Indentured servant

Indentured servants were people who signed a contract saying they would work for a certain amount of time to pay off a debt. It was a common form of labor in America during the colonial period. Someone might become an indentured servant if they had no other way to make money, or if they got in debt and couldn't pay it off. For example, if a farmer couldn't pay his bills, he might make a contract with someone to work in their fields in exchange for that person paying off his debt. The indentured servant would work for that person for a certain amount of time, often several years, and then they would be free.