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How did immigration to the middle colonies influence their economic role as a crossroads?

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Immigration to the Middle Colonies fostered economic diversity and established them as a crossroads between northern and southern colonies. The region's tolerance attracted diverse European settlers, including Germans who farmed staple grains, thus supporting local and neighboring colonies. Many immigrants arrived as indentured servants, contributing to small-scale farming. The influx of skilled immigrants helped develop commercial hubs in port cities like Philadelphia and New York, enhancing their role in supporting colonial economic activities.

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The Middle Colonies attracted the most diverse group of European colonists and immigrants. This partly explains why it developed a more diverse economy that served as a crossroads between the other colonies to its north and south. The relative tolerance of the Middle Colonies largely accounts for this diversity. For instance, anyone of any Christian faith was automatically granted citizenship in New York.

Many of these immigrants, particularly Germans, took up farming on small or medium-sized farms. They usually grew staple grains that served to feed not just the local population, but other parts of the colonies as well. This allowed the more fertile Southern Colonies to focus more of their farmland on cash-crops for export. New England was never suitable for large-scale farming and the food from the Middle Colonies supported a growing population there that could focus on other economic pursuits.

Many immigrants also came to this region as indentured servants. These young men and women had agreed to work for a set number of years in exchange for passage to America and often a plot of land for themselves. Many became farmers. This further led to the development of many small farms that grew food for various parts of the 13 Colonies.

Furthermore, the diversity of immigrants led to a diversity of jobs in the Middle Colonies. Partly owing to their large natural harbors, port cities such as Philidelphia, Baltimore, and New York City became big financial and commercial hubs. Immigrants with knowledge and skills in various trades and crafts made these cities important hubs that would support the economic activities of the rest of the North American colonies.

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