A Oittttttlngy OF THE VIETS FAMILY WITH BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES DR. JOHN VIETS OF SIMSBURY, CONNECTICUT 1710 AND V, I.a ID e11ccnllant11 WRITTEN ANll COMPILED By FRANCIS HUBBARD VIETS lllattforll prqi : THB CASE, LOCKWOOD & BRAINARD COMPANY 1902 Copyright by l". H. VIETS 1902 The mercy of the Lord is from everlasting to everlasting upon them that fear him, and his righteousness unto children's children; To such as keep his covenant, and to those that remember his com­ mandments to do them. Psalm Clll. r7-r8. Finally, brethren, whatsoever things are true, whatsoever things are honorable, whatsoever things are just, whatsoever things are pure, whatsoever things are lovely, whatsoever things are of good report; if there be any virtue, and if there be any praise, think on these things. Paul. Then the forms of the departed Enter at the open door; The beloved, the true-hearted, Come to visit me once more; He, the young and strong, who cherished Noble longings for the strife, By the roadside fell and perished, Weary with the march of life I They, the holy ones and weakly, Who the cross of suffering bore, Folded their pale hands so meekly, Spake with us on earth no more I 0, though oft depressed and lonely, All my fears are laid aside, If I but remember only Such as these have lived and died. Lnngfellow. PREFACE. \Vith much hesitation I undertook the work of making a genealogy. Encouragement of friends, as well as my own interest in the subject, beguiled me into the task, and, having once put my hand to the plow, I could not well turn back until the end of the furrow was reached. A genealogy is a family record extending through many generations. It is of interest as families are of interest, and no ties are more precious than those of the home. The first object of this work is to emphasize the value of the home, the good character of which is essential to happiness. If parents, children, and kindred arc worthy of each other's honor they will be worthy of the honor of all. A genealogy is made up largely of names and dates, but this need not in­ dicate that such a work is dry and meaningless. A name with two dates standing as sentinels, the one at the gate of entrance into life, the other at the gate of exit, means much. A name stands for a life with its joys, sorrows, labors, hopes. A mother as she gave the dates of the birth and death of her boy burst into tears; a love was there, a hope, yes, a life, whose history no pen can trace, which only the heart knows. The writer of this work has spared no pains to make it accurate and complete. That a work of this nature be wholly free from error cannot be expected. The care which the compiler haJ taken in weighing evidence, in reading manu­ scripts, in transcribing names and dates, should exempt him from receiving more than his share of blame for any errors that may exist. Research has been made to learn as much as possible about the early fathers of the Viets family. Town and pro- 6 PREFACE. bate records have been searched, old letters and other papers have been brought forth to testify, gravestones have been conferred with, the oldest living members of the family have been consulted, and every available source of information resorted to. Only one thing is lacking to make the record of earlier generations complete and perfect in every instance, and that is some means by which the departed may be made to speak. Several hundred letters have been sent out into all parts of the country, and these have in most cases received a prompt and cordial response. The writer has enjoyed mak­ ing acquaintances and finding kindred in distant states, and the interest shown by them has been a constant encourage­ ment to him in his work. The plan of the writer at first was to carry the genealogy but one generation out of the Viets name, but more remote descendants have been included when records could be ob­ tained. If a more complete account is given of some families or individuals than of others it is because more material came to hand. It is believed that the line of descent as given is in every instance correct unless a doubt is expressed. There is a hreak in the line of descent of a few families, wh:ch cannot, as yet, be bridged over. In some instances probably a knowledge of but one generation is wanting to connect cer­ tain existing families with older ones. Families probably descended from Dr. John Viets, but whose line cannot be traced with certainty, arc placed in an appendix at the end of the volume. Mention is made of services rendered in the Revolutionary and other wars, as far as the facts arc known. The majority of the family arc eligible to join the " Sons " or " Daughters of the Revolution," some by more than one ancestor. PREFACE. 