The Triangle Trade

New England has thin, rocky soil, so farms are small. But the sea is full of fish. You catch more fish than you can eat, so you dry and salt it to sell. Your boats hunt whales for whale oil. Your woods give lumber. You build ships. You have 7 ships. Your big port is Boston.

Rum sells well in many ports. Rum is made from molasses (a thick syrup left from making sugar). Molasses comes from the West Indies. Game rule: every rum you trade uses up 2 molasses. You are short of farm crops and of things made in shops. England made the trade rules: things made in shops had to come from England. You start with no molasses. Get some from the West Indies first. Other teams want your whale oil and your rum. You can also carry goods for teams with no ships, for a fee. Make the best trades you can.

Who did the work? Fishermen and sailors caught the fish and sailed the ships. Some enslaved people worked in the ports too. Enslaved people (people forced to work for no pay) made the molasses. Some New England ships took rum to Africa. They traded it for people who had been caught. Then they took them across the sea by force. That trip is the Middle Passage.

The Middle Colonies have rich farm land. Farms grow lots of wheat and corn. They grow much more than you can eat. You raise cattle too, and your woods give lumber. You trade with Native Americans for furs. Furs sell for a lot in England. Your big ports are Philadelphia and New York City. You have 2 ships.

All people need food, and you grow it. But wheat is heavy and cheap. You are short of things made in shops. England made the trade rules: things made in shops had to come from England. Sugar sells for a lot in England. Trade wheat for sugar in the West Indies. Then trade the sugar in England for things made in shops. Make the best trades you can.

Who did the work? Families worked the farms. So did servants and some enslaved people. On the sugar islands, enslaved people (people forced to work for no pay) grew the sugar. Your wheat and cattle fed them. They had been taken from Africa by force. Ships took them across the sea. That trip is the Middle Passage. Slavery was legal here too, in New York, New Jersey, and Pennsylvania.

The Southern Colonies grow tobacco. It is a cash crop (a crop grown to sell). You grow so much that England pays very little for it. You grow rice and indigo (a plant that makes blue dye). Pine trees give naval stores (tar used to build ships). You have fish, lumber, furs, and silk too. That is 8 kinds of goods! Your big port is Charleston. But you have no ships.

England made the trade rules. Your tobacco and indigo could be sold only to England. Ship builders want your naval stores. You are short of food and of things made in shops. First, get your goods on a ship. Pay a team with ships to carry them. Or trade for a ship of your own. Then make the best trades you can.

Who did the work? Enslaved African people (people forced to work for no pay). They planted and picked the crops. Many were taken from Africa by force. Ships took them across the sea. That trip is the Middle Passage. Many people died on it.

The West Indies are warm islands in the Caribbean Sea. Sugar cane grows well here. Sugar is worth a lot everywhere. Making sugar leaves a thick syrup called molasses. You have citrus fruit too, like limes and oranges. Your big port is Kingston, in Jamaica. You have no ships.

Everyone wants sugar. New England wants molasses to make rum. But your islands grow almost nothing but sugar. You are short of food and of things made in shops. England made the trade rules: your sugar could be sold only to England and its colonies. Pay a team with ships to carry your goods. Or trade for a ship. Use your sugar to get what you lack. Make the best trades you can.

Who did the work? Enslaved African people (people forced to work for no pay). They grew the sugar and boiled it. The work was hard and could kill. Most people on the islands were enslaved. They were taken from Africa by force. Ships took them across the sea. That trip is the Middle Passage.

You play England. England rules the colonies, so it is called the Mother Country. English workers make manufactured goods (things made in shops). They make guns, gunpowder, tools, clothing, furniture, and books. You have silver too. Your big port is London. You have 8 ships, the most in the game.

England made the trade rules. The colonies had to buy these goods from you. You are short of what colony farms, woods, and seas give. You must bring in a long list of colony goods. Try this. Trade your goods for colony crops. Carry goods for teams with no ships, and ask to be paid. Make the best trades you can.

Who did the work? In England, workers in shops and mills made the cloth, guns, and tools. English ships took cloth and guns to Africa. They traded them for African people who had been caught. Then the ships took the people across the sea by force. That trip is the Middle Passage. In the Americas, the people were sold and enslaved (forced to work for no pay). The ships came home with sugar and tobacco.