At a Convention of delegates and representatives of the counties and corporations of the Colony of Virginia on July 17, 1775, there was established a Committee of Safety consisting of ten prominent men for putting into execution the ordinances and resolutions of the Convention. That committee was authorized to provide as many armed vessels as they judged necessary for the protection of the Colony in the war that seemed to threaten. Advertisements for ship-carpenters and other operatives were made, and every inducement held out to them in order that the building of vessels might immediately commence. Between December, 1775, and July, 1776, the Committee established a small navy by purchase of several armed, schooner-rigged vessels from the owners of the merchant fleet; and contracts were made for a number of galleys to be constructed on the different rivers of the Colony. The Potomac was to be protected by the construction of two row-galleys and the purchase of three boats. George Minter was elected master of a row-galley to be built on the James River under the direction of Colonel Cary. He was requested to recommend proper persons to be mate, two midshipmen, gunner, and to enlist forty seamen. John Herbert, a master shipbuilder, was employed to engage any number of ship-carpenters that he could procure upon reasonable terms, and to examine such places upon the James River or its branches as he thought proper and convenient for erecting shipyards, and to report to the Committee. Caleb Herbert was retained as the master builder of a shipyard on the Rappahannock River, and Reuben Herbert for such a yard on York River. Each of them was desired as soon as possible to engage a proper number of workmen for building two row-galleys to be employed in the two rivers to transport troops. It was recommended that a committee at Norfolk engage a proper person to take direction and employ a number of ship-carpenters for at least a year, to build vessels for the Colony. George Mason, in a letter to George Washington on April 12, 1776, mentioned that he had under his charge two row-galleys of 40 or 50 tons burden, each to mount light guns, three and four pounders; and the sloop, _American Congress_, a fine stout vessel of 110 tons burden, mounting fourteen carriage guns, four and six pounders, and was considering mounting two 9-pounders upon her main boom.