Glossary: Post Revolutionary War Emancipation
Glossary terms are listed in the order in which they appear.
| Manumitted | Freed from enslavement privately and voluntarily by one’s slaveholder. |
| Freedom suits | An enslaved individual formally petitioning or suing in a court for his or her freedom. |
| Gradual emancipation law | Legislation that granted freedom to enslaved people over time given certain criteria, such as age. |
| Petitioning | Officially bringing grievances or requests to a governing body |
| Ordinance | law |
| Indentured servant | Men and women who signed a contract or indenture to work for a certain number of years in return for transportation to the American colonies and food, clothing, and shelter once they arrived. After completion of their contract, they were given freedom. |
