Indentured Servants In The Late 1600s And Early 1700s

In the late 1600s and early 1700s, the indentured servants became riskier and cost inefficient for employers. One of the biggest concern for employers of indentured servants is that at the end of the contract, the contract holders have to reimburse the indentured servants with the land. This didn’t concern the employers because most of those indentured servants died before the contract expired. However, increasing number of indentured servants who survive the contract termination has increased the cost of indentured servants. The textbook said, “As more servants survived their terms and clamored for the land they had been promised, the system of indentured servitude began to lose its attractiveness to planters” (74). These increasing cost of servants have encouraged employers to consider a different method of forced labor.

As a result, many wealthy employers started the substituting indentured servants with slaves because of rising cost.

The employers have reimbursed the indentured servants with lands that are closer to the Native Americans where it had barely any economic value. This created not only a huge unequal wealth distribution within the colony but many disgruntled independent farmers. This unequal distribution of wealth and dissatisfaction lead to a revolt by indentured servants. The textbook elaborates “These fears were grounded in growing numbers of servant runaways and small revolts in the early 1160s, one of which […] resulted in several executions and law tightening curbs on servants” (77). The revolt was the tipping point for indentured contracts; the risk is skyrocketing from runaway indentured servants and revolts. The employers had to replace undisciplined forced labor force. Eventually, Europeans return to the most primitive form of forced labor; slavery. The slaves were the most primitive but efficient method of exploiting

labor.
To resolve the conflict between indentured servants and independent farmers who used to be indentured servants, the colonial government targeted African American and other ethnic groups as designated forced labor force. In essence, the people replaced indentured servitude with slavery. The government specifically targeted specific members of society to bring unity amongst Caucasian male. In the ‘Statues at Large of South Carolina’, it specifically explains how the government declared ethical people. It said, “That all Negroes and Indians […] they are hereby declared to be and remain forever hereafter, absolute slaves, and shall follow the condition of the mother” (No. 670). This is a legislative Act that declares that African Americans and the Native Americans are designated forced labor. By specifying which group of society to target, the wealthy labor intensive industry owners such as tobacco plantation continued exploitation to the lowest of society. The practice of exportation didn’t change but the people who exploited from changed from indentured servants from slaves.