Indentured Servitude Dbq

In the early 1600s, companies that were given charters by the British crown established colonies in North America. These colonies served to provide the mother country with raw materials. Previously, the only people who could afford come to America were wealthy people. With the idea of indentured servitude developed by joint-stock companies, anyone willing to work for a certain number of years could come to the New World. This system worked for numerous years, however, according to a graph of servants and slaves per probate inventory in York County, Virginia, from the years 1665 to 1695, the number of indentured servants decreased immensely while, from 1680 to 1895, the number of slaves increased. (Doc 1) The graph serves to show the progression