Many, many Europeans came to the thirteen colonies on the Atlantic Coast of North America during the 17th and 18th centuries. People came for all sorts of reasons: adventure, gold, glory, God etc.
One of the most fascinating methods of obtaining passage to the colonies was indentured servitude. Rather than tell you what that means, I've got three websites for you: one, two and three. The third link is particularly interesting because it is a firsthand account of the mistreatment of indentured servants.
For the comment section, please explain what indentured servitude was AND decide whether or not you would have become an indentured servant for the chance to come to the colonies.
Indentured servitude is when someone works off the wages of what they would have paid for the trip, instead of paying in person. So the servants would work without pay for a certain amount of days, months, years. In my opinion, I do not I would do that. When you travel here, you are packed with a huge amount of people. They could be carrying a deadly disease! Or they could be carrying lice. You would face different hardships, like hunger, dehydration, and hypothermia. On the trips to the Americas, many indentured servents died trying to have a better life, or even the chance to find gold! If I was in the situation, and if I had kids. I would think of a better way of getting them to the Americas instead of putting them through those hardships. 138
ReplyDeleteInterned servitude , is where people want to get to amirica and so they would agree to work to get there if they could not pay so like if a single mother with five kids wanted to get to amirica for safety she would agree to work it off and someone would either pay for it or they would let her on the ship with no money . I would do this to keep my children safe if there was war or disagreements int the country I would take my children and share to work it off I would not let them sight to work that's the only thing I would have a problem with besides the hungar and starvation and if I had kids after the fact and died they would have to take my place . 134 word count
DeleteIndentured servitude was the method of choice employed by many planters before the 1680s. The system provided incentives for both the master and servant to increase the working population of the cheapeake colonies. Each indentured servant would have their fare across the Atlantic paid in full by their master. A contract is then written that stipulated the length of service for 5 years. The servant would be supplied room and board while working in the masters fields.I would have become an indentured servant to come to the colonies because it would be the easiest way to get to the colonies.
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Is there a certain word count that we're supposed to have?
ReplyDeleteI'm pretty sure 100
DeleteAn indentured Servant was someone need for cheap labor basically. Back In the day people would have a whole lot of land and not really know how to care for it so they used these indentured servants for the job. For these people they worked four to seven years and they would get a room, lodging, and freedom dues. Surprisingly this wasn't considered slavery. But if they broke contract like say a women got pregnant then they would be extended longer to work. I don't think I would be an indentured servant it doesn't seem like doing all of that and getting treated that way was worth it for me. (110)
ReplyDeleteChris it's 150, or around that area
ReplyDeleteIndentured servitude was a difficult way of life. Many people wanted to go to America for religious purposes or because they wanted to start a new life, and indentured servitude helped them get there. If the person that wanted to go to America didn't have enough money to pay for the trip, they could become a servant for a rich person in America. The richer person would pay for their trip here, food, and they would also give them a place to stay in America, but they had to work for a certain amount of years. I would choose to become an indentured servant. If there was a place to live that promised a new life, I would choose to go there, even if the trip was dangerous. Many people argue that you are putting your life in danger by becoming an indentured servant because of the harsh punishment and the terrible trip over to America, but you would be putting your life in danger if you stayed in Europe. In Europe you could die of starvation or disease. There's no safe place, but you can have a better life, so that's why I would chose America.
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An indentured servant was someone who became a citizen in America for free, but in exchange had to work for four to seven years. If you were an indentured servant you got lodging, food, and freedom dues. Indentured servants had very hard work. Some did not survive the four to seven years of work. Even though indentured slavery was hard it was not slavery. There still were some laws that protected some of their rights. Probably one of the worst things about it was if you broke the law, or if you were a women and became pregnant your term could get extended for longer. Personally it would depend on the situation I was in for me to become a indentured servant. If I had family to go with me I probably would not, but if I was by myself and really wanted to go to America then I probably would.
