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What was a child's role on an 18th century Virginia farm?

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What was a child's role on an 18th century Virginia farm?

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What was a woman's role on an 18th century Virginia farm? 

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What was a woman's role on an 18th century Virginia farm? 

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An apprenticeship was a legal contract between the apprentice and master craftsman. These contracts were often drawn up, signed before the courts, entered into a deed book, and considered binding. As part of the contract, an apprentice agreed to keep trade secrets, obtain his master's permission before leaving the premises, and abstain from vices such as frequenting taverns and the theater. Most important, the apprentice agreed to work for the master without pay for the term of the contract. The contract also listed the obligations of the master craftsman to his apprentice. Masters provided basic education (reading, writing, and arithmetic), training in the craft, room and board, and sometimes a set of tools or clothes on completion of the apprenticeship. The following Q&A answers several frequently asked questions about colonial apprenticeships.
How long were apprenticeships?
This often-asked question is difficult to answer because many apprenticeship contracts (indentures) were private arrangements between a master and an apprentice's parents and were not recorded in the public records. Apprenticeships ordered by the courts for orphans and poor children were recorded, but their lengths varied widely or were often stated only as to age twenty-one. Of the 110 apprenticeships recorded in York County, Virginia, from 1745 until 1789, 34 were "until twenty-one" and 64 were from four to seven years.
At what age were children apprenticed?
The ideal age for an apprenticeship might be considered fourteen, so that a full seven-year apprenticeship could be served by age twenty-one, but this was seldom the actual practice. The shorter apprenticeships common in the American colonies were achieved by starting at a later age. Orphans were sometimes apprenticed quite young.
Were the lengths of apprenticeships different in different trades?
York County, Virginia, records show as much difference within the same trade as between trades. Differences that Europe's guild systems may have imposed were not found here because of the chronic labor shortage.
What was an indenture of apprenticeship?
An indenture of apprenticeship was a legal contract expressing the obligations of both the master and the apprentice. By the eighteenth century, the content was fairly well standardized (occasionally printed forms were used). The body of the following sample indenture is typical:

Witnesseth that the said John Stevens with the advice and consent of his Mother Anne Stevens doth put himself an Apprentice to the said George Charleton to learn the Trade, art, and Mistery of a Taylor and with him after the manner of an Apprentice to serve till he arrives to the Age of Twenty-one Years to be fully compleat & ended During which time the said Apprentice his said Master faithfully shall serve, his secrets keep his Lawfull Commands Obey He Shall not contract Matrimoney within the said Term he shall not haunt Ordinary's nor Absent himself from his Masters Service Day or Night unlawfully but in all things as a Faithfull Apprentice he shall behave himself towards his said Master and Family during the said Term AND the said George Charleton Best means he can shall Teach and Instruct or cause to be taught and instructed AND doth hereby Promise and oblige himself to find for his said Apprentice Good and Sufficient Meat Drink Washing Lodging & Cloathing during the Said Term and to Teach him to Read & Write and at the expiration of his term of servitude the said George Charleton obligeth himself to pay unto his apprentice what the law allows in such cases & agrements . . . At a Court of Hustings for the City of Williamsburg held the 5th Day of September 1748.
What laws governed apprenticeship in Virginia?
The basis of colonial laws of apprenticeship were the English 1562 Statute of Artificers and the 1601 Poor Law, which standardized customs long recognized and enforced by the guilds and local authorities.

The Virginia Poor Law of 1672 gave county courts the power to place all children, whose parents were unable to raise them, as apprentices. Churchwardens were ordered to report children in this category.

The Orphan Act of 1705 empowered the Orphan's Courts to bind out all orphans whose estates were too small to support them. It also gave the court the power to hear complaints of apprentices for ill use by their master or failure to teach his trade.
Was there a guild system in Virginia?
No. By the eighteenth century, the guild system in England was weak, and it was not established in Virginia.
Did apprentices have to pay for their apprenticeships?
It was not uncommon for a master to charge parents an apprenticeship fee, and even orphans sometimes had to pay.
Were apprentices paid?
Apprentices were provided with room and board, and sometimes given a sum of money or set of tools at the end of their apprenticeship. Occasionally they were paid during the last few years of the term.
Were African Americans apprenticed?
Yes, both free blacks and slaves were apprenticed. In the case of a slave, the legal contract was between the slave owner and the tradesman. The building trades and plantation support trades, such as coopering and blacksmithing, relied heavily on skilled black labor. Trades such as gunsmithing, cabinetmaking, baking, and bookbinding also employed black tradesmen.
Were women apprenticed?
Four females are named in the 110 York County, Virginia, apprenticeships recorded from 1747 to 1789. Earlier York County records contain several others. Generally, these apprenticeships were for household work or textile trades (spinning, weaving, or knitting).
What kind of work did an apprentice do?
In order to learn a trade, an apprentice eventually had to do all the skilled work of the trade, but he might have spent a lot of time working as a semi-skilled laborer in the first years of his apprenticeship. Very little is known about this subject.
What hours did he work?
Apprentices worked alongside their master and any journeymen in the shop. There is no evidence that the apprentice's hours would have been different from the other workers. Work hours in most trades varied both seasonally and with the length of the day and could range from as few as eight hours per day in winter to as many as sixteen hours per day in summer.
Where did he sleep?
Some contracts allowed the apprentice to live at his own home. Other contracts required the master to provide room and board, in which case the apprentice lived in the master's house, although exact sleeping arrangements are not known.
How did he dress?
The evidence shows that apprentices dressed no differently from anyone else.
What is a journeyman?
A journeyman is an individual who has completed an apprenticeship and works for wages. The term comes from the French for "day man."

