Governor Alexander Spotswood
Alexander Spotswood (1676-1740) was Governor of Virginia from 1710 to 1722. Born in Africa of a Scottish family, he had distinguished himself at the Battle of Bleinheim and was wounded. He was appointed to the governor’s position in Virginia in 1710. He was an energetic and ambitious man, the first governor to see the promise and value of developing frontier lands. He desired stable relations with Virginia’s Indians as well as those in neighboring territories in order to preserve peace along the uneasy frontier by protecting the settlers. His motives were financial as well, as he wanted to capture the lucrative fur trade to the south of the James, and to do so he established the Virginia Company to trade with Indians at this fort which he laid out himself and named Christanna. His interest in the education and the religious education of Native Americans led to his support not only of the Indian School here, but also to the Indian School at the College of William and Mary. He built a house a half-mile east of Fort Christanna. After his term as governor, he married and retired to his home near his ironworks in Germanna in Spotsylvania County, named in his honor.
Marker can be reached from Fort Hill Road 1.1 miles west of Christanna Highway, on the right when traveling west.
Courtesy hmdb.org
