redemptioner

American  

[ri-demp-shuh-ner] / rɪˈdɛmp ʃə nər /

noun

American History.

1. an emigrant from Europe to America who obtained passage by becoming an indentured servant for a specified period of time.

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redemptioner British  

/ rɪˈdɛmpʃənə /

noun

1. history an emigrant to Colonial America who paid for his passage by becoming an indentured servant

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Etymology

Origin of redemptioner

First recorded in 1765–75; redemption + -er ¹

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

redemptioner

But although the redemptioner sometimes fared very badly in the new country, it often happened that he came out very well in the end.

From Stories of New Jersey by Frank Richard Stockton

A redemptioner was an emigrant whose services for a certain period were liable to be sold to the highest bidder for the payment of his passage to America.

From Strange True Stories of Louisiana by George Washington Cable

The redemptioner was still in demand in the Middle States.

From A Brief History of the United States by John Bach McMaster

Mr. Quimby bought him at the wharf out of a redemptioner ship.

From Pencil Sketches or, Outlines of Character and Manners by Eliza Leslie

Perhaps the most noted of these was Matthew Lyon of Vermont, known as "the Hampden of Congress," who, on his arrival in New York in 1765, was sold as a "redemptioner" to pay his passage-money.

From The Glories of Ireland by P. J. Lennox