[59] Col. Alexander Spotswood, Governor of Virginia and a
resident of Spotsylvania County, was at this time living in
London. He authorized John Graham (or Graeme) of St. James,
Clerkenwell, Middlesex, to "take possession of his iron works
in Virginia, with plantations, negroes, stocks, and manage
the same." By 1732 Spotswood regretted that he had "committed
his affairs to the care of a mathematician, whose thoughts
were always among the stars." In 1737 Graham became professor
of natural philosophy and mathematics in the College of
William and Mary. See "Historical & Genealogical Notes," WMQ
[1] (Richmond, 1909), vol. 17, p. 301 (quoting Basset,
_Writings of William Byrd_, p. 378).