Wass Families

Wass families

Photo's of my dad, left is outside

56 Starkey Lane.

William Henry Wass (Harry) my grandfather, was born on 15th November 1909 in 5 Hussar Yard, Ripon. In the 1911 census the family were living at 19 High St. Agnesgate, Ripon, son of James Arthur and Margaret Ellen Horsman, he was one of ten children.

His marriage to my Nanna Alice Elizabeth Blakesley took place on 26th December 1938 in Kildwick Church.

They made their home in Farnhill where they raised two children.

Harry had a very interesting life, he made a career in the armed forces and travelled the world, he had many photographs and some of them are included on this page. He served in the 13/18th Hussars and in 1933 he passed an exam as a trooper in Sialkot in the Lahore district of Pakistan. He served many years in India, Afghanistan and Pakistan and took some amazing photographs. 'Harry' reached the rank of Sergeant Major in the Army and served in the Middle East and was attached to the 8th army, he was in the first Libyan campaign and served in Crete where he had to swim several miles after the ship he was aboard was sunk by the enemy.

He was a very heavy smoker, as were most soldiers in those days, and in the 1960's became ill with Lung Cancer, he died at home, 19 Starkey Lane, Farnhill on 1st September 1968, aged 58, cause of death was recorded as Heart failure, Liver failure, carcinoma of bronchia. He was cremated and his ashes were buried in Kildwick cemetery but the bronze cross marking the place was stolen not long afterwards.

Below are a handful of photographs of, and taken by Harry.

James Arthur Wass started life in Ripon Union Workhouse on 21st April 1884, son of Henry Wass and Lucy Ann Porteous. A visit to the Ripon library archives revealed that Lucy Ann and her children were admitted into the workhouse twice and James Arthurs birth is recorded in the workhouse archive.

By 1891 James and his mother were out of the workhouse and living at 1 North St, Darntons Yard Ripon, Yorkshire. One of James' siblings Henry was also living at home with them.

In 1901 James was 17 and still at home in Ripon with his mother and sibling Lucy Ann, they were living at 15 Allhallowgate. James was working as a stable boy/groom.

On 28th Dec 1903 James married Margaret Ellen Horsman in Ripon Cathedral, they had ten children, the first born before they were married...James F (1902), Eva (1905), Doris (1907), William Henry (1909), Jane (1912), Lilian Amy (1916), Frances Arthur (1918), Kathleen (1921), Reginald (1926) the last child to be born is still living so not named on here to protect the identity.

The electoral registers for the years 1908-1910 record James and Margaret living in Hussar Yard, Queen St, from Queens Head Yard, Market Place Ripon. They then moved to 19 High St Agnesgate where they lived until at least 1928. On the 1911 Census James is described as a house painter, and Margaret a charwoman.

In the 1939 register James and Margaret were still living at 19 High St. Agnesgate.

James was quite a character and enjoyed a few drinks. One night coming home the worse for wear, he picked up a log out of the log basket and threw it on the fire, but it wasn't a log, it was the family cat which liked to sleep there, fortunately it jumped out a split second later and was not injured, maybe a little shocked.
James died in 1958 and is buried in Ripon Cemetery. Margaret Ellen died in 1957 and buried in the same place.

The photographs below are James and Margaret.

The photo on the right is an old one.

I'm not sure just who it is, it is either of

James Arthur or his father Henry.

It was amongst my grandfather's

photo's but no writing on the back.

Parents of James Arthur Wass. Henry Wass was born in Nottinghamshire about 1850, he married Lucy Ann Porteous in Northallerton registry office on 9th November 1875. He was a hawker/ scissor grinder/ cutler. He was a very elusive person to trace, in 1851 he was living at home with his parents Francis and Ann and his siblings George, Elizabeth, William and Harry. In 1871 he was living in Kingston Upon Hull with his family.

Henry and Lucy Ann moved to Ripon where Henry is found in 1881 in a directory, living in Ripon, Queens Street, ? Yard and was an umbrella maker. But he wasn't with Lucy Ann on any census return. They must have still been together in some way as they had five children together. Lucy Ann who was deaf, Sabina, William, Henry and James Arthur. By 1884 when his son James Arthur was born he had deserted the family. The family, not including Henry, had to go to the workhouse in Ripon and stayed there a couple of times, Lucy Ann would have been in one part and her children in another, James Arthur being a baby born there was probably in the nursery.

