The nine-year old Washington spent long, exhausting days packing salt. Like many blacks after Emancipation, Washington wanted an education. So despite the exhausting days he used his free time to go to school.

The northern colonies were not suited for large-scale farming because the soil was thin and rocky, there was little level land, and the winters were long and cold. The early colonists chose to live in small villages and towns usually around harbors. They supported themselves carrying on some kind of trade or business. The most prosperous of these included shipbuilding, lumbering, fishing, and ironworks

With land more suited to farming, the middle colonies were often referred to as the "bread colonies" because they produced large amounts of the grains—particularly corn and wheat—used to make bread. There were also such cottage industries as weaving, shoemaking, cabinetmaking, and other crafts. And the middle colonies had their share of busy shipping ports