Where can I find out more about apprenticeship?
Myth-conceptions about apprentices
"Apprentices had to work seven years to learn their trades." It is awfully easy to over-generalize. In colonial Virginia, the length of an apprenticeship was a mutually agreed upon period of time, not always seven years. Many young persons served only four-year apprenticeships. On the other hand, several indentures recorded in York County, Virginia, stated that the terms were to last until the apprentice reached the age of twenty-one, regardless of the age at which the youth began. Having served that time, the apprentice, no matter what his skill level was, was free of his indenture. He could then work for wages as a journeyman, or, if he could afford the costs of setting up his own shop, he could be a master.

This Q & A is adapted from an article written by Gary Brumfield, Manager of Historic Area Communications, and Harold Gill, historian, retired from the Department of Historical Research, The Colonial Williamsburg Foundation. The article first appeared in the July 1981 issue of the Colonial Williamsburg Interpreter.

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colonial williamsburg family vacation packages

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An apprenticeship was a legal contract between the apprentice and master craftsman. These contracts were often drawn up, signed before the courts, entered into a deed book, and considered binding. As part of the contract, an apprentice agreed to keep trade secrets, obtain his master's permission before leaving the premises, and abstain from vices such as frequenting taverns and the theater.

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Kids learn about the history of women's roles during colonial America including education, dialy work, rules, legal status, enslaved women, facts, and the wealthy.

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Home Life of Colonial Women
The life of women was focussed on the home. The homes of Colonial women were invariably drafty, badly heated, had no running water, no bathrooms or indoor toilets. Lighting was dim and provided by candles and whale-oil lamps. Travel was difficult as there initially were no roads. Towns were generally dirty without garbage collection and proper sewers. This led to various diseases with few doctors and limited medical knowledge to heal the sick.

Cooking: Usually over over a fire or in brick ovens - Refer to Colonial Food

Heating: Preparing the fires

Lighting: Making candles

Housework: Making soap. Cleaning was never ending with dust everywhere form the open fires

Emptying chamber pots

Clothes: Spinning, weaving, knitting and making clothes

Laundry: Washing and ironing clothes

Tending the sick: Including collecting herbs and making remedies

Childcare

Caring for Livestock: Farm or plantation life required Colonial women to feed the animals, milk the cows, gather eggs etc

The work and tasks undertaken would vary according to the status of the woman.

Colonial Women did not have the right to vote

Colonial Women did not have the right to hold and form of public office

Colonial Women did not have the right to serve on juries

The rights of unmarried women and widows. Widows and unmarried women could:

Make a will

Buy or sell property

Act as a guardian

Had the right to sue or be sued

A widow received a one-third interest in the personal property of her deceased husband (one-half if there were no children)

The rights of married women. When a Colonial woman married her legal identity virtually disappeared. The legal existence of the woman was suspended during the marriage. Any property or goods including livestock and money left to a married woman in a will also was owned by the husband. A husband owned whatever belonged to his wife, except for personal items such as clothes and jewelry. Children legally belonged to their fathers. Married women had fewer rights than unmarried women or widows. Married women:

Could not make a will without the explicit consent of her husband.

Could not buy property

Could not make a contract

Could not sue or be sued in court

Colonial Women - Wealthy European Colonial Women
The wealthy Colonial Women from Europe of the later colonial years enjoyed a life that was similar to that they would have experienced in Europe. Wealth enabled them to live in great town houses and colonial mansions. Their clothes were highly elaborate and made of velvets, satins and silks. Their lifestyle was centered around the house, ensuring the servants and slaves performed the tasks necessary to run such a stylish home. The social life of Colonial women who lived in towns was focussed on visiting other women and arranging special social events where their husbands could meet with their contemporaries. Additional information is available in Colonial Society.

