Yesterday, I had this ingenious plan to locate the parents of Nathan Vess! Unfortunately, it isn’t the most easiest of ingenious plans.
I am a firm believer that the reason why Vess genealogy is so difficult, is because of a name change! The challenge now is figuring out what original surname our “Vess” name evolved from!
Here are my candidates based North and South Carolina census records 1790-1820.
VEST WEST BEST VOSS
Name variants (as found on census records): VIST VERT VASS BASS BOSS BESS WIST BOST VOST WISS VISS VAST BAST
My Monster SpreadSheet
I’ve decided to use a spreadsheet to track families with similar names in areas where I know some of Peter and Nathan’s neighbors and family have been.
So far, I am beginning to see distinct family migration patterns emerge…
As you can see, the WEST family is pretty widespread.
According to the WEST FAMILY DNA PROJECT, there are several different WEST lines with majority of them being connected to an orphan from England. There is also a West line connected to the Thomas West, Baron De La Warr and Benjamin West, an 18th century American artist.
UPDATE: According to several researchers who have done Y-chromosome research, it has been confirmed that there is no DNA relationship between Vess and West families. 🙂
Now, their DNA records do show that there is a West family connection with the South Carolina West family, but they do not know whose line they originate from. They also have a list of unrelated WEST families, with the assumption there was a name change at some point. Interestingly, while browsing the list, a few familiar names caught my eye.
Unfortunately, the WEST FAMILY DNA PROJECT website has been taken down or moved without a working link; so, I am unable to reference it again. However, I did manage to download a few pages of information the last time the website was active. 😉
Hopefully, with a little more investigation, I will be able to separate different WEST families.
Well, that is my project for the week!
Revisiting The VEST family
I did come across an interesting thing on the VEST family, but I don’t want to get side-tracked! I really need to work on the WEST family first. BUT, according to a BIO on FindMyGrave.com, for a VEST ancestor, it states their family is of “Scotch Irish origin.”
This is interesting for several reasons: 1) John Jay Vest is related to North Carolina Senator George Vest. 2) “Jay” is a surname that is related to both BEST and WEST families. And, middle names, especially, prior to the 1800’s, came from their mother or grandmother’s maiden name. 3) More importantly, this is the first time that I’ve seen anything stating the VEST family having Scot-Irish origins. Other family trees (a lot of them) have traced the VEST family to a Moses Vest (1600’s) from Germany.
This really needs further investigating…but first, the WEST family!
Andrew Logan Vess is one of my favorite ancestors to research, mostly because he actually exists on record! He has several records, which seems pretty rare for the Vess family!
Andrew “Andy” Logan Vess (1825-1905)
Nearly two hundred years ago, on April 25, 1825, Andrew Logan Vess was born in Rutherford County, North Carolina. He is the 3rd son of Peter Vess and Catherine “Katie” Crook.
Although records for Andrew Logan Vess are not entirely scarce, none actually pertain to his personal life.
Who he was as a man, husband, father and/or gentlemen is lost; however, we have been able to uncover several interesting events that occurred during his life.
*Correction: Catherine CROOK
Whereabouts He Grew Up
Records, as early as 1820, show Andrew’s parents, Peter and Catherine, living in Rutherford County, North Carolina.
Further research suggests that they were likely living somewhere on Knobs Creek near Bill’s Creek Baptist Church. Catherine’s father, John Crook, husband of Rachel Haynes, owned land next to her maternal grandfather’s land (William Haynes).
According to Helen M. Lu’s, Bill’s Creek Baptist Church: Two Hundred Year History, Peter and Catherine were members between 1829-1836, and Catherine’s grandfather, William Haynes, was one of the first pastors.
When Andrew Logan Vess was 6 years old, in 1831, his father obtained “100 acres of land on both sides of Cedar Creek in Rutherford County;” which has been narrowed down to an area located in today’s Broad River Township (now part of Buncombe County).
In 1838, records show his father, Peter Vess, was a member of Bethlehem Baptist Church of Burke County (now part of McDowell County); which is located not too far from his property in Broad River; which explains their absence from Bill’s Creek Baptist Church between 1836-1844.
Bethlehem Baptist Church was an extension of Bill’s Creek Baptist Church and both were part of the Catawba River Association (Helen M. Lu, pg. 15 & 86).
At the age of 19, in 1844, records show that Andrew’s mother, Catherine, returned to Bill’s Creek Baptist Church without Peter; suggesting that Peter may have died. According to deed records, Peter gave his land to a J. Souther, to cover a debt.
At the age of 21, in 1846, Andrew Logan Vess and his brothers, also become members of Bill’s Creek Baptist Church (without Peter), suggesting the family likely moved back to Knobs Creek.
