Native Americans were the first peoples to succumb to slavery by the Europeans. Due to the mining of gold and silver they seemed like the obvious choice. However, the Natives were not so easily taken into slavery and the diseases that were brought to them decreased their numbers drastically. Once the Natives proved to be a fruitless plan the Europeans looked to their own country for those less fortunate to use as slaves. British colonists became convinced that Africans best served their demand for labor thus importation began. By the turn of the eighteenth century African slaves numbered in the tens of thousands in the British colonies.
Virginia would become the first British colony to legally establish slavery. Maryland and the Carolinas
Virginia would become the first British colony to legally establish slavery. Maryland and the Carolinas