Slavery was the status of several thousand inhabitants of the Thirteen Colonies. Starting around 1680, more than
100,000 Africans were forcibly transported to these colonies to serve as manual labour. They formed about one-fifth
of the workforce. In South Carolina, nearly half of the population lived in slavery.
Hundreds of slaves had been brought to New York, Boston and Rhode Island, but it was in the southern colonies
where slavery was more deeply rooted. In Virginia and South Carolina, slaves worked on plantations that grew
tobacco, rice and indigo (a plant used to make blue dye). These crops required a lot of labour over very long periods,
and involved backbreaking work in unhygienic conditions. In 1745, cotton was not widely grown in the colonies.
It would only flourish in the 19th century.
where slavery was more deeply rooted. In Virginia and South Carolina, slaves worked on plantations that grew
tobacco, rice and indigo (a plant used to make blue dye). These crops required a lot of labour over very long periods,
and involved backbreaking work in unhygienic conditions. In 1745, cotton was not widely grown in the colonies.
It would only flourish in the 19th century.
Not all slaves worked on plantations. Some cut and sawed wood in North Carolina. On many small farms in the South,
farmers had only one slave who helped him work the land.
In this system, slaves lost their freedom and worked long, hard days. Slaves were considered a commodity, like a tool
that could be bought and sold.
Author: Léon Robichaud
Two types of slavery
Pehr Kalm, Swedish naturalist, during a visit of the 13 Colonies in 1749
“There were two classes of servants in the English colonies, domestics and slaves, and the former class was divided
into two categories:
- Those, of free condition, who rented themselves out for the year at a price ranging from eight to 20 louis (a French coin), not including food.
- Poor immigrants who, not having the means to pay their passage, had agreed with the captain of the ship on which they made the crossing, to let themselves be sold for a few years upon their arrival in America. This category of domestics, who were called indentured servants, included men and women of all ages, and many unfortunates fleeing oppression and religious persecution.”
