Nathan Gillett, Sr.

From England. At Dorchester, Mass., 1630; Windsor, Conn., 1635; and Simsbury, Conn., 1670. Served in the Pequot War and at the Mystic Massacre/Battle of Fort Mystic.

Family links

Per Alice Lucinda Priest's definitive NEHGS article that established Nathan's parentage through his brother Jonathan:

"... That Jonathan and Nathan Gillett were brothers is proved by the 8 August 1677 will of Jonathan. To quote: ... 'my wife ... shall have ... the Housing & Lands of both my Houselotts, my one and that which was my Brother Nathan Gillett's, ...'

Henry R. Stiles, A.M., in his 1892 second edition of 'Ancient Windsor, Conn.' states: 'Jonathan Gillett, with his brother Nathan came to Dorchester, Mass., with Rev. Warham, [June 130] and (both) to Windsor with the first emigration.' ..."

In addition, his parentage was established through the 1641 will of "Rev. William Gillett, Rector of Chaffcombe, Somersetshire, [which] made note of 'land which my son Nathan made over to me by letter of attorney.'" (per Mac)

Per Robert Charles Anderson's The Great Migration Begins, as excerpted on FindAGrave:

"ELIZABETH, eldest known child of Nathan Gillett, was born 6 October 1639. She married by about 1672 Nicholas Gozzard (eldest child aged twenty-one in 1693)."

Pequot War

Gillett was one of the English soldiers who participated in the "Battle of Mystic Fort," which occurred on 26 May 1637 and is now more commonly known to historians as the Mystic Massacre or Pequot Massacre. 400 to 700 Pequot civilians, including women, children, and the elderly, were killed during the assault.

Per Battlefields of the Pequot War:

"Nathan Gillet (b. 1613, d. September 15, 1689, Windsor, Connecticut Colony) Fought in the Battle of Mistick Fort. Granted 50 acres of land for his service in the Pequot War on October 12, 1671."

Also regarding his Pequot War service:

"GILLETT, NATHAN -- Service mentioned. (C. R., Vol. 11., p. 161.) Enlisted from Windsor. (Tarbox, Tuttle, Bodge and Stiles' Win.)

He was a brother of Jonathan Gillett and was of Dorchester, Mass., 1630; Windsor, 1635, and Simsbury, 1670. His wife died at Simsbury, 1670. Eight children. (Win. Gen., Savage, Pope, Manwaring, Vol. 1., p. 201, and Orcutt's Hist. Wolcott, p. 482.)"

Sources

• Mac, Linda. "Elizabeth Gillett Gozzard." FindAGrave, published 12 July 2010. < link > Accessed 28 November 2021.
• --. "Nathan Gillett." FindAGrave, published 11 April 2009. < link > Accessed 28 November 2021.
• Priest, Alice Lucinda. "The Brothers Jonathan and Nathan Gillett and Some of Their Descendants." New England Historical and Genealogical Register, October 1946, p. 35.
• Shepard, James. Connecticut Soldiers in the Pequot War of 1637, p. 16. Meriden, Conn.: Journal Publishing Co., 1913. < link > Accessed 28 November 2021.
• "Who’s Who of the Pequot War." Battlefields of the Pequot War. < link > Accessed 28 November 2021.