I am so thrilled to have finally reached a new chapter in Vess Genealogy!
When I started this blog last Fall (August 2020), it was simply just a place to organize digital sources and share my genealogy experiences researching the Vess name. I gave it 2 months!
Remarkably, Vess Genealogy kept on going! I never would have ever imagined I would get to work with so many different people interested in the VESS name nor get an opportunity to meet so many different VESS families! This has been such an amazing genealogy adventure!
A HUGE THANK YOU to everyone helping me unravel the mysteries of the VESS family!
If New To Vess Genealogy, Here’s What You Missed!
For generations, three different VESS lines (maybe more) haven’t been able find their ancestors prior to 1820. A frustrating endeavor leaving many of us to just give up.
However, since last Fall, we achieved the following:
1. We learned more about Peter Vess and his family. 2. We learned a lot about Andrew Logan Vess and his family. 3. We likely uncovered Nathan’s origins in the Dark Corners of South Carolina. 4. We discovered that Peter and Willis Vess are closely related and that our family is closely related to the Travers family! 5. We explored families in Knob’s Creek from Peter’s 1820 census record. 6. We discovered “Vess” records in Virginia connected to an unknown Vest/Vess family! 8. We confirmed (via DNA) that the VESS family is not related to the BASS, BEST, WEST, or VEST families; eliminating them as possible family connections.
Brief Recap On Vess Genealogy
We now know that Peter, Willis, and Nathan Vess are related; however, we have not yet determined how they are related to each other.
Peter and Willis were born in North Carolina and Nathan was born in South Carolina. Peter first appears on record in Rutherford County, North Carolina in 1820 on Knobs Creek with the Toney, Pettit, and Mooney families (all members of Bill’s Creek Baptist Church).
Nathan’s first appearance on record is also in Rutherford County, North Carolina, but in 1830 with his in-laws, the Bellew family. The Bellew and Gosnell families are related and are prominent families in Glassy Mountain, Greenville County, South Carolina (aka Dark Corners). Also, Peter’s grandson, David Andrew Vess married Magnolia “Maggie” Gosnell, who is related to Nathan’s wife, Clarinda Bellew.
Willis first appears on record in Franklin County, Alabama in 1830. According to Anna Popejoy, long time researcher of the Vess and Whitlock families, states that the father of Willis Vess (John Vess) had been living in Foxtrap since 1819. Y-DNA analysis, via familytreedna.com, confirms Willis Vess and Peter Vess (Andrew Logan Vess) are definitely part of the same VESS family.
Familytreedna.com (FTDNA) also shows that the VESS and TRAVERS family are closely related; however, we do not know how they are related. There are several reasons as to why FTDNA may group two different surnames closely together; either we are extremely close cousins, one family that split apart during a time before surnames, or a male Travers ancestor took on the Vess name (orvice versa).To unravel this mystery, it would be extremely helpful to have more male Vess descendants participate in Y-DNA Testing.
The Travers family is from Lancashire, England and they have traced their family to Dorchester, Maryland. Whether there is a connection between the Vess and Travers family in Colonial America has yet to be discovered (the families may have split long before they arrived in America).
With the help of Y-DNA and documented family histories, we’ve been able to eliminate the BASS, BEST, WEST, and VEST families as potential ancestors for the Vess family.
The BASS family has a rich Native American background. The BEST family (original surname BOSCH) can trace their family back to their arrival in the 1740’s with the Ecker family (in-laws) from Germany. The WEST family has been ruled out by their extensive West Family DNA Project. And the VEST family, descendants of John Daniel Vest belong to an entirely different Haplogroup than our VESS family. To my knowledge, there is no available DNA information on the VASS/VOSS/ VAULX families.
We have recently discovered a VEST/VESS family in Patrick County, Virginia who may be related to the VEST/VESS family in Rockbridge, Virginia. We have yet to find any records suggesting that they may belong to the VEST family (John Daniel Vest), which is extremely encouraging for our VESS family, andtherefore a new chapter begins!
I am in the process of investigating the Life of Willis Vess and hopefully, with any luck, we can uncover some of Anna Popejoy’s research to help us! I plan to explore more families in and surrounding Patrick County, Virginia – including Surry and Stokes County, North Carolina. All in addition to finding out more about the VOSS/VASS/ VAULX families who seem to live very close to the TRAVERS family in both Dorchester, Maryland and the abolished Albemarle County in North Carolina.
