Indentured Servitude
Paula Petrik, Professor of History and Art History, George Mason University
Introduction
Not only were indentured servants overworked and unappreciated, but they also apparently lacked the basic necessities. When servants believed, rightly or wrongly, that they were being misused, they attempted redress by “liberating” their master's or mistress’s goods. Taken from the court records of Virginia, the following confession an indentured servant and a letter from John Freehorne details crimes against a master by his servants and, along the way, suggests something of the social order in seventeenth-century Virginia. Likewise, the letter gives a more personal account of the lives that indentured servants led.
Assignment
Read the following two documents that provide glimpses into indentured servitude:
Then, answer the following questions about each particular document and the documents in comparison:
1. From the Confession, describe the nature of the servants’ crimes. Who was involved in the illegal activities? Who was the ringleader? What evidence could you supply to support your choice? Why do you think that indentured servants took part in the crimes?
2. Describe John Frethorne’s personal situation. What has happened to the colony? What are the relationships between colonists? What does Frethorne want from his father?
3. What do these passages contribute to our understanding of the institution of indenture in seventeenth-century Chesapeake?
Resources
Resources
Labor Contracts, Virtual Jamestown - Created by Crandall Shifflett and located at the Virginia Center for Digital History, this page allows users to search 17th century indentured servant registers.