The culture of the colony, however, was dominated by prosperous planters
like William Byrd, ancestor of the present Byrd family of Virginia. His
estate occupied the present site of Richmond. He was educated in England
and active in the affairs of the colony.
In 1728, he was appointed to help survey the boundary between North
Carolina and Virginia. The boundary, which was disputed, ran through
virgin forests and over mountains. During the arduous weeks that the
commissioners were making their survey, Byrd kept notes. His account of
this experience is given in _The History of the Dividing Line_. You can
see that Virginia gentlemen did not think much of the poor farmers in
North Carolina.