The Second Colony members were probably in the service of Alexander Spotswood for seven years. There is no written statement that specifies the length of the time and we are left with asking the questions, "When did they arrive?", and "When did they leave?" We do not have definitive answers to these questions either, but we do have some information.
We know that the Second Colony left their homes in Germany about the middle of July in 1717. The Gemmingen pastor recorded the departure of six families from his parish and implied that they were just leaving at that time. It would be August before they were in Rotterdam, and there would be a delay finding a ship to London. In London, the biggest delay was the wait for the captain of the ship they had contracted with to be released from debtor's prison. Some say this was eight weeks. A departure from London could hardly occur before the first of November, or perhaps even December. Ten weeks was a good crossing time westward on the Atlantic. It is very unlikely that they arrived before December 31, 1717.
But you might ask, "Didn't they arrive in 1717?" At that time, until March 25 the year remained at 1717. They might have arrived in February (of what would be 1718 by our calendar today) and they would say they arrived in 1717 if they used the calendar in effect in Virginia at the time.
Counting out the years of servitude, 1718, 1719, 1720, 1721, 1722, 1723, and 1724, would make seven years. They probably left in the winter of 1725 (by the modern calendar) as this would give them time to clear ground, plant crops, and build shelters before the growing season started. If they left early in the year of 1725 (modern calendar), then they would have put in seven years (plus perhaps another month or two) of service for Spotswood.
Did they move in 1725? According to the petition of Stoever, Smith, and Holt (in London) in 1734, they moved in 1725 to the very borders of the country under the Great Ridge of Mountains. What calendar were they using? The old style was in effect. What season was it? These are the difficulties of pinning a date for the move, as we do have some numbers, but the reference frame is not clear.
Road making activity in the region from Germanna to the Robinson River Valley suggests that the Germans were at the Robinson River in 1725. Putting it all together, the Second Colony members probably worked for Alexander Spotswood for seven years. It would be a mistake to count any part of the year 1717 (by the modern calendar) in those years of servitude.
(12 Apr 03)
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.