Alexander Spotswood and The Enviroment of The Virginia Colony

With the establishment of Jamestown and the subsequent expansion throughout the Virginia Colony, politicans, businessmen and the occasional adventuer delved further into the countryside.

Alexander Spotswood was born in Africa in 1676 the son of Dr. Alexander and Caroline Spotswood. His father died in 1683. Spotswood was educated at the Westminster School which he left in August 1692. The following year the seventeen year old Spotswood enlisted in the Army and within three years had been promoted to lieutenant. Spotswood was wounded at the Battle of Blemheim. He left the army in 1709. On February 18th, 1710 was appointed Lieutenant Governor to the Colony of Virginia and he moved to the colony.

Spotswood's discovery of mineral deposits coupled with an increasing redistribution of native tribes throughout Virginia and North Carolina the need for frontier forts became imperative.

During this time wars and distrubances in Alsace and Loraine Provences of Germany. The iron production in that region of the country came to an grinding halt and those artisans looked for new opportunities. Alexander Spotswood had heard about their emmigration and eagerly provided transportation to the Virginia Colony.

"To The 3rd I have frequently mentioned how the Germans came to be settled on this land...so that, besides the expense of one hundred and fifty pounds for their transportation they are still indebted to me for near two years charge of subsisting them."

To Ye Lords Commissioners of Trade. January 27, 1714. Alexander Spotswood. Letters compiled in, Germanna Journal by Brawdus Martin, Chairman Society of Germanna Colonies, Morrisville, Virginia.

The Manahoacs

The Manahoac Indians were enemies of the Powahatan and therefore John Smith only ran into them once in 1608. A 1624 map he published shows their general location. David Bushnell, Jr.’s book The Manahoac Tribes in Virginia, 1608 was published in 1935 and is illustrative of the paradigm of archaeology then. Projectile points and pottery are arranged by similar size and material instead of telling anything about the dates of the artifacts or anything about the Manahoac culture which is mostly due to the fact that they were forced away by the Iroquois from the north and English settlement from east to west.