This work provides the first synthesis of daily life in the colonial South from the time of European arrival to 1770—a period that is often overlooked or treated briefly in most surveys on the history of the South. Daily Life in the Colonial South describes how a diverse mix of people created new patterns of living, behaving, and believing across diverse and changing physical, demographic, economic, and social environments by adapting inherited cultures in new settings.

The book emphasizes the everyday experiences of ordinary people from the Chesapeake Bay to the Lower Mississippi River, examining aspects of daily life such as work, families, possessions, food, leisure, bodies, and beliefs. It presents balanced coverage of English, French, Spanish, and Native American settlements, describing the lives of both men and women, and making use of quotes from historical documents. An introductory chapter profiles the colonial South at six periods set 50 years apart between 1500 and 1750, while the conclusion discusses colonial southern identities on the eve of the American Revolution.