We so badly want to connect our VESS family to William Tunwell VESTof Stokes County, North Carolina; mostly, because it seems to be the only thing that makes the most sense!
While researching Willis Vess in Alabama, I took a slight detour back to the VEST family of Virginia, because I discovered a VEST family 2 counties east of Willis Vess taunting me with records as early as 1818. I had to figure out who they were.
Long story short, I searched for every early VEST record I could find in Virginia and started plotting them on a map. Then, with the help of Y-DNA information provided by a fellow researcher, I started the process of elimination. The final results surprisingly revealed another VEST / VESS family!
Why Does William Tunwell Vest Seem Like A Connection?
Despite having BEST, VOSS, and VASS families also in North Carolina to consider, I was hoping there was a connection with William Tunwell VEST; mostly, because he makes the most sense for the time, place, and names.
Peter Vess Peter Vess of Rutherford County, NC was born between 1791-1794 in North Carolina and most of his records are found under the “VEST” surname; except for the 1830 census (Voss) and his 1831 land record (Vess).
After his death sometime before 1844, the “VEST” surname continued with his wife Catherine and their sons, as shown in Bill’s Creek Baptist Church: Two Hundred Year History, by Helen M. Lu. It wasn’t until 1849, when the “Vess” surname really stuck, in both census and church records. Therefore, it is easy to assume that Peter maybe connected to the VESTfamily.
We were even 100% confident that we had discovered his connection with the VEST family when we found a Surry County War of 1812-1814 record listing a “Peter VEST.” Not only is Surry County right next to Stokes County in North Carolina, but also the names of the other soldiers listed with Peter VEST seem to have connections with the grandchildren of William Tunwell VEST through his son Isham VEST. Because there doesn’t appear to be any VEST families in Surry County, the VEST family next door (in Stokes County) seems like a good fit.
A possible connection to William Tunwell VEST became even more enticing when records for Peter Vess suggested his father may have been named John Vess (1831 Rutherford Co. land grant record). According to the Last Will and Testament of William Tunwell VEST (1812), he just so happens to have a son named John VEST!
Willis Vess William Tunwell Vest also seems like a potential ancestor to Willis Vess.
Willis Vess was born in North Carolina (abt) 1810, supposedly to “John Vess and Maragaret Vaughn” who are said to have also been born in North Carolina. Because William Tunwell VEST had a son named John VEST, it appeared there could be a connection; however, John VEST married Eliza RAY (not Margaret Vaughn). Of course, John could have been married twice, but records show us that John VEST (despite who he was married to) appears to have been living in North Carolina (or Indiana-whichever source you pick) during the time that the father of Willis Vess was living in Alabama; therefore they must not be the same person.
Nathan Vess Interestingly, there haven’t been any plausible ideas between William Tunwell Vest and Nathan Vess. Because Nathan was born in South Carolina, one could possibly conclude he is Peter’s cousin rather than his brother. So, Nathan’s lack of connection to the VEST family in Stokes County, NC never really seemed like such a big deal.
The VEST & VESS Families Are Not Related
According to information from FamilytreeDNA.com, the VEST and VESS families are not related! In fact, they don’t even share the same Haplogroup!
The descendants of John Daniel VEST (VEST family of Virginia) belong to Haplogroup-I, whereas the descendants of Willis Vess and Andrew Logan Vess (our VESS family) belong to Haplogroup- R (R1a). That’s quite a distance from each other on the Y-Haplogroup tree.
So, we can pretty much eliminate any VEST family related to John Daniel Vest as being possible ancestors, including William Tunwell VEST of Stokes County, North Carolina.
I was holding onto William Tunwell VEST for a long time, just in case; however, I eventually discovered that he is the son of John Daniel VEST.
In the Last Will and Testament of John Daniel Vest (1765) of Chesterfield County, Virginia, John names his wife “Ann Vest” (likely Charolette Ann Bakes) as well as his 7 children: “John Vest, Valentine Vest, Elizabeth Vest, James Vest, George Vest, Phillip Vest, and William Tunwell Vest.” [Transcribed by Sandra Lake Lassen March 1993 – Ancestry.com]
By the way, I discovered the VEST family near Willis Vess in Alabama are descendants of John Daniel Vest through George Washington Vest– so, no relation to Willis Vess.
