewers. But the colonists were used to these sights and smells.

​City homes were close together on winding streets. Most were built of wood with thatched roofs, like the houses the colonists had left behind in Europe. Windows were small because glass was expensive.

​For lighting, colonists used torches made of pine that burned brightly when they were wedged between hearthstones in the fireplace. Colonists also burned grease in metal containers called “betty lamps” and made candles scented with bayberries.

​With torches and candles lighting homes, fire was a constant danger. To counter the threat of fires, colonists kept fire buckets hanging by their front doors so that when a fire broke out, the whole town would grab their buckets and form a double line from the fire to a river, pond, or well. They passed the buckets full of water from hand to hand up one line to the fire before being passed back down the opposite line to be refilled.