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Indentured servants were people that wanted to come to the newly discovered world in America, but could not afford it. So, people would pay for immigrants to come over to America in exchange for about 5 years of working for the person paying for their trip. The work was planting and harvesting indigo, rice, or other vegetables or items to sell and was often very hard. If the indentured servants were female and was expecting a baby, then more years was added on to the agreement. So, the woman would have to work longer. After the 5 years or whatever was done, the indentured servants would gain their freedom and a piece of land and some food to get them started.
ReplyDeleteIf I had the chance to be an indentured servant, I would have taken that opportunity, especially if I was younger and strong. It took a lot to make a trip like that. But, to be able to get freedom after the trip and the time spent working to pay back the person that paid my way, I would do it. Freedom is worth just about anything that a person has to go through.
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Indentured servitude was a labor system whereby young people paid for their passage to the New World by working for an employer for a certain number of years. It was widely employed in the 18th century in the British colonies in North America and elsewhere. It was especially used as a way for poor youth in Britain and the German states to get passage to the American colonies. They would work for a fixed number of years, then be free to work on their own. The employer purchased the indenture from the sea captain who brought the youths over; he did so because he needed labor. Most worked as farmers or helpers for farm wives; some were apprenticed to craftsmen. I feel that it is a good idea but I feel they should have made it for a short number of years and not long. And they should have been paid because how will they eat and though the family they worked for might have feed them they should got paid at least a little because how would they pay for food after they were released from work but besides this I think it was pretty good because they would get to go to the new world a be free to do what they want.
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Indentured servants were neede because of the growth and need of tobacco, rice, and indigo. A indentured servant was a laborer brought across the Atlantic Ocean where the master would get fifty acres of land in the southern part of the English owned land in America. These servants would then serve out the rest of there indenture which was a contract basically which would consist of five years total. This at first would sound like an amazing deal but under neath all the great things after the five years these great things after did not happened only 40 percent of the time did they actually live the five years. They how ever if they did live would get land, a gun, money, clothes or even food. (126 words)
ReplyDeleteAn indentured serving, is where if you couldn't pay to come to the colonies, you could "work it off". The indentured servants were provided, housing, food, clothes, and freedom dues. The only ketch was that you would have to work. You were not considered slaves, there were actually no slaves until 1641-1661. I don't think that working it off would be that bad, I think the bad part would be the trip over here. Eating brown worm water, and spider web biscuits does not interest me. I honestly don't think they knew what the traveling was going to be like though. The only way I would have come is if they didn't tell me the traveling would be so bad. If they left it unknown until while your on the ship getting sick, them okay that would have been my fault for buying enough food. If I knew it was going to be an awful journey then no I wouldn't have come over. I don't think working is the hard part, I think serving the journey is the hard part.
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For **not** buying enough food
ReplyDeleteIndentured Servitude was created by the Virginia Company. Indentured Servitude was when people had a need for cheap labor, Poor people could work instead of paying for passage. Passage was very expensive and indentured servant to it was just the answer for less fortunate people and more fortunate people. If I wanted to get to the New World I'd be an indentured servant. The 30 year war left most people Poor and some out of the job. Even if I didn't have enough money to pay my way aboard working would be better. I would have some money to use in the New World and after my years of service were done, I would be well set. My contract could included lots of things. So after I was done laboring I'd probably get at least 25 acres of land, a year's worth of corn, arms, a cow and new clothes. So laboring 4 to 7 years would probably be worth it.
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Indentured servitude*
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ReplyDeleteAn indentured servitude was for the young people to work and get paid. They would than use this money to pay their way to the New World. It probably wasn't worth what they did. What the people thought was that they had to much land and no one to care for it. In my opinion I would not do this because you work to go on a boat with many other people and you don't know what they have in their body. They could have the most deadliest disease and they could give it to you. I think it's a waste of work because you're working really hard and you could possibly die just so you could go look for gold and other goods.
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This week blog is about indetured servitude. An example of this would be people wanting to come to America, but they can't afford it, so they work with no pay to pay off their travel debts. Some of these indentures servants were heavily mistreated by their "owners/bosses". You were very lucky if you got a kind "owner". These servants were mainly used to farm tobacco, rice and indigo. The owners pushed their servants to do lots of work, becuase these crops were the main source of money for them. Indentured servitude was a big thing for the people in the 1680s.