Mapping VEST Families
Instead of trying to untangle the many different branches of the VEST family, I decided it would be better to us their records to plot them all on a map. During this process, I came to discover that a lot of VEST families do seem to be descendants of John Daniel Vest and Charolette Ann Bakes. The family appears to have originated from Chesterfield and Powhatan County, VA and then migrated westward into Bedford County, then down into Franklin and Floyd Counties, before conquering the rest of the United States.
After finishing my map, two VESS/VEST families who do not seem to have any connection with the John Daniel Vest family stood out!
The Map The counties [below] highlighted inredcontain VEST records. The counties marked with an X have records that strongly suggest a relationship with John Daniel Vest. And, the counties left, with no X, have records with both the VESS and VEST surname.
This map is not 100% accurate. It is very likely that there are areas and families I missed; especially, since documentation of these VESS-VEST families is scarce and require deep digging into Virginia archives. The purpose of this map is to see if we could identify any “separate” families, such as those using the VESS surname.
Exploring VESS/VEST Families
Rockbridge County and Patrick County, Virginia are the only two counties where I have found records with the VESS name and families whose records seem to use the VESS and VEST surname interchangeably, and interestingly, neither of them seem to have any records that suggest (at this time) they are connected to the John Daniel Vest family! So, who are they and do they have any connection to our VESS family?
VESS/VEST family of Rockbridge, Virginia
According to my ancestral DNA, I have distant DNA-relatives who are descendants of Addison Vess of Rockbridge County, Virginia through my VESS line. My project, of course, could be flawed as the connection could be distant, possibly connected between different families related to Addison Vess.
However, I used the same search method again for the VEST name and more DNA-relatives came up; all related to Vess families in Rockbridge, VA. I did not get any DNA-relatives descending from the John Daniel Vest family.
The Vest/Vess family living in Rockbridge are found near Colliers Creek and Kerrs Creek. Library of Congress Looking at this map [below], there are family surnames that I recognize from bits and pieces of my research on the Vess family: Hostetter, Ailstock, Noel, Morris, and Tolly, and Armstrong.
William, Peter, & Samuel VESS/VEST of Patrick County
As mentioned in a previous post, “What We Know So Far,” we recently discovered a Vess/Vest family in Patrick County, Virginia who we have no idea (like the Rockbridge family) as to whether they are related to the VESS or VEST family (perhaps neither).
I was provided a list of land deeds for Patrick County, Virginia (1791-1801) to compare to the residents in Tryon County, North Carolina (1769-1779) to see if there was any kind of connection. Unfortunately, I did not find anything significant, for that Tryon County records are much older than the Patrick County records and it just wouldn’t make sense that families would travel so far south just to end back up North. I guess they could have, but probably unlikely during a time when families were migrating out west and down south.
The records we find in Patrick County, Virginia include a William, Peter, and a Samuel Vess (VEST/VOSS) who lived on the border of Patrick County and Henry County (as shown on the mapbelow) in Bull Mountain, North Mayo River, and Koger Creek, just below Franklin County, Virginia.
These records also show family surnames that I recognize from bits and pieces of my research on the Vess family: Duncan, Dodson, Willis, Watson, Reynolds, Sharp, Hooker, and Randal.
HAIRSTON & PENN Families: A Little Local History While researching some of the families on this deed list, I discovered that the HAIRSTON and PENN families (both on the deed list) have a bit of history in the area.
George HAIRSTON built Beaver Creek Plantation which was a tobacco plantation and a very large slave-trading post in Martinsville, VA (east of Koger Creek in Henry Co.). He served under Col. Abraham PENN who was the original owner of the land that George Hairston built his plantation on (using a royal grant). The PENN family built “Poplar Grove” plantation in Patrick County, VA near Patrick Springs (west of North Mayo River). And both HAIRSTON and PENN families married into the STOVALL family- all connected.
There appears to be several plantations in the area, all of which utilized slaves and indentured servants. Indentured servants generally had a 7 year contract and in return for their service, their masters often granted them land. Looking at records on Patrick County, VA Genweb, we find deed records referred to an “Indenture,” where land was transferred to the “apprentice” after all debts and terms of their contract have been satisfied.
