The seventeenth-century tobacco economy of the chesapeake region select one: a. was concentrated on many small farms with few slaves. b. went through numerous boom-and-bust cycles. c. often saw production not meet demand. d. saw planters cut back on production as a way of raising prices. e. saw prices rise steadily throughout the period.

The correct answer is letter b: went through numerous boom-and-bust cycles.

Explanation:

Throughout the XVII and XVIII centuries the tobacco economy of the Chesapeake region experienced continuing cycles of prosperity and depression, the “boom-and-bust”. Tobacco at first dominated the economy, and in order to produce this commodity Virginia adopted slave labor; by 1700, the state was importing huge numbers of slaves to provide the labor required to plant and harvest the tobacco leaves, this way the plantations owners were able to increase their fortune by selling it to other countries. For long tobacco was a very used source of income; however this practice led to soil depletion, the removal of nutrients due to improper extractive practices.  As a result the production dropped and the state suffered economically. The war also contributed to eliminate most of Virginia’s trading fleet, for example.