Indentured Servants

Definition

Indentured servants were men and women who signed a contract (also known as an indenture or covenant) by which they agreed to work for a certain number of years in exchange for transportation to Virginia and once they arrived, food, clothing, and shelter.

Related terms

Headright System: A legal grant of land given to settlers during colonial times. Each headright usually consisted about 50 acres; anyone who paid their own way received one headright (50 acres), any male over 15 years old received one headright (50 acres).

Servitude: The state of being under someone else's control or having to do their work - similar but not identical to slavery as it was often for a fixed term.

Colonial America: The English colonies established in North America between 1607 and 1733.