Person:William Fleet (2)

Page 9 - The Fleet Family - The Fleet family in Virginia stems from one William Fleet, gent., of Chatham in Kent, a member of the Virginia Company under the third charter. Four of William’s younger sons – Edward, Reginold, John, and Henry—emigrated to Virginia in 1621 with their uncle Sir Francis Wyatt, later to be governor of the colony. While the first three brothers settled eventually in Maryland, Henry settled in Virginia, where he was a member of the House of Burgesses in 1652.

Captain William Fleet (1757 – 1833), a descendant of Henry Fleet, married Sarah Browne Tomlin, a young widow, and lived at Rural Felicity, where he was a lay representative in the Mattaponi Church. He was a member of the Virginia Constitution Covention of 1788. In 1800 he acquired Goshen, which became the family home, from Spencer Roane, a justice of the United States Supreme Court. After moving to Goshen, William Fleet became a member of the Bruington Baptist Church. Whether he was prompted by a desire to make a complete break from England in the form of the Anglican Church or whether he was influenced by his neighbor—and, later, son-in-law — Dr. Robert Baylor Semple, pastor of the Bruington church, is not clear. The family thenceforth seems to have remained loyal to the Baptist faith.

This from Col. Fleet of Culver: "Thos. Walker, ancestor of the distinguished Dr. Thos. Walker, and Riveses of Albemarle (see Thomas Walker (explorer)), and Gov. Thos. Walker Gilmer (see Thomas Walker Gilmer), was from K. & Q." - Semple, John and James S., were sons of Rev. James Semple of England. John settled in King and Queen, marrying a Miss Walker. There son, Robert B.A. Croghan[sic] Semple[recte] married Lucy Clark, and their son, Major Croghan, then a mere youth, held the fort at Sandusky against Gen. Proctor (see Henry Procter (British Army officer)) with a large force of Indians and whites. He also distinguished himself at Tippecanoe (see Battle of Tippecanoe).

FLEET, Alexander Frederick, educator, was born in King and Queen county, Va., in 1843 ; son of Dr. Benjamin and Maria Louisa (Walker) Fleet. His father, Dr. Benjamin Fleet, born Jan. 25, 1818, and died March 8, 1865, was a physician and magistrate in King and Queen county, state of Virginia. His first ancestor in America was Capt. Henry Fleet, who came to Virginia about 1621, and was a member of the Maryland legislature and of the Virginia house of burgesses. He received his education at Fleetwood and Aberdeen academies, Va., and -at the University of Virginia, which he left in 1861 to enter the military service of the Confederate states. He remained in the service throughout the entire period of the war, and at its close he returned to the university, where he studied, 1865-67. He was a teacher at Kemnore school, Fredericksburg, Va., 1867-68; and had charge of the department of Greek in the William Jewell college 1868-73. He also served as chairman of the faculty. He was president of the Baptist female college at Lexington, Mo., 1873-79; was professor of Greek in the Missouri state university, Columbia, Mo., 1879-90, and in 1890 founded and became superintendent of the Missouri military academy at Mexico, Mo. In 1891 he was president of the Missouri state teachers association. In 1896, upon the destruction by fire of the Missouri military academy, he transferred his school to Culver, Ind., and united with the Culver military academy, of which he had twice been superintendent. This school in 1900 had an enrollment of 220 cadets.