in what ways did the dutch and german immigrants contribute to the success of the middle colonies?

Question

 In what ways did the dutch and German immigrants  contribute to the success of the middle colonies?

Answer 1

There were many ways in which German and Dutch settlers contributed to the success of the middle colonies during the 17th and 18th centuries. One way was through the establishment of trade shops and other places of manufacturing throughout the colonies of New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Delaware, and Maryland. Many German and Dutch settlers were skilled artisans in metal works, glass making, and ceramics, but found more opportunity in the 'New World' where labor was not controlled by centuries-old and tradition-laden guilds.

 

Another way was through indentured servitude. Although this method of labor fell out of favor in the middle and New England colonies and was replaced by slavery in the southern colonies by the mid-18th century, it was a popular method for poorer and less skilled individuals in Europe to trade five or ten years of their labor for a trip to the colonies, room and board, and an opportunity to start a new life. Indentured servants came from across Europe, but many were German and Dutch, and found them working in the homes, plantations, farms, and factories of some of our nation's founding families.

 

A final important way German and Dutch settlers contributed to the growth of the middle colonies was through agriculture and westward expansion. German and Dutch settlers often arrived in the colonies as family units as opposed to job seeking individuals. Land in Europe was prized as a sign of wealth, status, and socio-economic prestige; something unavailable to the middle and lower classes. The vast lands of the American frontier offered opportunity for social mobility. Arriving in the 'New World' as family, they came with a substantial amount of consolidated capital, which allowed them to purchase land and supplies for settlement at a premium. Many German and Dutch farming communities formed throughout the western frontier of Maryland, Pennsylvania, and New York. This colonial era of immigration from central Europe is also when the so called "Pennsylvania Dutch" came to be and a religious sect from Northern German called 'Anabaptists' settled the land of southern Pennsylvania. We know them today as the Amish.