John Blankenbaker's Germanna History Notes

Note 1503

Major Drysdale wrote to the Commissioners for Trade and Plantation on 14 Feb 1724 (NS).  He reported on the action taken,

"...to remedy current abuses in the survey of land whereby the payment of quit rents was avoided, changes in the existing arrangements for sale by auction of the tobacco handed in as payment of quit rents, a proclamation issued repealing the Act passed in 1720 for the better government of the imported Convicts in accordance with the order of the Privy Council and the receipt of the decision agreeing to the remittance of quit rent and land rights in the two new frontier counties for a stated time."
Drysdale's next letter to the Board seems to be one of 6 June 1724.  He reported that his predecessor,
"...Col. Spotswood, had granted very large parcels of land in the two newly created Counties (especially in Spotsylvania) to patentees, without giving proof of Rights but obliged them to sign unusual bonds of little real value, that instead of limiting grants to a maximum of 1000 per applicant, Col. Spotswood had granted up to 40,000 acres to an individual [i.e., himself, indirectly], that Col. Spotswood had thus acquired large areas of land for himself and asking for guidance as to his policy in dealing with the matter.  (Drysdale) also reported that some 125,000 acres of previously settled land had been deliberately included in the bounds of the new County of Spotsylvania so as to obtain benefit of the remission of quit rents etc."
[This letter made it to London in two months, a typical east-bound time, which was shorter than the west-bound time due to the Gulf Stream current.]

An investigation showed that on 23 December 1720, when the Act for the creation of the two new Counties was passed, that application was made for nine tracts totaling 91,500 acres.  [I believe that these applications were made on the same day that the Act passed.  Obviously there had been some advance planning.]

Shortly after these letters from Drysdale, the Board urged that Spotswood appear before them and explain his actions.  He did go, and pursued the title to his land in Virginia.  Data began to flow into London on Spotswood's land acquisitions.  There was a copy of a patent to John Clayton, Thomas Jones, & Richard Hickman, in trust for Col. Spotswood, for 40.000 acres of land in Spotsylvania County.  [I have plotted this and it is closer to 65,000 acres than to 40,000 acres.]

Richard Hickman sent a statement that Col. Spotswood had 86,650 acres of land in Spotsylvania County.

Major Drysdale had a hard time trying to sort through the decisions of the Privy Council in London, and the actions that had been taken in Virginia.

[Incidentally, the Second Colony people had been living on the 40,000 acre tract since early 1718.]

One of the techniques used to avoid Quit Rents was "delayed filing".  A portion of the 40,000 acre tract had been claimed by Robert Beverley since at least 1710.
(19 Oct 02)

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.