Indentured Servants: Early Immigrants

Indentured Servants: Early Immigrants

Jan 14, 2010

ISOGG (International Society of Genetic Genealogists) recently had quite a discussion going on about the subject of indentured servants.


It would seem that the idea of indentured servants is not very well understood. At least one individual thought indentured servants were criminals. Another thought there was that indentured servants would never own their own land upon gaining their freedom.


Carol McGinnis writes in "Viginia Genealogy Sources & Resources" that the first African colonists from the West Indies are sold into indentured service in 1619.

Does that mean an indentured servant was a slave? Was an indentured servant a criminal? Would an indentured servant own land when they gained their freedom?

Finally, why should we even care if we know what an indentured servant is?

For me, the answer is simple. The first HAM to arrive on this continent was an indentured servant.

Joseph HAM arrived in 1621 as an indentured servant to Lt. Albiano Lupo. Transported by the ship Warwick. The Warwick probably set sail from Middlesex or London, England. He arrived in Elizabeth City, Virginia (now the city of Hampton, Virginia).

Joseph was 16 years old at the time. Joseph HAM would gain his freedom, live in York County, and marry Mary PEAD, the widow of John PEAD. Mary had two children by John PEAD, John PEAD and Catharine PEAD.

Joseph files his will on March 3, 1638 which is subsequently probated on July 10, 1638. Among his most valuable possessions are 2,000 pounds of tobacco, 20 young goats, what appears to be a maid servant, and a part of a plantation.


Nora Probasco has sent an email to notify folks that an excellent article about indentured servants is now available on line. An article by Nathan W. Murphy “Origins of Colonial Chesapeake Indentured Servants: American And English Sources.” National Genealogical Society Quarterly, 93, no.1 (March, 2005), 5–24 is now on line:

http://pricegen.com/immigrantservants/origins.htm

If you know a little about researching early documents, then it helps to understand exactly what an indentured servant was. Or conversely, if you know how to research an indentured servant, then it could possibly help you to understand more about the times of your immigrant ancestor.

An interesting article. For folks that have not researched early documents, it gives a visual of an old printed document, so you can compare with today's writing to see how the handwriting has changed over time. Also, there is an extensive list of reference sources for help in researching early immigrants.


Further reading about Joseph HAM:

Peter W. Coldham, "The Complete Book of Immigrants 1607-1660"
Carol McGinnis, "Virginia Genealogy Sources & Resources."
P. William Filby, "Passenger and Immigration Lists Index"
John Camden Hotten, "Original Lists of Persons of Quality 1600-1700"
R. F. Walker article entitled "Lists of the Living and the Dead in Virginia Feb 16, 1623" from the "Colonial Records of Virginia," Richmond, 1874
Library of Virginia, York County microfilm "Deeds, Orders, Wills, etc.," page 11, Richmond, VA
"A Short History of the HAM Surname in Virginia & NC"

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UK Family Name Origins Project Launched

Largest Ever UK Family Name Origins Project Launched

December 18, 2009

The University of the West of England is preparing to launch the largest ever study of family surname origins from the British Isles. Funded by the Arts and Humanities Research Council, headed up by Linguistics Professor Richard Coates, with lead researcher Dr. Patrick Hanks (lexicographer).
The goal of the project is to gather reliable information on up to 150,000 UK surnames, and enter them into a database available on a public website. They hope to use published and unpublished resources dating back to the 11th century. The goal is to obtain more reliable information than found in current epytomological dictionaries on the subject.

For the purpose of comparison, I am obligated to say that the "Origins" volume of "A Short History of the HAM Surname in Virginia & NC" dates the use of the word "Ham" back to the third century in Europe, and the HAM DNA Project is helping to pinpoint the exact location of origin of the HAM Surname in England. Those of you that follow this blog probably already know that the "Ham" is a place name meaning a homestead, or a variation thereof.




For example, in the "Origins" volume, you will find the use of the HAM surname dating from the 11th century in about two dozen towns in County Somerset alone. And aside from County Somerset, the book also mentions more than a dozen other Counties in England. (Information regarding the names of the Lords of Ham in France dates from about the 9th century.)

Additionally, the HAM DNA Project has helped to pinpoint the most likely areas of origin in England. The DNA Project has provided Y-Search studies on the origins of four HAM family DNA groups and actually have a DNA match for HAM(M/E) families who would otherwise not have information about locating surname origins. So, I suspect that the study will be missing both the information from our book, but also missing information gathered from the HAM DNA Project.


However, it is reassuring to know that somebody has launched a project to gather more widespread information on the origins of UK family names. Those of you who do not have out book should have access to this database by about 2014. The project appears to be lead by experts in their field, and the meaning and location of origins of a name is a subject of intense interest to genealogists, both amateur and professional.


For more information on the project, see:

Article in the UK Independent by Sarah Cassidy:

http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/this-britain/so-where-does-your-name-come-from-1843088.html
Press release from the University of West England:
http://info.uwe.ac.uk/news/UWENews/article.asp?item=1651
Formal description of the project from the Arts & Humanities Research Council:
http://www.ahrc.ac.uk/FundedResearch/Pages/ResearchDetail.aspx?id=147098
For more information specific to the HAM surname, see also: Article on surname origins at HAM Country:
http://home.earthlink.net/~odoniv/HamCountry/HAM_DNA_Project/HAM_DNA_Origins.html

Videos on HAM surname origins:

HAM Surname Counties of Origins

For DNA evidence about HAM surname origins:

http://home.earthlink.net/~odoniv/HamCountry/HAM_DNA_Project/HAM_DNA_Project.html

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Free W W II Records from Footnote

Free Access to WWII records from Footnote

In honor of Pearl Harbor Day, Footnote is offering free access to World War II records during the month of December.


The site offers basic service record information, plus images and military studies.



For example, a number of my uncles enlisted for WWII, so I did a search on my uncles Wiley and Marvin. I was able to find their service record by a mouse click on their name. Typical example gives enlistment information, such as year of birth, branch of service, date of enlistment and location. What I liked most was the serial number and source information (microfilm reel number and box number of the Army Enlistment records).


However, having spent some time on genealogy, I already had most of that information for my uncles, if not more. Footnote does have an option to enable you to add notes and images to their records. Using this feature, I was able to add some notes on Wiley's death in 1944.


What I was really interested in was tracking his Company information. I know that in August, 1941, Wiley was stationed in Iceland and part of Company C, 10th Infantry. I thought it might be interesting to try to follow his troop movements during WWII.





So, I started browsing Footnote's "WWII Allied Military Conference" to see if I could get an idea of his whereabouts after D-Day.


I suppose I should mention that the most annoying feature of the site is it's Java interface, which makes browsing very slow going for dial-up users.

Other than that, perhaps it might help you find some WWII information on your ancestors this holiday season.


http://www.footnote.com/

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