I was recently asked if I knew anything about a Willis VESS and his connection to a John VESS.

Well, the short answer is: Very little.

But, I did stumbled upon new intriguing information that is probably worth brain storming…

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I have a lot of research and I wouldn’t be surprised if the answers we seek about the VESS family are in plain sight somewhere in my messy genealogy files!

I say this, because I truly do not know how to start this post…
Vess Genealogy is like trying to put together a zillion-piece puzzle with all the puzzle pieces face down! And there is always that one piece we keep going back to, because we know what general area it belongs to; but it doesn’t quite have a space for it to fit into yet.

Simply, I don’t know what I got until I come across it again.

With that said, I will start with Willis Vess.

Willis Vess of Alabama

Willis VESS (born abt. 1810) married Talitha WHITLOCK.
Many researchers who I’ve spoken to have found connections to Willis VESS through the WHITLOCK family (including myself). I am related to Talitha WHITLOCK through my mother’s BENTLY side in Georgia.

Interestingly though, everyone seems to agree unanimously that Willis VESS is the son of a John VESS.

You can find a picture of his cabin on FindAGrave.com, posted by Anna Popejoy, who I’ve been told was a genealogist who has done Y-Chromosome testing.

We do not know who was tested specifically, as it had to be a male descendant, but supposedly there is a DNA connection between the Willis VESS line and the Peter VESS line. Where this connection is on the family tree is still a mystery.

According to online sources, John VESS was born abt. 1770 in North Carolina. He supposedly married Margaret VAUGHN and they had two sons: Willis VESS born abt. 1810 and John Peter VESS born abt. 1822.

According to my research, the VESS/VEST family from Virginia appears on record in North Carolina as early as 1790; obtaining land as early as 1798 (Stokes Co.). If they were in the area any earlier, it would have been Rowan County.

Many researchers (including myself) try to connect Willis VESS of Alabama to William Tunwell VEST (1735 VA-1812 NC) of Stokes County, North Carolina. But, research simply does not support any kind of connection between the two families (at least not directly).

William Tunwell VEST did have a son named John VEST. However, John VEST was born in Virginia (abt. 1765). He married Eliza RAY and you can follow him on several census records with his brothers (Charles, William, and Samuel VEST) in Stokes County, North Carolina. He died in 1833. So, he is likely not the father of Willis VESS.

Intriguing New Discoveries

Current research suggests that William Tunwell VEST may have not been the only VESS/VEST family in North Carolina!

I have been working on compiling VESS, VEST, VOSS, and VASS marriages from 1790-1820. Majority of the VEST marriages are in Stokes County, North Carolina with connections with William Tunwell VEST (his children and his grandchildren); however, there are a couple (very scarce) odd balls in neighboring counties (Surry and Wilkes) that do not seem to have any direct connection with William Tunwell VEST.

But even more intriguing…

Sources say the parents of Willis VESS are John VESS and Margret VAUGHN.

Well, while compiling marriage records, I found a PETER VEST and a “PUGNANCE VAUGHN” married on November 24, 1785 in Henry County, Virginia.

As mentioned in my last post, I have discovered a VESS family in Patrick County, Virginia who do not have any documented connections with anyone. Are they VESS or VEST?

Patrick County, VA was established in 1791 and was previously part of Henry County, VA. So, this Peter VEST (married to Pugnance VAUGHN) may be connected to the VESS family in Patrick County, VA.

Interestingly, this gives us a “Peter” VEST married in 1785 and a “Jonathan” Vess married in 1792. So, I couldn’t help but wonder... is there an older Nathaniel Vess?

There is! Well, a Nathaniel VEST, born 1791 in Virginia (died in Indiana).
It is not just the name “Nathaniel” that intrigues me, but also his spouse, whose maiden name is “DUNCAN.”

Is his spouse, Lavina DUNCAN, related to the John DUNCAN who appears on the Patrick County, VA Land Tax record with Peter and Samuel VESS??

Also, note…I found a WHITLOCK too (bottom of a 1792 Patrick CO. Land Tax record).

As usual, this intriguing find does not seem to bring us any closer to connecting the Willis VESS line to the Peter/Nathan Vess line. Nor does it bring us any closer to finding out who Peter and Nathan’s parents are…

1) Although Nathaniel VEST of Virginia is not old enough to be the father of our Peter and Nathan Vess, Jonathan and Peter VESS/VEST (of Virginia) are, BUT…

2) Our Nathan VESS was supposedly born in South Carolina and so was his parents. [Ref. 1880 Mortality Record]

3) The parents of Willis VESS were supposedly born in North Carolina. [Ref. various census records]

4) Jonathan Vess of Patrick County, Virginia who married Elizabeth Heron migrated to Republic of Texas in 1820. [Ref. Texas history]

So, who is the John Vess on Peter’s 1830 land record??



Other information that might relate to Willis VESS:

1) 1860 census record states Willis VESS was born in Indiana, but all other census records state he was born in North Carolina.

2) There is supposedly a Willis VESS in South Carolina. I will check my notes again.

3) Talitha WHITLOCK was born in Georgia (abt. 1820). Her mother is Elizabeth GREEN.

Peter’s son, Josiah VESS has a connection with a GREEN family in Rutherford County, NC through his spouse, Zilla Early. I will look to see if there are any connections.

4) Peter’s son Alfred VESS migrated to Georgia after the Civil War and I often wondered, if there was already family out there or if the war landed him there.

5) Supposedly Peter’s line eventually made it up to Indiana, but I cannot remember when or who went up there. I am not familiar with any family from Peter’s line moving to Alabama. I will double check though.

What Are Your Thoughts?

I don’t have enough evidence to make any solid conclusions about the VESS family in Patrick County, VA, but I did want to share my findings with everyone.

Please feel free to share your thoughts in the comments section or join us on the Vess Genealogy Facebook Group.