pioneer The new Virginia counties were growing rapidly, and with this growth came trouble. Trigg was appointed as one of the judges to the Virginia Land Court commission of 1779–80 charged with settling land disputes in Kentucky County, Virginia. The Virginia Land Act of 1779 had set up this court of four judges in order to examine the numerous land claims and to certify valid titles. The four judges arrived at St. Asaph in October and triggered emigration to Kentucky as people wished to either certify their claims or seek unclaimed land. They closed their court on February 26, 1780, and prepared to return home. However, in March they were told that they had to reopen the court and stay through April, as claimants were delayed due to weather. Trigg and two fellow judges reconvened on April 16 and heard another 134 cases. In all, the court judged 1,328 claims covering over 1 million acres (4,000 km²) of land. After these sessions ended, Trigg stayed and established his home on 1,000 acres (4 km²) of land at Trigg's Station'' about four miles (6 km) north-west of Harrodsburg in Kentucky County, Virginia. When Kentucky County, Virginia, was split into three counties in 1780, Trigg was made lieutenant colonel for the new county militia of Lincoln. He continued his public service by being one of the first justices of the peace, was one of the trustees to lay out Louisville, and served in the Virginia House of Delegates by representing Kentucky County in the 1780–1781 session. It was during this session that he, along with his fellow delegate John Todd, secured passage of the act that allowed the formation of Louisville. Despite the growth of settlement in Kentucky, white colonists there were far from secure. Historian Virginia Webb Howard wrote of this era: Trigg continued his service in the militia throughout this period. In 1781, he was made colonel of the Lincoln County militia. In 1782, the four delegates to the Virginia General Assembly from Kentucky pushed for Trigg's recommendation as one of the assistant judges to the newly created Supreme Court for Kentucky, but his early death prevented him from taking this position. Revolutionary War Meanwhile, events had moved from local agitations against the British crown to outright war. Early on, Trigg served in local militias, but he also represented Fincastle in the Virginia Conventions. These were five political meetings that