Slavery and Indentured Servitude in Colonial America

Throughout history slavery has been used to improve labor demands. Slavery has been illegal since 1865 when Congress passed the 13th ammendment abolishing slavery in the United States, but it is still used in today’s society in many forms. Before slavery became of use, Colonists used indentured servants until it became more beneficial for them to rely solely on slaves for their laboring needs.

“Virginia would become the first British colony to legally establish slavery in 1661”. Slavery developed in America because slaves were cheaper to have to complete Colonists laboring demands such as growing tobacco. Slaves were shipped to America to work on plantations. The need for slaves importance was increased when Colonists realized they were the best ones to serve their labor requirements for maintaining the plantations. The economy would not have survived without the slaves labor. Slaves were captured in Africa by African slave traders and were sold to white slave merchants who carried them in slave ships across the ocean called the “middle passage”. Upon arrival to American, they were then sold to tobacco planters if they were able to survive the long trip.

All of British North America used slaves for their labor demands, but each region’s need for labor varied. “In contrast to the middle and New England colonies, the Southern colonies chose to export labor-intensive crops: tobacco in Chesapeake (Virginia and Maryland) and rice and indigo in South Carolina, which were believed to be very profitable”. Slavery was less used in the North, but consisted of a smaller slave population. In the North, slaves were mostly used as domestic servants and worked on smaller farms. South Carolina and Georgia needed slaves for rice and indigo plantations whereas North Carolina and the Chesapeake region needed them for tobacco plantations. Slavery in the North became outlawed, but remained heavily in the South due to the labor demands on large plantations of cash crops.

Slaves were brought to America involuntarily to be used as the Colonists main labor source. They were known as chattel and were marked as property making them owned lifelong by the owners. They were traded as property to other Colonists when needed. Slaves did not have any basic rights and were much more cost efficient to have over indentured servants. They were not given or promised anything in return for their work, which made them cheaper to have. Slaves were able to be better controlled. Slave owners would punish or coerce their slaves for failure to obey orders or failure to complete work efficiently. According to Corbett, Janssen, Lund, Pfannestial & Vickery (2014), slaves not only helped planters meet labor demands, but also served to assuage English fears of further uprisings and alleviate class tensions between rich and poor whites.

“Indenture is a labor contract that young, impoverished, and often illiterate Englishmen and occasionally Englishwomen signed in England, pledging to work for a number of years growing tobacco in the Chesapeake colonies”. Indentured servants came voluntarily to America seeking the chance to start a new life. They were required to sign a labor contract that usually committed them between about five to seven years. When agreeing to the indentureship, some received land but all received “paid passage to America and food, clothing, and lodging”. Upon completion of their labor contract they were set free from their duos and they were able to begin their new life. Some began their new lives as tobacco planters too. Indentured servants had rights and were treated as human beings, not as property.

In conclusion, indentured servitude was used in America as a form to complete Colonist’s labor demands. Once Colonists realized that it was more profitable for them to use slaves as their main source for labor, slavery became used widespread throughout the British Colonies. Slaves were chattel, cheaper, and were lifelong to their owners whereas indentured servants were only good for a length of time, had rights, and were freed upon completion of dues.