John Adam Treutlen, born Hans Adam Treuettlen (January 16, 1734 – March 1, 1782), arrived in Colonial America as an indentured servant and rose to become a wealthy merchant and landowner. He was a leader in Georgia during the American Revolution and helped write Georgia's first constitution. In 1777, he was elected Georgia's first (post-British) governor. He was one of Georgia's few governors to die by violence. Although much of his life has been surrounded by mystery and controversy, more details have emerged in recent years. Early life Hans Adam Treuettlen was born to Hans Michel Treuettlen, a cooper, and Magdalena Clara, née Job, in the city of Kürnbach, now in Germany, then a condominium of the Landgraviate of Hesse-Darmstadt and the Duchy of Württemberg. Treutlen's home was located in the part of the city that was ruled by Württemberg. His parents were married in 1731 after their first two children were born. He was the second child born after his parents married. It was Hans Michel's second marriage; his first marriage was to Maria Regina and they had seven children. Maria Regina died in 1727. The Treutlens were Protestants. In parts of the German-speaking lands, Protestants were persecuted by Catholic authorities, and many left for America seeking religious freedom. Clara, however, was a Catholic. Thus, the Treutlens were also very likely persecuted by the Protestant establishment for Clara's religion and also because the family had two children outside the marriage bond. That situation probably caused the 56-year-old Hans Michel to take, in late April 1744, his wife and four of their children on the arduous and dangerous voyage to seek a new life in America. The four children who went on this voyage were Friedrich, from Hans Michel's first marriage, Hans Philipp, his eldest son by Clara, and his younger two children, John Adam and Jonathan. The Treutlens traveled first to Gosport on the southern coast of Britain. In November 1745, Clara and three of the children left Gosport for Georgia with a group of Lutheran Salzburgers who had been expelled from their Catholic-dominated homeland (see Salzburg#Religious conflict). The mother and children embarked on the ill-fated Judith. Hans Michel and one of the children, Hanß Philipp, remained in Britain. During the voyage across the Atlantic, there was an outbreak of typhus fever on the Judith. Thirteen individuals died, including the ship's captain. The first mate also became seriously ill.