ReplyDeleteIf I had the choice to go to the colonies and have to be an indentured servant, I would rather just stay were I currently lived. This is becuase you would make no money for a while and work for othing practically. I'd rather just stay were I am and make more money. Another factor would be getting misreated. I would also very strongly dislike that.
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Indentured servants were those who travelled by sea to the new land, paid off their debts by working for someone for a specified amount of time, then became free after that time was served. Indentured servitude seems to be an awful thing, so that individuals were given the opportunity to live in the “New Land.” They had many struggles on the ocean. Food was very limited. People were forced to eat rotten, moldy, and parasite infested foodstuffs in order to remain alive. On one voyage, 32 children embarked the ship, yet all had perished. Usually, only half of the people onboard a ship, or less, disembarked the ship. Would you hop on a boat knowing you only have a 40% (give or take) chance of survival?
ReplyDeleteAnother consequence of being an indentured servant was the time you had to work for someone else in order to become free. After surviving an awful journey across the sea, it seems very harsh to work. On top of that, you would have to serve for someone for years, if you even made it across the ocean successfully. Indentured servants were treated very poorly, and would be pretty close to what we know now as slavery, except that indentured servitude was temporary, and slavery was usually permanent.
Finally, another difficulty of indentured servitude was the land you would buy when you became free. After a while, all of the good and valuable land was taken by the initial settlers. Therefore, all of the new “free” people were unable to get good land. Thus, they were forced up West. Unfortunately for these people, the western land was very mountainous and hilly. They would have much more trouble farming and growing crops. These are some primary difficulties and disadvantages of indentured servitude, and why me, and many others would never consider this method of travel.
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Indentured servitude was a form of payment to get to the new world.If you couldn't pay with money for your passage to the new world,you could serve someone for a certain amount of time in turn for passage to the Americas.This wasn't uncommon because passage was expensive.The average time for someone to work would be about four to seven years.Though they weren't slaves,they weren't treated well.Punishment was cruel and sometimes the years you served were extended as a form of punishment.Even though their life wasn't an easy one,I would probably become one given the chance.I would because I wouldn't be able to pass up the chance to see a new world.I also hate the idea of a king or queen deciding what I should believe.(136 words)
ReplyDeleteThe meaning of being an indentured servant is doing cheap labor, increasing the working population, or working to go somewhere. To do so you would have to sign a contract, and you would work for about four to seven years. You weren't treated as a slave at all, you were paid by your master. the masters were given 50 acres of land afterwards. Not all lived in misery, but quite a lot were miserable. The voyages would be too long, they would work too much, they would get sick, and some of they're children would be thrown over board. And they didn't even have slave laws yet. It was that bad for certain people, well most people. I know that I wouldn't want to travel that way. I wouldn't want to see my family suffer. But if I had to, I would so my family didn't have to.
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An indentured servant is someone who signed a paper saying that if they worked for a master for a period of time, they would get their trip to the New World paid fully. Also, for every one of these servants a master got, he gained almost 50 acres of land. So this whole system was not only good for the people who signed to be an indentured servant, but also the master. Personally, I would choose between being an indentured servant or staying in England based on my situation. If I was in financial need, I would take the risk of leaving my family to work for five years in the New World so I could build a new home away from all the trouble in England.on the other hand, if I was financially stable, I would not want to risk leaving my family behind and possibly dying just to "explore the new world". I think that choosing to be an indentured servant is all based on opinion and how your current situation is holding up. Word count-177
ReplyDeleteIdentured servents were people that came to Jamestown as temporary slaves. They worked for a short time. They worked for a master for while. In doing this they got a fully paid trip to America. I would not go and do that becasue what if something happened to me. What if something happened to my family i wouldnt know about it because they didn't have over-night mailing, text messages, or calls. So your whole family could have died and you not know. What if you died the wouldn't know that you did. And what if I got a disese and been poisend or became an Native person or got married to one. That is why I would not become one.
