R. T. Green published " Genealogical and Historical Notes on Culpeper County, Virginia " in 1900, after Willis Kemper had published the " Genealogy of the Kemper Family ". Green included comments on Germanna. The first section was short and appears to have been written without any knowledge of Kemper's writings. The opening sentence started, "On a peninsular of 400 acres of land on the banks of the Rapid Anne, which was settled by about four-score Germans, whom he [Spotswood] brought thither to conduct his iron manufactories; . . ." The " 400 acres of land " can be traced to the writings of Col. Byrd in 1732, though the actual land on the peninsular was nearer to 1300 acres. The fourscore of Germans that Green mentions would normally be the second group of Germans but they were never at Germanna. It was the first group of Germans of about forty-two people that was at Germanna. The implication that the Germans were brought thither to run the iron manufactories is incorrect, as they were settled at Germanna to search for silver. The iron works were never at Germanna. When the iron works did exist, which was several years later, they were thirteen miles away from Germanna.
It is ironic, but Green never recognized that the fourscore of Germans were the first settlers of Culpeper County, about which he was writing.
At the end of Green's work, he notes that Willis Kemper had visited Germany (in 1900). He quotes Kemper then at some length. These statements are much the same as the ones discussed here in recent notes. Using just the opening statement of Kemper as quoted by Green:
"Several years prior to 1714 Gov. Spotswood discovered deposits of iron ore on the large tracts of land he had entered, where Germanna was afterwards located, in Spotsylvania (now Orange) county. He spent much time arranging his plans to work this one, and in getting the Queen's (Ann) permission, and in having the royal share determined. After these matters were adjusted he needed iron miners and iron workers, to mine the ore, and build the furnaces and run them, and there were none in Virginia. . . [Graffenried] arranged to get miners for him from Germany. . ."
There are at least eight errors in these statements which have essentially been covered in recent notes. The important point to make now is that the mistakes of a family genealogy and its associated historical background are entering into the general history of Virginia. Green's work and writings were accepted more widely than Kemper's comments might have been. " Notes on Culpeper County " has been reprinted several times, at least in 1958, 1964, and 1971. So the Germanna errors, some of which were published by Slaughter, but the more serious of which originated with Kemper, have received wide circulation.
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.