The Germanna Colonies started with one group of forty-two people who came to Virginia in 1714. This group arrived rather accidentally in that, while they had left Germany (Nassau-Siegen) with a purpose, things had fallen apart in London. Through the willingness of the Germans to work in America for their passage money, they were able to come on. They ended up in Virginia in the employ of Lt. Gov. Spotswood. Since the status of the Germans was most uncertain in an English colony, and since Spotswood saw a future for them in mining silver, he was careful to describe the many benefits that would accrue from their settlement on the frontier. To help sell the endeavor to Queen Anne, he named the German's frontier fort, Germanna, after the Germans and after Queen Anne.
It appears very definitely that Spotswood let Captains of ships, which might bring immigrants, know that he was interested in a large number of Germans. One captain obliged with upwards of seventy Germans in a mass kidnaping. These were settled on the western lands in agricultural and naval stores project.
At the time these groups were not known as the First and Second Colonies. More likely they were known as the miners and as the Palatines, respectively. After this, the English had to do very little recruiting of Germans, as the Germans sent home letters and emissaries inviting other Germans to come. For a while, many of these Germans came directly to Virginia, but before long the major port of entry became Philadelphia.
Communication among the Germans, up and down the eastern seaboard, was better than conditions of the times might have suggested. Principally, news traveled by word of mouth, not by letter or post. Coupled with the population surge in Pennsylvania, a mass movement started from Pennsylvania, which carried people down to the Carolinas and Georgia. Many of these people passed through or stayed in the geographical area first settled by the Germanna people. Meanwhile, the population of Virginia was experiencing its own boom. Many of the Virginians joined the flow to the south and to the west.
All of this activity makes the definition of a Germanna Colonist difficult. Geographically, one might say that any German who lived for a period of time east of the Blue Ridge Mountains (the Piedmont) was a Germanna Colonist. But, already by 1750, descendants of these people were moving south. Even though they left the area, we still they say they are Germanna Colonists. And by now, many of these people had English ancestors as well as German ancestors.
We know that they people created history before they reached the Virginia Piedmont and they made history after they left the Piedmont. We find our history of many Germanna people outside the Piedmont.
Therefore, as I write these notes, I am motivated to use material which is broader than the narrow definition of Germanna based on a small geographical area might suggest.
All Germans shared a lot, though Germany was not a unified nation or culture. I do not feel that I am amiss in talking or writing about the Pennsylvania Dutch, or the Valley (Shenandoah) Germans, or the Germans in the Moravian communes in North Carolina.
This list exists for all to use. You can be a reader, a contributor, one who asks, or all of the above. Good questions make good contributions.
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.