Science and Technology in Colonial America

Science and technology are central to history of the United States, and this is true of the Colonial period as well. Although considered by Europeans as a backwater, the people living in the American colonies had advanced notions of agriculture, surveying, architecture, and other technologies. In areas of natural philosophy—what we call science—such figures as Benjamin Franklin were admired and respected in the scientific capitals of Europe. This book covers all aspects of how science and technology impacted the everyday life of Americans of all classes and cultures.

Science and Technology in Everyday Life in Colonial America covers a wide range of topics that will interest students of American history and the history of science and technology: * Domestic technology—how colonial women devised new strategies for day-to-day survival * Agricultural—how Native Americans and African slaves influenced the development of a American system of agriculture * War—how the frequent battles during the colonial period changed how industry made consumer goods This volume includes myriad examples of the impact science and technology had on the lives of individual who lived in the New World.

William E. Burns has taught at the University of Pennsylvania, the University of Maryland, and Mary Washington College. His earlier books include An Age of Wonders: Prodigies in Later Stuart Politics and Culture (2002) and Witch Hunts in Europe and America: An Encyclopedia (Greenwood, 2003).