Colonial Women - Indentured Servants
A massive 80% of of the total British and continental emigration to America prior to the American Revolutionary War were Indentured Servants. Indentured servants were men and women who were contracted to work for a fixed period of from 5 to 7 years in exchange for basic necessities such as food, clothing and lodging during their term of Indenture. Indentured Servants were not paid any wages. A woman who became pregnant as an Indentured servant often had years added on to the end of her service time. Colonial women who were Indentured servants had few rights. They could not vote, they were not allowed to marry or even leave their houses or travel without permission. Indentured servants were not allowed to buy or sell anything. Additional information is available via Indentured Servants.

Colonial Women - Slaves
The slaves in Colonial America had no rights at all. The first actual definition by the colonies of slavery defined slaves as those of "lifelong, inheritable, racial status."20% of the population of North America were slaves and 90% lived in the Southern Colonies. They were bought and sold at the whim of their owners. Cheap labor was essential for the Slave Plantations to become profitable. Slaves, both men and women, worked all year round undertaking back breaking work for up to eighteen hours every day. The women were compelled to do as much work as the men, even if they were pregnant. The colonial women who were plantation slaves lived in basic, crude wooden cabins consisting of one or two rooms, often with a dirt floor, in the slave quarters. Their children became the property of their owners.

Slave Trade starting in Africa

Colonial Women - Native American Indians

Colonial Women

Interesting Facts and information about the Colonial Woman

Facts and info about the Colonial Woman - wealthy, poor, indentured servants and slaves

Fast Facts and info about the Colonial Woman

The Colonial Woman - and educational resource for kids

Social Studies Homework help for kids on the Colonial Women

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Home Life of Colonial Women The life of women was focussed on the home. The homes of Colonial women were invariably drafty, badly heated, had no running water, no bathrooms or indoor toilets. Lighting was dim and provided by candles and whale-oil lamps. Travel was difficult as there initially were no roads.

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Apprenticeship was a system of on-the-job training which was based on ancient and medieval practices. England systematized the training and in 1601 "The Poor Law" was transferred to the American Colonies. Eventually Massachusetts and Virginia passed laws in favor of the formation of this educational endeavor.

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Trades and Skills in Colonial America website

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Trades and Skills in Colonial America website

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https://web.winnetka36.org/skokieresearch/colonialamerica/trades_and_skills.html

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Ponder this for a moment: You're 13 years old, you live on a struggling farm in the country with your entire family, and your father just told you that he has set up an apprenticeship for you with a printer in Boston.

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Religion in the Colonies: The religious beliefs and the quest of the colonists for religious freedom

Religion in the Colonies
Religion in the Colonies was extremely diverse and many of the religious groups, such as the Puritans and the Quakers established the first of the 13 colonies on the basis of their religious beliefs. The long, hazardous, 3000 mile trip from Europe to North America was undertaken by many in a search for religious freedom.

Religion in the Colonies - The Salem Witchcraft Trials
The Salem Witchcraft Trials occurred in 1692 and were another example of religious fervor in the Puritan colony of Massachusetts. The Salem Witchcraft Trials lasted for three months in which accusations of witchcraft were made against both men and women. The Salem Witchcraft Trials resulted in 100-200 arrests, 19 people were sentenced to death by hanging, one old man was pressed to death under heavy stones, one man was stoned to death and two dogs were executed as suspected accomplices of witches (familiars).

Religion in the Colonies - Religious Tolerance and Diversity
Eventually this type of religious persecution ended and other religions began to appear in the Puritan based colonies. Other colonies were established where religious tolerance was exercised. The colonists from different countries in Europe adhered to various religions including Roman Catholic, Jewish, Lutheran, Protestant, Anglican, Quakers and Presbyterians. Religious diversity had become a dominant part of religion in the colonies and colonial life.

Religion in the Colonies - The Catholic Religion and the Glorious Revolution
Under the rule of King James II of England (reigned 1685 - 11 December 1688) the American colonists were under the direct control of the monarch. As a staunch Catholic, James II was attempting to replace Protestant institutions with Roman Catholic ones. T he vast majority of Colonists were Protestants - Only 1.6% of the population were Roman Catholics. The Protestants detested the Catholics and feared the bloody persecutions they had left behind in Europe. King James II believed in 'the Divine Right of Kings' and tried to create religious liberty for English Roman Catholics and Protestant nonconformists against the wishes of the English Parliament which led to the Glorious Revolution in which James was replaced by King William III and Queen Mary II. The Glorious Revolution and the subsequent revolts in the colonies were precursors to the American Revolution.

