Before the Second Colony had moved from New Germantown to their new and permanent homes, more immigrants were moving in. Some of these individuals came in a remarkably short time. Remember that the Second Colony members had planned to go to Pennsylvania, so if more Germans arrived in Virginia within a couple of years, they were either accidentals (as the bird watchers say), or they knew they wanted to go to Virginia.
Apparently, the Second Colony members wrote home immediately after their arrival, so their friends and relatives knew where they were (in VA, not in PA, as originally intended). That they were friends or relatives (or even both) seems obvious by the case of Christopher Zimmerman and Nicholas Kabler. Both of these families were from Sulzfeld. Christopher said he came in 1717, while Nicholas said he came in 1719. Both settled in the Mt. Pony area, and both were described as being coopers. It would appear that Christopher Zimmerman wrote home as soon as he arrived and told the folks in Sulzfeld where he was. Considering the pace of mail then, which had a hit or miss aurora to it, it seems that Nicholas Kabler must have made his decision to go almost immediately upon receiving the news. It is certainly hard to escape the conclusion that he was influenced by a knowledge of Christopher Zimmerman's location.
Some writers have referred to a Third Colony, and even implied that it was larger than the either of the first two colonies. It does not appear that there was an organized "3rd" group. There were several families that came in the time period of 1718 to about 1755. It is a mistake to refer to a Third Colony, but the Germans did continue to come. By 1724, Spotswood could say there were about a hundred Germans, implying they were at New Germantown. Since the original contingent was seventy-odd (or eighty-odd, or ninety-odd,depending on whom you include), the increase would probably consist of two elements, natural net growth of the original group, plus new comers.
The new comers are best described as a series of individuals who either were coming at the invitation of friends and relatives, or of accidentals, who, for one reason or another, found themselves in Virginia. At the same time, it appears that some individuals were already leaving Virginia, perhaps under the cover of a dark night. On a net balance the German communities grew steadily until the time of the Revolution, when both immigration from Europe stopped, and migration within the Colonies probably slowed.
Many, perhaps most, of these new individuals never lived anywhere near the fort at Germanna, which, strictly speaking, is the one spot that can be called Germanna. So the question is raised and debated, "What is a Germanna Colonist?"
Readers Comments:Elke Hall points out that among the reasons our ancestors came was "forced deportation". Sometimes a city council would become so fed up with the behavior of a family, or the cost of maintaining a family, that they sponsored a trip to the New World as a cheaper alternative. (Christoph von Graffenried got started in colonizing plans because he had a contract with the city fathers of Berne to take a number of Anabaptists out of Berne.) Elke also points out that when a person left Germany, he surrendered his citizenship and could not go back to his old home. This was the case of the First Colony members in London, when Graffenried defaulted on his promises and suggested they go home. At that time, they had no home.
We gratefully acknowledge the work of John Blankenbaker who published over 2,500 Germanna History Notes via the Germanna-L@rootsweb.com email list from 1997 to 2008. We are equally thankful to George Durman (Sgt. George) for hosting the list and republishing the notes via rootsweb.com.