Why were debtors prisons abolished in England?
After the War of 1812, many Americans were in debt and the idea of the new Federation jailing its own people for debt, after throwing the British oppressors out, was not very palatable to the fledgling country. As a result, Congress abolished the practice of jailing bad debtors under federal law in 1833.
When did England do away with debtors prison?
Over half the population of England’s prisons in the 18th and early 19th centuries were in jail because of debt, and during the same period, some 10,000 people were imprisoned for debt each year. Imprisonment for debt only ended in 1869.
What happened to debtors?
The United States ostensibly eliminated the imprisonment of debtors under federal law in 1833 leaving the practice of debtors’ prisons to states.