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Indentured servants and or slaves were very brave people. First of all they were pretty much selling themselves for a long period of time. This was all in order for them to earn their own individual freedoms in the new world. The people who mainly did this were colonists from England. When they signed the contract, the owners and or masters would pay for their travel across and then they would be enslaved for their certain time period. Not to mention only forty percent of the indentured servants survived their contract period. So, therefore, would I have done that? I definitely wouldn't have wanted to. But I believe I would have depending on my master. I mean if I did survive my enslaved time, it would all be worth it because if they did survive they would receive some things such as land and weapons and food. So, if it would benefit my family I would definitely do it.
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Indentured servitude was a way a person would pay off their traveling fee by working for someone for a certain period of time (typically five years) in exchange for their master paying for the trip across the ocean.
ReplyDeleteIf I did live in the 1600's and wanted to come to North America, I would probably think it would be a good idea to become an indentured servant at first. I would be able to pay off my debt and I would possibly receive land, clothes, weapons, food, etc. from my master. But after one year, I would most likely see the error of my ways and regret even coming across the ocean because of all of the harassment I would probably receive and the possibility I could die before my contract was up. I do not think I would even be able to make it off the ship because of disease and lack of good food and water. I would not willingly become an indentured servant because I know that I would likely not survive.
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Indentured Servitude was A person who came to America and was placed under contract to work for over a period of time usually around seven years, especially during the 17th century to the 19 centuries. I think that it would be a good idea to come to North America. Because I would be able to pay off my debt and other things but on the other side I would really be selling myself. Also, before my contract ended, I most likely would have probably died. People had sold their self for religious freedom. But overall I think I would have come to America.
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Indentured servitude is when people couldn't afford to come to the New World, so they would promise a certain number of years of unpaid labor to the Virginia Company. Because the New World had so much land, and a lack of people to farm it, indentured servitude became important in the colonial era.
ReplyDeleteI would probably become an indentured servant. Though some were not treated very well (i.e. packed like sardines into the ships), the passage to the New World was very expensive, and most people could not afford it. Given my luck, I would probably be one of those people.
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The Indentured Servants is basically when the Virginia Company wanted to attract workers. Indentured servants became very important to the colonial economy. Being an Indentured Servant was much more difficult and harsh than slaves. But a good thing about being an indentured servant was that thr slaves get paid a good amount. The Indentured Servants wanted freedom as soon as possible. The master was rewarded with 50 acres of land. This system was used by rich people to have more land. Females were usually the people who were harassed by the masters. After the bacon rebellion, planters began to prefer permanent African slavery to the headright system.
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Indentured servants were people that would work to pay off "debt" they had from crossing the ocean into the Americas. It seems to me that being an indentured servant was awful. We were and were not a slave. Although you had more rights and laws that help you keep your rights you still had to work as hard as a slave. If you got pregnant, you as a woman world have more time added onto your sentence. Most people did not make it through the whole time but those who did were better off then just coming over for free. Me personally would not want to be one at all!!
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An indentured servant, in my opinion, was pretty much a scam for businesses to save money. It is a person who had to work hard labor for four to seven with almost no rights just to afford passage to the New World.nas one of the articles said, this is just cheap labor Invented by the Virginia Company. I would not have become a indentured servant unless the following happened. I had no life what so ever in England and didn't mind throwing it away because it had no value or I was getting persecuted for my religious beliefs. Even then it would take me awhile to think about it. I mean by how much they work you you could probably pay off your debt a lot quicker than they are implying. Honestly, I would have to just find another way to get passage to the New World. Maybe I would just become a sailor.
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An indentured servant is someone who is willing to work without pay, for assured safety. In the Americas.The main people who would come over to be safe where women and children. The women came and brought their children because the place they used to live in was a very harsh involvement place for children. The women and children would have a master that would ensure their safety from them ever being unsafe again.(73) Some people would think this was just a good way to make money but it really was not.This was not a debt hole it was a way for the people of different nations to finally be safe again. I think this was good for the indentured servants.
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