Indentured servitude in Pennsylvania

From the founding of the colony (1681/2) to the early post-revolution period (1820s), indentured servants contributed considerably to the development of agriculture and various industries in Pennsylvania.

In addition, such factors as poverty, dislocation, personal ambition, or criminal activity "produced" enough indentured servants to support a well-functioning market structure.

"[12] Farley Grubb approached the issue from a different perspective; he contended that the demand model fails to provide a satisfactory explanation because employers still paid high prices for indentured (redemptioner) servants.

Analyzing specifically German migration in the 19th century, Grubb attributed the end of indentured servitude to the ability of immigrant families in the United States to finance the transportation of relatives through remittances, a "system" facilitated by the declining price of passage–fare.

[13] Without evaluating the merits of these explanations, the following article seeks to outline various components surrounding indentured servitude in Pennsylvania, dealing (roughly) with time period of 1682–1820.

Indentured servitude can be described as an arrangement in which one party agrees to serve another for a certain number of years in exchange for an initial payment or monetary outlay.

With regard to the "migrant variety," persons in Great Britain (including Ireland) seeking transportation across the Atlantic would "finance" the trip by entering into contractual agreements with a merchant.

For example, parents unable to financially support their children might place them under indenture, since the terms of the agreement usually specified the provisioning of "meat, drink, lodging and washing.

[38] Many would be shipped to the middle colonies, usually ending up at ports in Philadelphia or the Chesapeake Bay where they found their temporary new home on farms, English Estates, or in quarries.

The merchant or captain of the ship "doth also further Covenant that he will as soon as conveniently may be procure an Authentick Certificate from the Governour or the Chief Customehouse Officer of the Place whereto they shall be so transported of the Landing of such Offenders as aforesaid.

While this labor force had a market, a number of prominent voices expressed fears that the presence of these persons could degrade population, corrupt other servants, and undermined the stability of society.

In 1748 the Assembly finally decided to submit such a bill to the board; of course, the legislature had delayed disclosure of the law (passed in 1743) until the five-year time limit for such procedures expired.

[54] Emerging in the 18th century, the redemptionist system allowed indebted migrants to avoid indenture by repaying the costs of their passage within a certain period of time after arrival in the colony.

[55] This form of indentured servitude had a particularly prominent role in the Pennsylvania market; Philadelphia became a chief port in which redemptioner servants were procured by buyers from across and outside of the colony/state.

"[57] While the period of repayment was later extended to 30 days, this policy increased the likelihood of the redemptioner being indentured, since such constraints inhibit his/her ability to make contact with relations.

Among these points of contrast, the "most remarkable difference between the two," as Abbot Smith noted, "was...that the redemptionist system applied generally to people who emigrated in whole families, bringing their goods and chattels with them and seeking a new home.

Once the groups reached Rotterdam, they sought passage to the "new land" through one of merchants or companies stationed at the port; those who could not immediately afford the fare entered into the agreements specified above.

[65] While the terms of the redemptionist system allowed those without financial resources to obtain passage to the colonies/states, some who were able to pay the fare nevertheless opted to enter into indenture.

[71] Thus, fugitive servant advertisements would appear alongside runaway slave notices, as both represented (in different ways) a denial of the owner's rights to property.

[72] As an illustration, a notice in the American Weekly Mercury read in part: The advertisement might make an additional comment at the end of the description to better facilitate the capture of the servant.

[80] For German redemptioners, the journey proved especially long and arduous, as they had to traverse down the Rhine to Rotterdam, paying tolls at thirty-six custom houses along the way.

As Sharon Salinger observed, "Many masters [carrying redemptioners] were notorious for providing inadequate provisions for only the first half of the trip and then virtually starving their captives to the journey's end.

Mittelberger provided a description of the situation: Sickly migrants and servants became an issue of concern for the colonies receiving them, with the specter of contagious diseases demanding a course of action.

After the Pennsylvania legislature approved the idea, funds were appropriated to purchase Province Island, at the mouth of the Schuylkill River, as the location for the pesthouse and hospital.

The Assembly argued that a quarantine merely served as an immediate response to a contagious cargo; the central cause of the problem involved the crowded quarters of ships, especially those carrying the Irish and Germans.

[92] Moreover, vessels that carried emigrants were to be fumigated and washed with vinegar twice per week; ships transporting Germans were to have a surgeon on board to care for the ill.[93] However, the actual implementation of these laws proved difficult, and the results of such legislation were limited.

As Salinger observed, "Without the interference of colonial officials, merchants' behavior went unchecked and the route to the promised land was lined with the horrors of disease and death.

"[63] Upon arrival in Pennsylvania, merchants or captains of the ships transporting the human cargo were required to register a list of passengers with the mayor's office, a magistrate or recorder.

[94] By 1717, masters of ships carrying German and other non-British redemptioners had the additional obligation of furnishing an "account" of the "character" of the individuals on board; furthermore, the emigrants had to "proclaim" before a magistrate or recorder their allegiance to "his Majesty and his Government.

"[T]he captains or merchants," as Herrick described, "usually inserted in the newspapers advertisements which gave descriptions of the passengers for sale, their nationality, age, sex, and the service for which they were said to be fitted.