Jonathan William Vess of Texas: Koger Creek According to the deed list, William Vess/Vest is shown near a Herron/ Heron family and as previously known, marriage records show Elizabeth Herron having married Johnathan William Vess in 1791 in Patrick County, Virginia. Johnathan William Vess and Elizabeth Heron traveled with Stephen F. Austin from Missouri to Texas (Republic of Texas) during the 1820’s. This William Vess/Vest on the Patrick County deed list may either be Jonathan himself or perhaps his father.
Peter Vess and William Vess/Voss: North Mayo River According to the deed list, west of Koger Creek are residents of the North Mayo River which includes Peter Vess, William Vess/Voss, Samuel Vess, William Willis, and William Sharp.
This Vess/Voss family is most interesting for that we see them with the Willis, Dodson, and Sharp families (family surnames that are also found in Franklin County, Alabama with Willis Vess).
To make things even more interesting, we found a 1785 marriage record for Peter Vess and Pugnance Vaughn in Henry County. (Henry County is next to Patrick County, and there was a time when both counties were one, called Patrick-Henry County)
What is interesting about this, is that according to Anna Popejoy, the parents of Willis Vess were John Vess and Margaret Vaughn. To this day, we do not know where she got this information; however, we are now wondering, if this is them.
Perhaps their full names were John Peter Vess and Pugnance Margaret Vaughn??? Also note, that the brother of Willis Vess is supposedly “John Peter Vess,” perhaps he was a John Peter Vess Jr.?
In addition, records also show land transactions between Peter Vess and Samuel Vess via John Duncan. At the bottom of this particular deed list (with Peter and Samuel), you will also find a Whitlock family.
Are These VESS/VEST Families Related
It is plausible that the Rockbridge VESS/VEST family and the Patrick County VESS/VEST families are related to each other, for that records of the Patrick County family (earliest record 1785) come before the records of the Rockbridge family (earliest record 1818); suggesting one of the Vess members may have migrated to Rockbridge, Virginia from Patrick County, Virginia.
It has also been observed that Samuel Vess of Patrick County, Virginia disappeared before Peter and William Vess; which makes us wonder if he is (or is related to) Samuel Harvey Vess of Rockbridge, Virginia (1830 records).
We do not know if they are genetically related to the our Vess family; however, genealogical records seem to support some kind of connection.
Full Recap
The Vest family of Virginia and our Vess family are not related (two separate Haplogroups).
There is no genetic relationship between our Vess family and William Tunwell Vest in Stokes County, North Carolina.
Maps reveal a separate VESS/VEST family residing in Rockbridge and Patrick County, Virginia. It is not yet know if these two VESS/VEST families are related, but it is plausible considering the record dates.
We have likely discovered the families of Jonathan William Vess and Elizabeth Heron (of Republic of Texas) in Patrick County, Virginia on Koger Creek.
We have discovered that there is a Peter, Samuel, and William VESS/VOSS on the North Mayo River with a Willis, Sharp, and possibly a Whitlock family.
The area in which we find these families in Patrick County, has a history of plantations and records that suggest some of the land owners were once indentured servants.
Many family surnames found in both Rockbridge and Patrick County, Virginia are familiar names seen elsewhere in Vess family research; especially, regarding Peter and Willis Vess.
No definite conclusions can be made at this time; however, these new discoveries seem promising! It appears that a new chapter in Vess Genealogy has just begun!
If you are or know someone who is a male descendant with the VESS or VEST surname, please consider participating in Y-DNA testing through FamilytreeDNA.com to help us unravel the mysteries of the VESS family!
Again, a HUGE THANK YOU to everyone who has shared their findings with me on the Vess name in effort to piece together VESS family history!
This past weekend, I began to research Willis Vess of Alabama, just as extensively as Peter Vess of North Carolina; but I immediately stumbled upon a couple of genealogy road-blocks.
First of all, early Alabama records are weird.
Locating The Vess Family
In my opinion, the best way to research early families is to pin-point where they once lived and explore every part of their community, leaving no stone unturned.
Census records tell us that Willis Vess lived in Franklin County, Alabama (1830-1860) and then in Colbert County, Alabama (1870-1880). I suspect a county change rather than a physical move; which was later confirmed by maps.
Willis Vess was a farmer who had several properties and without the assistance of maps, I would have never been able to locate his properties; let alone find them in the correct county.
His land records state “Huntsville.”
