Of the 104 people called 1620 Mayflower passengers, at least twenty were servants or wards: William Button, Robert Carter, "Carver's maidservant," Edward Doty, William Holbeck, John Hooke, John Howland, John Langmore, William Latham, Edward Lester, Desire Minter, the four More children, Solomon Prower, George Soule, Elias Story, Edward Thompson, and Roger Wilder. Of these, twelve died during the first year, and thus there is no way of knowing what they might have become. Servants were employed by both Separatist and non-Separatist alike. Carver's maidservant married and died within a few years. Edward Doty became a freeman and quite prosperous, as did John Howland, who also rose to some distinction as a leader and Assistant. William Latham and Edward Lester left Plymouth and apparently were not too successful elsewhere. Desire Minter returned to England and died there. Of the four More children, only Richard More survived the first year, and he eventually moved to Salem, where he became a prosperous merchant and sea captain. George Soule became a freeman and prosperous. Thus from the beginning there was upward mobility, at least for some.

The contract or covenant was an almost inviolate part of servitude, and was to be strictly observed by both parties. Though this was not always honored by one or the other party, whenever any breaches came to the attention of the court, it almost invariably decided in favor of strict compliance. Even a relatively short-term period of service could be by covenant, such as when Richard Bishop hired himself to Love Brewster for the term of one whole year from 25 November 1638 and was to have for his service £3 in money and twenty bushels of Indian corn.16

A classic case of compliance involved Mayflower passenger Stephen Hopkins, whose unmarried servant Dorothy Temple, on showing signs of pregnancy, named the father as the recently executed Arthur Peach (who was therefore not available to marry her). The court ordered on 4 February 1638/39 "in regard by her covenant of indenture shee hath yet above two yeares to serve him, that the said Mr. Hopkins shall keepe her and her child, or provide shee may be kept with food and rayment during the said terme; and if he refuse so to doe, that then the collony provide for her, & Mr. Hopkins to pay it." On the same day the court ordered "Mr. Steephen Hopkins is committed to ward for his contempt to the Court, and shall so remayne comitted until hee shall either receive his servant Dorothy [p.184] Temple, or els provide for her elsewhere at his owne charge during the terme shee hath yet to serve him."

On 8 February 1638/39 the court noted that Hopkins had concluded an agreement with Mr. John Holmes for £3 and other considerations to discharge Hopkins and the colony of responsibility for the support of Dorothy Temple and her child, and the said Dorothy was to serve the remainder of her time with Holmes.17 Hopkins had been an Assistant as recently as 1636.

It would appear that in, as in England, female servants were objects of male lust. On 29 March 1655 John Peck of Rehoboth was presented, and later fined fifty shillings, for "attempting the chastitie of his fathers mayde to satisfy his fleshly, beastly lust, and that many times for some yeares space, without any intent to marry her, but was alwaies resisted by the mayde, as hee confesseth." In the case of a maid who did give in to the importunities of a male servant, Jane Powell, servant to William Swift of Sandwich, confessed to a charge of fornication with David Ogillior, an Irishman, servant to Edward Sturgis, saying she was lured into it "by him goeing for water one evening, hopeing to have married him, beeing shee was in a sadd and miserable condition by hard service."