First Wife: Linnia Halford
At the age of 24, on May 14, 1849, Andrew Logan Vess marries his first wife, Lucy Malinda “Linnia” Halford, the daughter of Thomas Halford and Sarah “Lollie” Jane Hill.
Andrew and Linnia had 7 children together: Calvin Bailey, William Columbus, James Harvey, John Alexander, Sarah Catherine, Pinkney Elcanah, and Thomas Logan.
John Alexander Vess, son of Andrew Vess and Linnia Halford (1857-1939) [Ancestry.com]From 1800’s cipher and practice book
In 1850, Andrew and his family are shown living near his in-laws, Thomas and Sarah Halford in Montford Cove, Rutherford County, North Carolina.
Military: Civil War
At the age of 38, on Sept. 1, 1863, Andrew Logan Vess joined the military. He served as a Confederate solider (private rank) under the 62nd Regiment, North Carolina Infantry, Company F.
Andrew served in the same Regiment as Nathan’s son, Abraham Vess of Haywood County. Unfortunately, Abraham was captured at Cumberland Gap and imprisoned at Douglass Camp. It does not look like Andrew was every captured nor are there any records indicating if he was ever wounded during his service.
Second Wife: Cynthia Conner
After the Civil War, in 1866, at the age of 41, Andrew’s first wife dies, leaving him a widower with 7 young children (the youngest being 1 year-old and the oldest being 16).
Several months later, on Jan 1, 1867, he married Cynthia Conner, a local midwife and daughter of Allen Conner and Mary Polly Crawford.
According to Helen M. Lu’s, Bill’s Creek Baptist Church: Two Hundred Year History, the new Bill’s Creek Baptist Church was built upon land owned by Issac Conner, Cynthia’s uncle.
Andrew Logan and Cynthia Conner had 6 children together: David Andrew, Linnie, Easter, Noah M., George Washington, and Allen “Andy” Peter.
Noah M. Vess, son of Andrew Logan Vess and Cynthia Conner (1875-1958) [Ancestry.com]
Andrew, like his father, was a farmer. Census records show, that Andrew and his family eventually settled in Broad River (now McDowell County) near Old Fort.
The 1900 census record reveals that he owned a farm; however, it is difficult to determine the location of his farm. It is also not known as to whether or not, he inherited his father’s property on Cedar Creek. [Information about his homesite has been shared in the comments below]
Troubles At Church
The book, Bill’s Creek Baptist Church: Two Hundred Year History, by Helen M. Lu, has been a great resource for information pertaining to the Bill’s Creek community, especially, information regarding Andrew Logan Vess.
The following are some interesting accounts mentioned in Lu’s book:
Case of Brother Andrew L. Vess “On 6 April 1862, he objected to himself on “account of drinking too much spiritous liquors.” After relating his conviction for the sin of intoxication he promised “to drink no more only as medicine.”
Bill’s Creek Baptist Church : Two Hundred Year History, by Helen M. Lu (page 109)
Excluded “Vess, A. L. Excluded 4 Jan. 1867 for distilling some brandy for the purpose of paying debts and providing for his family.”
Bill’s Creek Baptist Church : Two Hundred Year History, by Helen M. Lu (page 153)
Interestingly, a few days before he was excluded, he married Cynthia Conner.
Excluded “A. L. Vess Excluded 4 Oct. 1877 for joining Free-will Baptist.”
Bill’s Creek Baptist Church : Two Hundred Year History, by Helen M. Lu (page 189)
According to Lu, he re-joined Bill’s Creek in 1874 and 1893, “by recantation.”
Death: Old Fort, North Carolina
Davistown Cemetery Findagrave.com Gravestone only displays his birthdate; likely, because it is not the original gravestone and date of death on the original gravestone was likely illegible.
Andrew Logan Vess died on June 10, 1905, in Old Fort, McDowell County, North Carolina. He is buried at Davistown Cemetery, next to Davistown Free-will Baptist Church. According to family, the cemetery used to be the Davis Family Cemetery.
Ancestry.com
We know that Andrew Logan Vess left Bill’s Creek Baptist Church for a Free-will Baptist church, but that church was not named on record. Perhaps, it was Davistown Free Will Baptist, but there doesn’t seem to be any available information about when Davistown Free-will Baptist Church was initially formed.
Citations: Bill’s Creek Baptist Church: Two Hundred Year History 1782-1982, by Helen M. Lu.
There are many different VESS family lines today, many of which that have descended from Peter and Nathan Vess of North Carolina; however, there are actually a few unrelated families with similar surnames that, at one point or another, diverted from their original family tree with the Vess name (such as the Vest family).
The ultimate challenge in Vess Genealogy is trying to trace Vess lines accurately back to their original families.
