Existing comment:
Establishing Society on a Colonial Frontier
The "First Families of Virginia" were interrelated families who, by their second and third generations, were able to wield economic, political, and social power. They felt a need -- as the first Fitzhugh put it -- to present a "creditable" [or trustworthy] appearance in order to live "comfortably" among people of the same social status. Mansions, portraits, and fine decorative objects conveyed the desire "creditability." |