Huntsville is in Madison county, a couple of counties east of Franklin and Colbert County.
This was confusing, especially, since the description of land does not reference rivers or creeks, but instead “Huntsville” coordinates; which kind of implies the property is in Huntsville.
Did Willis Vess live in Franklin / Colbert County, but had farm land in Madison County?
Well, turns out that Huntsville was just a place that sold land. It says so, on an official land record available for Willis Vess; as if it was written in Old English by Dr. Suess!
Image below reads: “the North West quarter of the North East quarter of Section two in Township six of Range seven West, in the District of Lands Subject to Sale at Huntsville Alabama, certifying forty acres and four hundredths of an acre.”
Or so, that is what I think it reads. I had to read it several times, before finally comprehending what it really says!
But yeah, the “district of lands subject to sale at Huntsville Alabama,” means Willis Vess purchased his land (located in Franklin County) through the Huntsville land-office in Madison County. And note, the only reference to “Franklin County” on this record, is its greeting to “Willis Vess of Franklin County, Alabama.”
And we wonder why so many records get lost!
Fox Trap Creek
If there are no creeks or rivers to reference, where does one start to look?
Fortunately, I got a hint from FindAGrave.com (of all places). If you look at the memorial for John Vess, father of Willis Vess, created by Anna Popejoy (long-time researcher), it states:
“Mr John Vess was in Foxtrap by 1818. He built a Log Cabin in 1819/20. Cabin is still standing.” I scoured the Internet. I didn’t know if Foxtrap was a community, creek, river, town, fort, plantation, mountain- or just some special spot only known to locals.
Surprisingly, I found Foxtrap on Google maps, by searching around Mountain Star (per sources on Ancestry.com). It is a creek that starts in Colbert County and extends downward into Franklin County, crossing Mountain Star Rd; which accurately reflects the county change seen in the census records for Willis Vess.
Interestingly, there are a few creeks named after early families surrounding Mountain Star; most notably: DODSON Branch and WHITLOCK Branch.
And for a good chuckle, there is also Rock Creek, Mud Creek, & Spring Creek (I assume these particular creeks had rocks, mud, and a spring) and then there is also Stinking Bear Creek which I would love to hear the story behind that one!
Then, after I spent an hour doing it the hard way….I found this on Alabama Genweb (Land Patent Mapping)! It has everyone!
This is a great resource to help me research neighbors (like I did with Peter and Nathan VESS), but I wish it had a date on it. I mean, some of these neighbors could have settled in as late as the 1880’s, which is not exactly helpful in tracing early settlers prior to 1820.
Where Did John Vess Come From
Of course this is multi-million dollar question! Where in the world did John Vess come from!
Besides an old cabin, there really isn’t any proof that John Vess ever existed – no census records or even a grave stone.
Franklin County, Alabama was established in February 1818 and according to Anna Popejoy (FindAGrave.com), this is about the time John Vess arrived to Foxtrap and according to Whitlock sources, it wasn’t until the 1820’s that the Whitlock family arrived from Georgia with the Thompson and Pennington families.
Looking at old maps between 1810-1820, it’s all Indian territory (including the western parts of Tennessee directly above Alabama).
One doesn’t just pack up their entire family and head 400+ miles for Indian territory alone; so there is a really good chance the Vess family didn’t travel alone. And, the safest route (I can think of) from North Carolina to Foxtrap Creek in Alabama would have probably been to go through territory already owned by the United States: South Carolina, Georgia, then Alabama.
So instead of traveling through Tennessee, John might have gone down through Rutherford County, North Carolina (Willis family) into Greenville County, South Carolina (Bellew and Gosnell family), through Georgia (Whitlock family), and straight across into Madison County (Huntsville) and finally settling in Foxtrap.
Of course, that is just a theory; one that might change if we find evidence of a connection with the VEST family who seem to have migrated into Tennessee, Kentucky, and Ohio.
The 1820 Census Blunder
If John Vess was living in Foxtrap since 1818, why is he not found on the 1820 census? Was he so remote he got missed?
I guess I am not the only one who noticed, because apparently there is a very good chance he was missed!
According to an article posted on AL.com, there was a “mortifying miscount of the 1820 census,” where census workers supposedly quit during the census-taking process!