A while ago, I stumbled on a Greenwood, South Carolina record with the name “John Vess.” Unfortunately, the document is not dated. By the looks of it, (I am certainly no expert), I would say it was probably created sometime in the 1800’s; which leaves us to ponder…who was living in South Carolina in the 1800’s?
To figure out who this John Vess might be, we first need to date the document.
Unfortunately, I am not entirely familiar with the history, districts, or residents of South Carolina. Like, North Carolina, counties and districts were frequently changing during the 1800’s, scattering records across several different areas creating some research challenges.
However, according to some recent research, Greenwood was named after a plantation in 1824. In 1897 Greenwood County was established, which was previously part of Abbeville and Edgefield, far from the Bellew and Gosnell families in Glassy Mountain, Greenville, South Carolina who are connected with Nathaniel Vess.
According to the document, the residents referred to Greenwood as a “village” that consisted of “32 families” from the Abbeville District; in which makes this document a bit older than 1824, but probably not quite as old as 1900.
Possibly Created Between 1843-1860
Today, with an approximate range of dates, I was able to find the residents named on the Greenwood document on a single record: The 1850 South Carolina, Abbeville, Greenwood census record.
Interestingly, I found nearly all the residents, except one or two, including John Vess. I found him on a different census: The 1850 South Carolina, Abbeville, Saluda census record.
Saluda and Greenwood are next to each other. They will both eventually become their own county, but at this time, they are part of Abbeville County.
The undated Greenwood document was likely created between 1843 and 1860.
According to the 1850 census, some of the residents named on the Greenwood document are in their twenties, so we can probably, safely assume, the Greenwood document was created sometime after 1843. Many of the other residents are over 50 and are missing on the 1860 census (including John Vess), suggesting the document could not have been created after 1860. So, this gives us a pretty good date range to research a local Vess family in the Greenwood area.
About John Vess of Saluda, SC
Looking at the Greenwood document, named is John Turner and John Vess. I found John Turner (30 years-old) on the 1850 Abbeville, Greenwood, South Carolina census. But, there is no John Vess on that census.
As previously mentioned, John Vess (25 years-old) is on the 1850 Abbeville, Saluda, South Carolina census record. He is listed living with an Alexander Turner.
This is the only census record I can find for this John Vess. He was born in 1825, in South Carolina. He married Drucilla Turner, daughter of Alexander Turner. According to the 1850 census record, they married within the year.
According to the 1860 census record, Drucilla Turner (Vess) is without John Vess, but she has a 7-year-old son named James Vess. She is living with her father, Alexander Turner.
I also discovered another VESSrecord, who appear to be two brothers named William E Vess (22) and John Vess (24), both carpenters, born in North Carolina, living with a Brooks family in Abbeville, Saluda Regiment (Edgefield), South Carolina. They are approximately around the same age as the John Vess found living with Alexander Turner, yet born in different states. I do not know what to make of this…
The ages of William and John would make them possible children of Peter and Nathaniel Vess; however, all their children can be found living in North Carolina.
According to the 1850 census records, Nathan (Nathaniel) and his family are living in Buncombe County, North Carolina. All except his oldest son, Andrew Jackson, who is living in Haywood County with his in-laws, Parmer.
Peter’s children are living with their mother, Catherine, in Bill’s Creek, Rutherford County, North Carolina. All except for his son, Andrew Logan, who is living in Montford Cove, Rutherford County, North Carolina with his in-laws, Halford.
Pondering Possible Relations
At first, I thought John Vess (married to Drucilla Turner) was the son of Peter Vess, for that an 1854 newspaper clipping (Petition for Divorce) states his son was no longer a resident of North Carolina. But, we find him on the 1850 census record, with his wife Elizabeth and their children, living in Bills Creek, Rutherford County, North Carolina with his mother and siblings. Unless, he moved in between census, he is unlikely to be Peter’s son. Also, all of Peter’s children were born in Rutherford County, North Carolina.
Although there is some debate on whether or not Nathan’s older children were born in South Carolina, all of his known children can also be found in North Carolina in 1850.
Perhaps, this John Vess is the son of Jonathan Vess, the so-called brother of Peter and Nathan Vess, which we know so little about.
As for the brothers, William and John Vess, born in North Carolina; I strongly suspect they are likely related to the VEST family, because of their trade. The Vest family of North Carolina appears to be well educated and the son of William “Tunwell” Vest, Charles Vest, was a manufacture (construction trade). It would only make sense that his sons or even nephews would take on a similar trade. Whereas Peter and Nathan Vess are farmers.
But there are other possibilities too, due to name changes. These Vess families could also be related to the West, Wiss, or even Voss families of South Carolina. Further research is certainly needed.
At the age of 38, on Sept. 1, 1863, Andrew Logan Vess joined the military. He served as a Confederate solider (private rank) under the 62nd Regiment, North Carolina Infantry, Company F. 
Vess Genealogy 