A hearight is a legal grant of land, usually to settlers moving into an area uninhabited by settlers. Headrights are most notable for their role in the expansion of the thirteen British colonies in North America; the Virginia Company of London granted headrights to settlers, and the Plymouth Company followed suit. Most headrights were for 1 to 100 [acre]s of land, and were given to anyone willing to cross the Atlantic Ocean and help populate the colonies. These were granted to anyone who would pay for the transportation costs of a laborer or Indentured servant. By giving the land to the landowning masters the indentured servants had little or no chance to procure their own land. This kept many colonials poor and led to strife between the poor servants and wealthy landowners.