SLAVERY IN COLONIAL AMERICA

A person who is the property of another person What is a Slave? A person who is the property of another person

What is an Indentured Servant? A person who came to America and was placed under contract to work for another person over a period of time, usually seven years.

There was not a specified amount of time slaves worked for someone Indentured Servants There was not a specified amount of time slaves worked for someone Had to work for another person with little or no pay Usually worked for someone for seven years Before the American Revolution there was slavery in all of the colonies Between 1 / 2 and 2 / 3 of people who came to Colonial America came as indentured servants Considered personal property 92% of Black people were located in the southern colonies. 95% of these people were slaves. Began because of labor shortages in England and the colonies Could be bought or sold

Indentured Servants White servants under contracts Created because of a lack of workers in England and the colonies The earliest indentured servants were brought to Virginia to work on farms. People would sell themselves as a servant in order to pay for the way to the colonies. People who committed crimes in England could become an indentured servant to avoid a life sentence in jail.

Servants mostly did housework and light agriculture jobs. If the indentured servant was a carpenter or could weave, they had a better chance of being able to negotiate their contract. The treatment of a servant was generally harsh and brutal.

Slaves African American slaves were the last attempt to help get enough people to work in the colonies. At first the slaves were treated like indentured servants, but soon slavery was based on race and they were slaves for life. Slaves were first brought to the colonies in 1619 to work on tobacco farms. In 1641 Massachusetts became the first state to make slavery legal.

45,000 slaves were sent to the colonies each year by boat. Slaves had no contract.

Resources http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/aia/part1/1narr3.html http://www.geocities.com/nai_cilh/servitude.html