Kit's grandfather owned a plantation in Barbados. He hired a man named Bryant to be the overseer of the plantation. The job of an overseer was to manage the estate and the slaves who worked on it.

Over time, Kit's grandfather's health began to decline. As his health faded, he gave Bryant more responsibilities on the plantation. He did not monitor him as closely. Kit described what had happened the previous winter:

Last winter Bryant sold off the whole crop and then disappeared. Probably he sailed back to England on the trading ship (The Witch of Blackbird Pond, Chapter 3).

Kit and her grandfather were shocked at Bryant's actions. Her grandfather had trusted him. They had depended on the money from the crops to run the plantation and to live on. After Bryant left, her grandfather's health continued to decline. He sank into debt, as he did not have the money from the crops to pay his bills. After her grandfather passed away, Kit sold everything they owned to repay his debts.

What does the overseer of Kit's grandfather's plantation do in The Witch of Blackbird Pond?

Kit's grandfather had hired an overseer named Bryant to manage the daily workings of his plantation in Barbados. At first, the overseer did not do most of the work on the plantation. Instead, Kit's grandfather managed much of the work. As Kit's grandfather grew older and was "not able to manage the plantation," he began to give "more and more [responsibility] to the overseer." Bryant oversaw the growing and harvesting of the crops on the plantation, as well as managed the slaves. The winter before Kit's arrival in Wethersfield, Bryant sold all of the crops from the recent harvest and pocketed the money. Then he disappeared from the plantation and the area. It was assumed by Kit and by others that he had returned to England with the stolen money from the crops. Because of this and other reasons, Kit's grandfather died with significant debts.