This note is a sketch of the endeavors that Alexander Spotswood undertook to ensure his own financial security. Predominantly these were private motivations, not public motivations, though it is impossible to separate entirely his private motivations from the public motivations. He was a master of using a public motive to secure a benefit for himself. For example, he secured public funds to build Fort Germanna, which had the happy coincidence of being but a short distance from a piece of ground, of which he was a part owner, where it was thought there might be silver.
This silver mine endeavor was his first attempt to help himself financially. It came to naught because no silver was to be found. In his diary, John Fontaine, describes the efforts in 1716 to assay whether there was silver. Probably by this time, there was some doubt, and it would seem that no major effort was made beyond then.
Before this time, the Virginia Indian Company had been formed and operations commenced almost immediately in early 1715 (NS). This seems to have been going very well. William Byrd, among others, says that the Company was very profitable. According to Beresford's letter, Spotswood was building a good home at Christanna, where he planned on living if he lost his job as Governor. He had plenty of reasons to suspect that he might lose his job, as the opposition in Virginia was strongly against him. The rug was yanked from under him, though, by the suspension of the Act which had created the Trading Company. By 1716 or 1717 he was looking for yet another alternative in which to invest.
He decided then that land was the medium he would use. The major purpose of the trip over the mountains in 1716 was to explore the land to the west of Germanna, and to ascertain how safe it would be to establish settlers there. He decided that the land was good but the need was for settlers and he wanted Germans. He let the ship captains know this and one of them supplied him with seventy odd Germans to settle on the land west of Germanna.
At about the same time as these Germans arrived, a letter came from Sir Richard, and others in England, which requested Spotswood to search for iron ore. Spotswood said he set his Germans to work to look for the iron ore about the start of 1718, though, probably, the Germans had found iron ore before this. About two years later, Sir Richard and his associates backed out of this and Spotswood continued with others. By this time, Spotswood says that he had spent more than sixty pounds sterling in the search. This sum is too small to include a furnace, so that by the start of 1720 when the iron mine land was patented, the ore was located but no furnace had been built.
Spotswood regarded iron as a possible income source but it was still a second fiddle in his plans. He was remembering that the Virginia Indian Company had been cancelled in London and he was afraid the iron venture might be also. So he approached it slowly, with minimal expenditures.
I would appreciate hearing from all if they have comments to make on this.
(08 Sep 04)
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.