The Evangelists held conservative theological views believing in the Bible as the word of God and sufficient for salvation. The Evangelist movement was characterized by revival meetings and
emotional conversion - refer to the Great Awakening

The Unitarian Religion - Liberal Christians who assert the unity of God but reject the doctrine of the Trinity.
Individual freedom of belief and a united world community

The Congregationalists - Its Protestant organisation is based on the freedom of each church to control its affairs. The Congregational Church eventually grew out of the Puritan Church and was formally established in the New England colonies, except Rhode Island

Deist - Believe that God exists and created the universe but does not intervene in the world. An enlightenment religion, partly a reaction against Calvinism and religious superstition, emphasizing reason and morality but rejecting supernatural events such as miracles, prophecy and divine revelation in holy books prominent in organized religion

Religion in the Colonies

Religion in the Colonies

The different types of Religion in the Colonies

Fast Facts and info about Religion in the Colonies

Religion in the Colonies is a great history resource for kids

Social Studies Homework help for kids and children - Religion in the Colonies

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Religion in the Colonies: The religious beliefs and the quest of the colonists for religious freedom Religion in the Colonies Religion in the Colonies was extremely diverse and many of the religious groups, such as the Puritans and the Quakers established the first of the 13 colonies on the basis of their religious beliefs.

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BASED ON THE BIBLE: EDUCATION IN THE NEW ENGLAND COLONIES

In the New England colonies, the Puritans built their society almost entirely on the precepts of the Bible. The Puritans, in particular, valued education, because they believed that Satan was keeping those who couldn't read from the scriptures. According to The American Colonial Gazette, about two-thirds of Puritan men and one-third of Puritan women could sign their names -- the accepted standard of literacy for the time.

Many young Puritans, primarily boys ages six to eight, learned reading, spelling, and prayers at a "dame school," run very much like a home day care. Later, either the boys went on to a Latin grammar school to prepare for college and an eventual religious or political career or they trained in a trade. Girls usually continued their education -- in household skills -- at home.

A PRACTICAL MATTER: EDUCATION IN THE MIDDLE COLONIES

In the middle colonies, where, according to the Gazette, about half the adults could sign their names, colonial leaders agreed that education was important but were not concerned with providing it. The decision of whether to educate children was left to individual families until 1683, when a Pennsylvania law was passed, requiring that all children be taught to read and write and be trained in a useful trade. Pennsylvania's first school was established that same year.

A variety of local religious groups ran most schools in the middle colonies and stressed the practical aspects of education. All boys learned a skill or trade. Depending on their social class, they might also study classical languages, history and literature, mathematics, and natural science. Girls were tutored at home in a variety of household and social skills.

A QUESTION OF CLASS: EDUCATION IN THE SOUTHERN COLONIES

In the southern colonies, children generally began their education at home. Because the distances between farms and plantations made community schools impossible, plantation owners often hired tutors to teach boys math, classical languages, science, geography, history, etiquette, and plantation management. Most then completed their education in England. A governess usually taught the girls enough reading, writing, and arithmetic to run a household and the social skills to attract a husband.

Class differences were most pronounced in the South, where only upper-class men were widely educated. The Gazette reports that, in Virginia, literacy among the male gentry was almost 100 percent, and only 40 percent of laborers, 25 percent of upper class women, and 1 percent of slaves could sign their names.

© 2000 by Education World®. Permission is granted to teachers to reproduce this skill page for classroom use.

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Education World ® Lesson Planning Skills Page: Education In The Colonies

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In the New England colonies, the Puritans built their society almost entirely on the precepts of the Bible. The Puritans, in particular, valued education, because they believed that Satan was keeping those who couldn't read from the scriptures.

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http://www.socialstudiesforkids.com/articles/ushistory/13coloniesschool.htm

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Education in the Thirteen American Colonies

If you were a school-age person in colonial America, you might have gone to a public or private school, just like you would today. But what you learned and how you learned it have changed through the years.

the New England colonies, parents believed that their children should learn about Christianity. To that end, parents taught their children to read so they could read the Bible. And once those kids knew how to read, they could read school books as well. New England villages having more than 100 families set up In grammar schools, which taught boys Latin and math and other subjects needed to get into college. And although girls could read, they weren't allowed to go to grammar school or to college.

Middle Colonies schools were also largely religious but taught the teachings of one religion. If you were a Catholic, you learned about the Catholic religion. Most schools were private. Students also learned other subjects so they could get into college. Again, girls weren't allowed to attend, unless they were Quakers.

School-age kids in the Southern Colonies were taught at home, for the most part, by their parents or by private tutors. When these kids became teenagers, they would then go off to college or to Europe. As in the other colonies, Southern girls did not go to school.

were generally small, not like the large ones many kids go to today. Kids learned to read from special books called Schools hornbooks.

Kids in colonial America were taught a trade, usually the one their fathers did, so they could continue the family business when their fathers retired. Often, kids would go to school and learn a trade.

Graphics courtesy of ArtToday

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Education in the Thirteen American Colonies If you were a school-age person in colonial America, you might have gone to a public or private school, just like you would today. But what you learned and how you learned it have changed through the years.