Colonial life was harsh,making it
difficultforthefirstgenerationsofEuropean
immigrants to sustain stable families.
Because of the many fevers and diseases,a
new settler had a 50% chance of dying the
first year after arriving in the NewWorld
(Urdang,2001).
Children born in the early part of the
1600s could expect one or both parents to
diebeforethechildhadreachedadulthood.
In addition,one quarter of all children in
ColonialAmerica died before their first
birthday.One-half of all marriages ended
before the seventh anniversary due to a
spouse’s death (Mintz,2001).This opened
the door for many kinds of family
arrangements.Serial marriages—a series
of multiple marriages taking place after
the death or divorce of a spouse—could
include stepchildren from two or more
unions.Because extended families were
virtually nonexistent,orphans often
became foster children or wards of
another family.In Colonial times,it was
rare for several generations of one family
to live under the same roof because of the
short life expectancy of the new settlers.
TheearliestEuropeanimmigrantswere
predominantlymale—withmanybeing
indenturedservants.Menoutnumbered
women7to1inthoseearlyyears.Because
theperiodof indenturewasusually3-7
years,mentendedtobemucholderthan
womenwhentheymarried (Urdang,2001).
Thiscreatedfiercecompetitionamong
malestofindeligiblebrides.
Because men had a shorter lifespan
and married at an older age,women
frequently were widowed at a younger age
(Urdang,2001).This afforded women
some unusual opportunities to head
households and acquire property in their
own names,at a time when women
themselves were frequently viewed as
property with few rights.A Perilous Time.InColonialAmerica,
childhoodwasviewedasaperiloustime,a
timeof frequentillnessesand,alltoooften,
deathinthefirstyearof life(Calvert,1992).
Parentsstruggledtomaintainloose
affectionsfortheirchildrenbecauseso
manydiedininfancyorearlychildhoodThe Changing Face of theAmerican Family: Early HistorySIDEBAR2.2
EARLYAMERICANCHILDREARINGPRACTICESEarly America featured some very interesting
childrearing practices. Children were frequently
swaddledsotightlytheycouldbehungonahook
over the fireplace to keep them warm in the cold,
drafty home of early America. Children were
unswaddledandtheirdiaperschangedtwiceaday.
Diaperswerefrequentlydriedbythefireandplaced
back on the infant—unwashed! Infants were
bathed once a week. In an attempt to keep them
warm,thewaterwassometimesheatedsohotthat
occasionally the child was scalded. Crawling was
viewed as barbaric, so wooden contraptions were
created to suspend the pre-walking child in an
upright position—often for hours on end.A very
different picture of childrearing than existed later
inAmericanhistory.
Source:Calvert 1992.