I don’t think any of the families in the Mountain Star area had been counted, because I do not recognize any of the names on the 1820 census for Franklin County, Alabama. There are no Whitlock, Dodson, Orr, Willis, Smith, Vandiver, or Isabell families listed on the census, but maybe they hadn’t arrived yet.
However, I still do not think the VESS family was alone.
Courthouse Fire
Not only do we have an incomplete census (when we really need one), but Franklin County also had a court house fire (in 1890). Who knows what records were lost (perhaps missing census tallies).
A Quick Recap Of What We Know
Despite such a stumbling start, we have learned quite a bit!
With DNA testing, we now know that Willis Vess of Alabama and Andrew Logan Vess of Rutherford County, North Carolina are closely related; but we have yet to figure out where they connect on the family tree.
Willis Vess appeared on record as early as 1837 (land record). He was a farmer who lived around Mountain Star along Foxtrap Creek in Colbert County, Alabama (once Franklin County). He married Talitha Whitlock, whose family arrived sometime during the 1820’s with the Thompson and Pennington families.
Records are scarce due to a census fail in 1820 and a courthouse fire in 1890.
Fortunately, we have a bunch of other resources to explore!
We have a map of neighbors, which means, we can explore records of close neighbors. We might also be able to locate the first settlers who may have traveled to Alabama with John Vess.
We also have the Mississippi Territory census record of 1816 to explore, which covered parts of Alabama before Alabama became a state! It really depends on when and where John Vess arrived in Alabama (via Tennessee or Georgia).
I really look forward to learning more about the VESS family of Alabama!
Anyone who has researched Peter Vess, has likely come across a “Peter Vest” on a War of 1812-1814 military service record for Surry County, North Carolina. Unfortunately, there are no other records to support a connection with our Peter Vess.
I can honestly tell you, the Surry County, NC War of 1812 record, meant very little to me a month ago; but now, after extensively researching different families in North Carolina, a few names on this record stand out in which require further investigation…
Earlier Research: William Tunwell Vest
My earlier research on the VEST family largely focused around a William Tunwell Vest of Stokes County, North Carolina.
According to an 1812 probate record, he had a wife named Lucy (ALFORD) and they had 9 children: Samuel, Charles, William Jr., Isham, John, Elizabeth, Polly, Jenny (Jane) and Mary.
The only interesting thing I found in regards to William Tunwell Vest is a neat account regarding his son Charles Erwin Vest:
Summary: In 1792, the Board of Commissioners came together in search of a person who would manage a building project for the “Statehouse.”
Later documents suggest it was the rebuilding of the Guilford Courthouse.
Charles Vest [whose occupation, on census records, states manufacture] “made an offer;” however, “never reported his estimate.” The project was then appointed to Rhodham Atkins.
North Carolina Digital Collection
Unfortunately, there are no records connecting the VEST and VESS families together.
I think many VESS researchers are attracted to William Tunwell VEST, because at first glance, he truly makes a great lead in Vess Genealogy:
1) VESS and VEST are similar surnames and we do find many records for our Peter under the surname VEST.
2) He lives in North Carolina. According to census records, our Peter was supposedly born in North Carolina.
3) He is from Virginia. According to our family story, our VESS family traveled from Virginia to the Carolinas.
4) His sons are old enough to be Peter’s father and one of them was named “John.”
“Charles” Peter Vess May Not Exist
Sometimes, you might see the name “Charles Peter VESS” as Peter Vess of Rutherford County, North Carolina.
In my opinion, I do not think there is a “Charles” Peter Vess and that the name originated from researchers trying to connect Peter Vess to the William Tunwell VEST line.
See, Charles Erwin VEST (son of William Tunwell VEST) had a son named Charles VEST Jr., who married a woman named Catherine. [*Correction: Catharina] I strongly believe that many quickly assumed thathad to bePeter [Vess] and Catharine “Katy” [Cook] and therefore, “Charles” must be Peter’s first name.
Unfortunately, when new records began to reveal more about Charles Vest Jr. and his wife Catharina VOGLER (who married in 1809), the idea that Peter Vess is “Charles Peter Vess” was already stuck in circulation on the Internet.
But of course, I could be wrong.
The Vest Family: What I Do Know
The VEST family is just as complicated and fascinating as our VESS family.
You can find many public family trees related to the VEST family on Ancestry.com, MyHertiage.com, Familysearch.org, Wikitree.com, etc.; however, none seem to be consistent and very few offer solid records to support their findings.
