Electronic Theses and Dissertations Archive

Date

2026

Document Type

Thesis

Degree Name

Master of Arts

Department

History

Committee Chair

Bradley Dixon

Committee Member

Bradley Dixon

Committee Member

Christine Eisel

Committee Member

Cristina Woolner

Abstract

Abstract In colonial Virginia and Maryland, indentured servants were the primary engine of the colony's economy. In theory, the temporary exchange of labor for passage and potential social mobility offered women and men a similar opportunity to rise above their original station. However, the historical research of the past few decades has revealed that women had a distinctly different experience with the law than men. This thesis will argue that colonial law defined a particular and punitive form of servitude for white indentured women, viewing them as reproductive liabilities rather than as purely in economic assets. While The author has examined Virginia and Maryland Statutes, County Court Petitions, and Runaway Ads from 1650 to 1770 to determine how colonial law sought to monetize women's biology by fining their ability to bear children. Male servants were primarily monitored for their labor output; women, however, were subjected to surveillance that monitored both their labor in a tobacco economy, and their ability to reproduce human life. The thesis examines the legal means by which the state regulated women's bodies and, in particular, the Bastardy Laws that extended the length of service for women who became pregnant during their contracts. These laws effectively converted pregnancy and childbirth into a debt owed by an indentured woman in the form of additional years of service.

Comments

Data is provided by the student.”

Library Comment

Dissertation or thesis originally submitted to ProQuest/Clarivate.

Notes

Open Access

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