Indenturedservent_4

Indenturedservent_4 - Transcript

Era 2 1583 1763

A person who has agreed to work for an individual for a specified period of time in order to repay a debt In colonial times it was fairly common for a person to indenture his or her self for payment of passage on a ship to America

Indenture meant under contract in 17th century English Common Law An indentured servant was under a contract to serve from 4 7 years A person sold themselves to a ship captain who then sold them at the port Like slaves they could be bought or sold and could not marry without permission of their master When they had served their term they were to free to go and had earned their freedom dues

This is a copy of a contract between James Best and Captain Stephen Jones

This INDENTURE Witnesseth that James Best a Laborer doth Voluntarily put himself Servant to Captain Stephen Jones Master of the Snow Sally to serve the said Stephen Jones and his Assigns for and during the full Space Time and Term of three Years from the first Day of the said James arrival in Philadelphia in AMERICA during which Time or Term the said Master or his Assigns shall and will find and supply the said James with sufficient Meat Drink Apparel Lodging and all other necessaries befitting such a Servant and at the end and expiration of said Term the said James to be made Free and receive according to the Custom of the Country Provided nevertheless and these Presents are on this Condition that if the said James shall pay the said Stephen Jones or his Assigns 15 Pounds British in twenty one Days after his arrival he shall be Free and the above Indenture and every Clause therein absolutely Void and of no Effect In Witness whereof the said Parties have hereunto interchangeably put their Hands and Seals the 6th Day of July in the Year of our Lord One Thousand Seven Hundred and Seventy Three in the Presence of the Right Worshipful Mayor of the City of London signatures

Where did indentured servants come from Indentured servants came from all over Europe They were primarily from Ireland Scotland England and Germany Over of all white immigrants in the 17 th and 18th century were indentured servants The majority of indentured servants came between the time period of 1620 1680 but the practice lasted until the 1770 s

They came for many reasons During this time Catholics were being persecuted for their faith Many times they were kidnapped and sent to the New World There was also a policy of selling people to ship s captains who were debtors people who owed money There were many who had been arrested for crimes however small There were also many who were just trying to get away from poverty

Where did they go
Indentured servants went to all thirteen colonies and the Caribbean In the Northern Colonies they were more likely to become part of the community using town oriented trade skills or housework In the Middle and Southern Colonies most of the w ork was done in the fields there were fewer towns and larger farms These areas grew tobacco rice and indigo which were labor intensive crops In the Caribbean indentured servants w orked in the sugar cane fields which was very difficult work

Indentured servants worked a variety of jobs depending upon where they were In towns they might work as bricklayer joiners plasterers cooks clerks gardeners coachman butchers blacksmiths musicians laundry seamstresses or housekeepers In the farm areas they were most likely working in the fields as laborers or overseers

If the indentured servant tried to run away and many did there were severe consequences In 1638 the punishment was several lashes In 1639 the punishment became much stricter the servant could be hanged Often additional years were added to a person s servitude for minor infractions of the rules

Freedom dues was payment given to newly freed servants It could have been land corn tools clothing a gun or sugar depending upon where the servant had been working

Indentured servitude died out in the 1770 s Massachusetts had passed a slave law in 1641 and slavery quickly spread throughout the colonies People who had purchased indentured servants realized that with slavery they did not have to let people go after w orking for them in 4 7 years It also became much harder to find people who were willing to become indentured servants Although many states in our country outlawed slavery very early in our country s history slavery in the United States did not end until 1863 w ith The Emancipation Proclamation

Additional Resources
Description of life as an indentured servant http etext lib virginia edu etcbin jamestown browse id J1012 Short video about indentured servants

http videos howstuffworks com hsw 6334 us southern colonies indentured ser Time line of indentured servants and slavery

http www google com search q indentured servants colonial america hl en Lesson plans for Jamestown http www virtualjamestown org tscreators html Description of life as servant and on voyage over http www let rug nl usa D 1601 1650 mittelberger servan htm Several web sites http historymatters gmu edu search php function find

Additional Resources Fiction Books
Molly Bannaky by Chris K Soentpiet and Alice McGill Houghton Mifflin Books for Children 1999 grade level 4 5 Night Journeys by Avi Harper Collins 2000 grade level 4 5 Shadows In the Glasshouse American Girl History Mysteries by Megan McDonald Pleasant Com Pub 2000 grade level 4 6 Secret Along the St Mary s Mysteries in Time by Virginia B Troeger Silver Moon Press 2003 grade 3 5 Calico Bush by Rachel Field Alladin 1998 Ages 9 12 Encounter at Easton An Avon Camelot Book by Avi Harper Collins 2000 Ages 9 12 A Pickpocket s Tale by Karen Schwaback Random House for Young Readers 2006 Grade 4 8

Indentured servants were allowed to go anywhere they wanted to

They were not allowed to go anywhere without their master s permission There were very severe consequences if they did not follow the rules

Indentured servants worked for a period of 4 7 years Time could be added if they broke rules

Life on a sugar plantation in the Caribbean would have been very easy The indentured servants who worked there were very lucky

Working on the sugar plantations was extremely hard work Over of the indentured servants who worked there died in their first two years

Freedom dues was money that the indentured servant gave to their master

Freedom dues was what the master gave to the indentured servant when they had completed their time It was often clothing tools and corn

People became indentured servants for many reasons not everyone came because they wanted to