The+Vasses

===This picture shows Jack on the beach at Shandwick, one of the Seaboard Villages on the Fearn Peninsula. It was here that Jack's great, great grandad, John Vass married Ann in 1837. The records show that Ann's maiden name was also Vass. I think this was quite common, as there were quite a number of Vass's there at the time. We met a lady on the beach who lives in an old house in Shandwick. She estimated it to be about 200 years old. She also told us that 'Vass' was still quite common in the area. We checked the local telephone directory and there were around 12 - 15 entries.===

===They both lived in Shandwick at the time, so both fathers were probably fishermen. Maybe the families lived in one of the cottages in the picture below (although, they wouldn't have been so grand in those days!)===



===The 1841 census shows that they moved to Rockfield Village and were living there with their two children - Mary (2yrs) and Katherine (2mths). There is no trace of them in the 1851 census, but in 1861 they appear again and are still living in Rockfield Village. John is recorded as being age 47 and a Fisherman. Ann is age 46 and they are living with their six children - Mary (22), Ann (18), Andrew (14), Ephy (12), Barbara (10) and Hugh (8). There's no mention of Katherine .... I hope she married, rather than met with an early death! There's no record of either - and there's also no record of any of the children's births either ... they must have been too busy to walk the miles to register them at Portmahomack. We visited the church there, which is now the home of a Discovery Centre.===

===Rockfield Village was built in the 1820's when there was an abundance of herring and white fish in the Moray Firth. Fishermen were encouraged to move to the area where cottages were built for the families. In amongst the modernised cottages, we spotted the more original one below. There wouldn't have been much room for John and Ann and their 6 or 7 children!===



===The 1891 census shows that John (age 77) and Ann (age 75) were still living in Rockfield Village. There's no trace of them in the 1901 census - and no death records either. It's nice that they had such a long life together. Although they had seven children, we concentrated on Andrew ( born around 1850) who was Jack's Great Grandfather.===

===Andrew married Margaret McIntosh on the 12th of March 1880 in the district of Croy. He was 29 and lived in Rockfield Village, she was 26 and lived in Queen Street in Nairn. Their first child, John, was born on the 14th of May 1881 at 18 Churchshed (?) in Nairn. At that time, Andrew was a Stone Quarrier. Of their five children, John was the only one to be born in Nairn. The 1891 census shows that they had moved to Brackla in the Parish of Cawdor and they were living with John (9), as well as Alexander (7), Andrew (5), William (3) and Annie (7months) - who were all born in Cawdor. Andrew was an Engine Driver at the time (on Brackla Farm?). Later records (son's marraige certificates) show, however, that he worked as a Mashman in the Royal Brackla Brewery after this date.===

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===We stumbled across this gravestone in Cawdor Church purely by accident while on a short visit to the area. Jack's dad, Hugh, had written down some family details and they matched perfectly to all the information on the stone. It was quite an awesome moment ... especially for Jack, who was first to spot it (when we weren't even actively looking for it!).===

===On Andrew's death certificate, it shows the cause of death as 'unkown'. As the gravestone shows, Andrew's wife, Margaret, moved away from Brackla and lived in Newton of Budgate in Cawdor. Today, Newton of Budgate is a B&B farmhouse, but we suspect that in those days it was an area of dwellings where people employed to work on the vast Cawdor Estate lived. Annie, the youngest child (and only daughter), lived in the house on her own after Margaret died. Jack remembers meeting her years ago at a wedding. Apparently the house was covered with family pictures and memorabelia. Unfortunately it was knocked down after she died, and we've no idea what became of its contents.===

===Only two of their children are included on the gravestone. Annie, mentioned above, and Andrew who was killed in France in 1914. We made quite an exciting discovery when we came across the entry below in this website http://www.vassfamily.com/guest/guestbook.html===

//**"Hi folks,like everyone says{great web site} Well here is some info. I was born june 4'th 1940 in Morden Manitoba My younger brother ROBERT CLIVE VASS was born sept 14'th 1947 in Thunder Bay Ontario {then called Port Arthur} My father was born dec 31'st 1912 in Glasgow Scotlan. His name was ANDREW CRAWFORD VASS. His father was born app in or around Glasgow in 1885? He was killed in france in WW1 Nov 11'th 1914 possably at Monds? He also was named ANDREW CRAWFORD VASS My grandfather could not have been an only child,there must be some of his siblings relatives around somewere? He moved to Sioux Lookout Ontario in 1913,with his wife Mary dauters Claire and Rita and baby Andrew Crawford, When the war broke out in 1914 he returned to his regement in Glasgow Possibly the Cameron Highlanders or The Black Watch Any help to find my roots would be appreciated,as I am the oldest Vass from our family that I know of. My children are as follows ANDREW CRAIG VASS APRIL CRISTINE VASS ALAN CRISTOPHER VASS ARTHUR COLIN VASS Grand children. ADAM CHASE VASS AZIA CAYTLIN VASS Thanks to Andrew DAVID ROGER VASS MARLENE KATHLEEN VASS Thanks to April PS. I'm a Millwright by trade in the utility equ.ind. Also X Navy RCN.Marine Enginer-{STOKER} Thanks for letting talk. It would be nice to find out were I'm from."**// //ALAN CRAWFORD VASS // //WINNIPEG, MAN CANADA - Sunday, January 13, 2002 at 16:37:19 (CST)//

===We're convinced that these are relatives, because we know from Jack's Dad that Andrew emigrated to Canada. Andrew married Mary Ann Crawford in Glasgow on the 6th of August 1909. He was 23 yrs old and was living at 221 Holmlea Road with his brother Alexander (Jack's Grandad). They were married at 333 Clarkson Road (shown below - was it a hotel, place of worship, or registry office then?)===



===We know that 4 years after the wedding, Andrew and Mary Ann emigrated to Canada with their 3 small children. Andrew's death certificate shows that he died either in Belgium or in France on the 11th November 1914 at age 30. He was a member of the 1st Battalion Cameron Highlanders.===

Below shows the home in Homlea Road where Andrew stayed with his older brother Alexander (Jack's Grandad) when they first moved down to Glasgow.


===Alexander was married twice. His first wife was Margaret Jane Henderson. The records show that she was born in Nairn, so maybe they met there and both decided to move down to Glasgow? They were married on the 2nd of July 1909 when they were both 26 years old. Alexander was a Jobbing Gardener and May Ann was a Domestic Servant. She worked in a rather grand house named 'Carlin Craig' in Quadrant Road, Newlands. The house is shown below - it still has the name engraved on the entrance way walls. I'm in love with it!!===



===Margaret Jane died just eight years after the marraige. She died at 7.30 am on the 13th of May 1917. The cause of death was a Gastic Ulcer. The records show that they were living at 41 Blackburn Street in Glasgow. We know from Jack's dad that they had one daughter, Margaret.===

===One year later, Alexander married Jessie Hay Douglas Jack. He was 35 and she was a 27 year old munitions worker, and Jack's Grandmother to be! She moved in with Alexander who still lived at 41 Blackburn Street.=== ===Meanwhile in 1916 William Vass, Alexander and Andrew's younger brother, married Jessie Bain in the Waverley Hotel in Nairn. At the time of his marraige he was 28 yrs old and his address was Newton of Budgate in Cawdor, where he was evidently living with his mother, Margaret McIntosh. He was working as an Engine Attendant. Jessie Bain (26) gave her address as Innes Terrace, Auldearn. It's interesting that her mother's maiden name was McIntosh. Was her mother related to William's mother (Margaret McIntosh)?===