The lawsuits brought by Spotswood against the Germans dragged on because his attorneys delayed the trial dates. The court repeatedly warned the attorneys that further delays would not be allowed. But, it is a mark of the standing and favoritism shown the plaintiff that these warnings were not implemented.
Thirteen cases were tried before a jury and six other cases were dismissed, for a variety of reasons. The second case tried was against Conrad Amberger. Spotswood sought thirty-two pounds in damages. The jury who heard the case awarded Spotswood the sum of two pounds, thirteen shillings, one and a half pence. Even under the favorable circumstances for the plaintiff that the cases were being tried, the jury awarded Spotswood less than ten percent in the case of Amberger. Only in four cases was Spotswood awarded more than half of what he asked. The most severe judgment was against George Moyers who had been sued for more than twenty-four pounds and who was judged to owe more than fifteen pounds. In this case, William Beverley, son and heir of Robert Beverley who was an original partner in the project, testified. Moyers had not been one of the people for whom Spotswood paid the transportation. Mostly likely, Beverley had paid his transportation. When William Beverley sold his inherited interest to Spotswood, Spotswood picked up the claims of Robert Beverley. When the suit came to trial, William Beverley was called to testify.
The last trial, of George Sheible, took place on 8 Dec 1726. Four others were also heard on this same date. By then, the Germans had moved to their new homes near Mt. Pony or in the Robinson River Valley. (This meant that it was a twenty-five mile trip one-way to attend court.) Most of the trials were conducted without Spotswood being present, since he went to England late in 1724 for an extended visit.
The trip of Spotswood was motivated in part by business. His titles to major elements of his vast landed empire were clouded. The patents he applied for under the legislation creating Spotsylvania County were not allowed. He wished to clarify the titles and/or to reduce the cost.
Apparently, the other motivation of Spotswood was to find a wife. In this he did succeed and when he returned to Virginia in about five years he brought a wife and two children to his home at Germanna.
To obtain his land titles, he had to pay headright fees on the larger tracts. In part, he did this by using the headrights of forty-eight of the Germans. Whereas he had declared earlier that the Germans were free, by using their headrights he was in essence claiming they were indentured servants of his. It was typical of the man to change his statements and claims to best benefit himself. This has complicated the understanding of his history and requires that multiple sources be used.
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.