7 I desire to acknowledge my indebtedness to Levi Clin­ ton Viets, whose knowledge of early family history has been an indispensable help, and whose interest in the work has been an encouragement from the first. I also desire to thank friends in different sections of the country and in Nova Scotia who have sent records and information regarding their branches of the family, some of them at considerable expense of time and labor, and to all of whom I am deeply indebted. FRANCIS H. VIETS. CONTENTS. PAGE• NAME. ORIGIN, AND SPELLING, 9 FAMILY CHARACTERISTICS, 13 HISTORICAL VIEW, 13 EXPLANATION, 14 GENEALOGY: FIRST GENERATION, 15 SECOND GENERATION, 21 THIRD GENERATION, 26 FOURTH GENERATION, 44 FIFTH GENERATION, 67 SIXTH GENERATION, 121 SEVENTH GENERATION, 174 APPENDIX-OTHER FAMILIES,, 185 REUNIONS, 192 QUOTATIONS, 195 INDEX TO VIETS NAMES, 200 INDEX TO NAMES OTHER THAN VIETS, 208 VIETS FAMILY. NAME. - ORIGIN AND SPELLING. Among the nations of modern Europe, family names may in some cases be traced back as far as the tenth century. In early times each individual bore one name only, which, after the coming of Christianity, was usual!:• given at baptism. The surname, or ovemame, so called from the fact that it was at first written over the given name, like most innova­ tions, came into general use slowly. When surnames came into use they were often found ready at hand in the occupation, place of residence, or some characteristic of the persons to whom they were given. The origin of such names as Tanner, Carpenter, Smith needs no explanation. The names Hill and Underhill, Wood and Undenvood are no doubt derived from places of residence. Such names as 'White, Brown, Longfellow may have had their origin in personal characteristics. Some names had their origin in words no longer in use in common speech, or in a forgotten dialect, and are more difficult to trace. The origin of the name Viets may be looked for among the dialects included under the general term German, or Teu­ tonic, spoken in former ages in that interesting region which extends from the Alps to the North Sea, a country romantic, and occupied for twenty centuries by a people among the noblest. This name, as seems probable, if not certain, is from an old Teutonic given name Veit, or Viet, which corresponds with the common English name Guy, a shorter form of Guido, and of the same origin and meaning as the word guide. The letters w and v in early German dialects correspond to gu in Italian and French words of kindred origin. An ex­ ample of this is seen in the name William, which in German IO VIETS GENEALOGY. is Will!c/111, in French, G·uillaum. By the same analogy, Vdt and Guido are one name. With this agrees Adelung, who in his " Dictionary of the High German Dialect" gives the following: Veit, Latin Vitus, a man's given name of ancient German origin, and contracted from Gttido. Calisch, an eminent scholar in Holland, informs us that Veit and Guy are corresponding Dutch and English forms of the same name. V cit was probably once in use as a common word, and, becoming a proper name, as such, has survived the long since forgotten dialect of which it once formed a part. The orig­ inal meaning of the word veit can only be inferred from the meanings of kindred words. The Gothic vitan, meaning to take heed; the Anglo-Saxon wita11, to know; the Eng­ lish wit, the German wit::, meaning wit, acuteness, good sense; the Latin video, to sec, and the English guide are all akin, both in form and meaning. The connection of guide with the other words mentioned is seen not only in the ety­ mology but in the meaning, for a guide must be one who takes heed, knows, and sees. Veit, or Viet, as a common word in some German dialect of an early day probably had reference to a wise, knowing person, or a guide. This seems to have been the view of Bishop Alexander Viets Griswold, according to Rev. R. Man­ ning Chipman, who, when a young man, was a neighbor of the bishop. The word Veit ,:amc to be used as a boy's given name, the original meaning of the word being at length lost sight of. This name gaine<l wide currency from the fact that it was borne by a distinguished saint who died a boy martyr in the reign of Diocletian in the fourth century, known in Germany as Saint Veit, or Viet; in Latin, St.