I do not know where the VEST family comes from; however, some public VEST family trees date their lineage back to Germany through a MOSES VEST, born in 1650 Basel, Warendorf, Nordrhein-Westfalen, Germany. I have not come across any trees with attached documentation though; so I cannot confirm this is true.
VEST Family Tree: DRAFT (not entirely accurate)
I DO KNOW the VEST family originated in Powhatan and Chesterfield County, Virginia (1700’s) and migrated down to Bedford and Franklin County, before migrating west out of Virginia into Kentucky, Missouri, and Indiana; with the exception of William Tunwell Vest who migrated down into Stokes County, North Carolina.
Unfortunately, there are no records (as of yet) connecting the VEST and VESS families together, but there are still a few early VEST and VESS records lingering around without a connection to either family.
A “VESS” Family In Virginia
I cannot tell you how exciting it is to see the VESS name on early Virginia records!
Revolutionary War Records If you dig deep enough, you can find the “VESS” name on documents dating back as early as the Revolutionary War!
So far, I’ve uncovered a Peter and Samuel “VESS” on Revolutionary War records. I remember I found 3 of them, but I cannot remember the 3rd name (sorry).
Samuel Vess 1779 Revolutionary War record – Ancestry.com Corporal Peter Vess 1777 Revolutionary War record – Ancestry.com
Before dismissing them as VEST family though, I have found a pocket of VESS’s hanging out in Patrick County, Virginia in which I have yet to figure out whose tree they belong on (VESS or VEST).
Patrick County, Virginia Perhaps, Peter and Samuel Vess on the Revolutionary War records (above) are the same Peter and Samuel Vess listed on the 1790’s Patrick County Land Tax record.
The Samuel listed on the 1790 tax record could be Samuel Harvey VEST (b. 1757 VA), son of William Tunwell Vest. He would have been old enough to serve during the Revolutionary War and Patrick County, VA is just above Stokes County, North Carolina; however, there is no documentation to support it. I DO KNOW, the Peter listed above is too old to be our Peter Vess.
Interestingly, that’s not even the only VESS record for Patrick County, NC! There is also a marriage record for Jonathan VESS and Elizabeth HERON dated 1792.
This is supposedly, Jonathan Vess who traveled to the Republic of Texas in 1825 and helped establish Morales, Texas. I have no idea who his parents are and whether or not he is a VEST or a VESS.
And lastly, I have discovered a William VESS of (Koger Creek) Patrick County, Virginia on a Deed record located on RootsWeb.com.
Interestingly, other names listed beside him include JOHN DUNCAN (like John Duncan shown above with Peter and Samuel Vess) and a JAMES HERON, as in Elizabeth HERON who married Jonathan VESS. I am not sure if this William VESS is Jonathan “William” VESS, which is a name that is often associated with Jonathan VESS of Texas (married to Elizabeth Heron).
So, just a quick recap: There is a Peter, Samuel, Jonathan, and William (Jonathan and William might be the same) VESS in Patrick County, VA in the 1790’s that do not have any records connecting them to either the VEST or VESS family.
Unfortunately, early census records for Patrick County, VA have been lost. 😦 BUT, Patrick County, VA was created from Henry County in 1790, which was created from Pittslyvania County in 1776; in which, leads me back to the Peter VEST on the War of 1812-1814 military service record…
Many surnames on that record are connected to families who originated from Pittsylvania County, Virginia and some have connections to the VEST family (William Tunwell VEST) as well as the BELLEW family (Nathan’s wife’s family)!
Next Stop In Research: Virginia
I feel as if I am getting closer!!
I have not explored Virginia yet and I don’t think I would have been very successful at researching records in Virginia (in the beginning) without knowing what I know now.
Virginia is a tough state to research, for that early records are super scarce. If your family didn’t do anything significant, their record is likely not available yet, especially, digitally.
Digital records for Virginia are broadly Indexed and requires hours upon hours of scrolling through digitalized slides of records. Simply, you can’t just type in a specific name and it will take you directly to the record pertaining to that name…you have to know a time, place, and event and then search from there, deciphering scribbles from deteriorated records. Super fun!
But, I am motivated, excited, and ready for a new challenge!
I will be sure to post an update on my research soon!
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 