In the last two notes, we have examined some of the reasons that Spotswood had for the trip across the Blue Ridge Mountains (called at that time “The Great Mountains”). Beresford said that Spotswood was looking for mines in which to employ his Germans. The implication of this, of course, is that he had no mines at that time. According to John Fontaine, when the expedition across the mountains stopped at Germanna, going and coming, the silver mines were explored by a number of people with the conclusion there was no silver. Just to be sure, Spotswood took some ore back to Williamsburg to get further opinions on it. Another implication is that there were no iron mines at this time.
One of the terms in the establishment of William & Mary College was that the college would deliver two original Latin verses to the Governor on every fifth of November. The verse that was written just after the trans-mountain expedition referred to this trip. At a later time the verses were translated into English and published in the newspaper The Maryland Gazette in 1729 (June 17 and 24). Then the English verse was again published in the William and Mary Quarterly Historical Magazine in volume Seven, Number 1, for July 1898, on pages 30-37. A few lines will be cited here to show how some people viewed the trip, especially with respect to Germanna. A few lines read:
. . . . . he to Germanna came, which from new German planters takes it Name, Here taught to dig, by his auspicious Hand They prov’d the teeming pregnance of the Land, For being search’d the fertile Earth gave Signs That her Womb swell’d with Gold and Silver Mines This Ground, if faithful, may in time out-do Potosi, Mexico, and fam’d Peru.
Had the writer been on the trip or had he talked with John Fontaine, he might have been more restrained in his fulsome comments. But at this time, it appears the citizens were impressed by Spotswood’s search for precious metals. So it confirms Beresford’s comments that Virginians viewed Spotswood’s trip as a search for mines, presumably gold and silver.
In actuality, the trip was more of a search for land. Spotswood needed something to sustain him when he would be out of office. He was constantly aware that he might be evicted from the Governor’s office at any time. To live as a private citizen, he needed income. Silver mining and Indian trading had been busts. The richest people in Virginia had a basis for their wealth in land. Spotswood decided that it was time to get some and the trip over the mountains was a search for it.
(15 Sep 06)
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.