The family story is that he ran away to Ireland with another woman and after 15 years of searching I finally found him on the 1901 Irish census living in Cork with another woman named Helen Wass, they claimed to be married but after checking the marriage records for the Uk and Ireland it would appear that they didn't marry, if they did he was a bigamist as there doesn't appear to be any divorce records. I suspect they were living in Ireland from the time he deserted Lucy Ann but the only census records for Ireland are for 1901 and 1911, all the previous one's were destroyed.

Henry died in 1910 in Cork, Ireland.

The parents of Henry Wass were Francis Wass and Ann Oldham. Francis was born in Kirton, Nottinghamshire about 1821, he was baptised in Kirton Church on 20th January 1822. Ann was born in Eagle, Lincolnshire about 1820.

In 1841 Francis was living in Lincolnshire aged 20 and was working as a butcher.

The marriage between Francis and Ann took place at Southwell Nottinghamshire in 1842. Ann had an illegitimate son, George Oldham when they married, he was only aged one when they married so it's probable that he was the child of Francis. They had three other children: Elizabeth, William and Henry.
In 1851 the family were living in Norwell and Francis was an agricultural labourer.
Ann Died in 1854, the 1861 shows no sign anywhere of Francis but by 1871 he was found in Kingston upon Hull and is occuaption was a knife grinder. His wife is recorded as Hannah and there are three children: Mary who was aged 14 and a Hawker, Robert, and Lucy. There are no marriage records for Francis and Hannah so it's unclear whether they were officially married or not.

In 1881 the family were back in Nottinghamshire living in Clarborough, Francis was a cutler/grinder. Daughter Mary was by now married and her surname was Freeman, she had a daughter aged two named Lizzie Wass Freeman, but there is no husband on the census. Son Robert was a gardener.

1891 shows the family still living in Clarborough, Francis is recorded as a General Grinder. Hannah is still alive, daughter Lucy is now married to William Bell who was an engine man on the Great North Railway, they have two children: William and Mary.

Francis died in East Retford in 1897. Hannah died in 1901 in East Retford.

The parents of Francis Wass were Francis Tomlinson (Wass) and Mary Maples. Francis was born in 1776 in Kirton, Nottinghamshire, he was baptised Francis Tomlinson on 3rd June 1776, illegitimate son of Elizabeth Tomlinson. Mary Maples was born in Sutton on Trent in 1793.

He married Mary Maples in Egmanton in 1811, on the Pallots marriage record it states Wass Francis (Alias) Tomlinson.

Francis and Mary had nine children: Mary, Rebecca, Elizabeth, Abigail, Francis, Mary, Robert, Elizabeth and Lucy who's surname is recorded as Tomlinson. It seems rather odd that two of the daughters have the same names.

In the 1841 census Francis and Mary was living in Sutton on Trent and was a farmer, in 1851 he was a farmer of 90 acres.

Mary died in 1854 and Francis in 1860, Francis was buried in Sutton on Trent on 6th June 1860.
Of interest is Lucy, on the 1871 and 1881 censuses she is living in the Nottingham Pauper Lunatic Asylum at Snenton, she is a domestic servant and is recorded as a Lunatic!. Lucy died in 1893. It begs the question why only Lucy was baptised as Tomlinson? Was she born with learning disabilities I wonder.

The parents of Francis Tomlinson (Wass) were Francis Wass and Elizabeth Clay. Francis was born in Nottinghamshire about 1742. His marriage to Elizabeth Clay in 1777 was on 28th June at Kirton Church and was by licence as Elizabeth was widowed, she had been married to Francis Tomlinson. The licence stated she was a widow aged 21 and upwards.

The couple had four children: Francis (Tomlinson), Matthew, Mary and George.

Francis died in 1810 and I sent away for his will to try and throw some light on his son Francis.

Last will and Testament of Francis Wass.

Date: 23 July 1810 Und £100

Testator: Francis Wass of Kirton Co. of Nottingham. Farmer.

Name and place of abode of Executor: Francis Tomlinson otherwise Wass of Kirton afs'd. Farmer, his son and sole executor.

Name of the legatee disguinshing the residuary legatee: To Matt.w Wass. Son. £200. To be paid 12 months after the death of his wife Elizabeth.

To Geo. Wass .....?? illegible writing...£140. To be paid 12 months after the death of his wife Elizabeth.

Fos'd Francis Tomlinson otherwise Wass. The Illegitimate son of his wife before marriage. A leg't of £10. All of his crops of corn. All his mon's secured for debts, farm??, farm, gd's? utensils? and other his personal? prop'y. His extors? ye? subject to his debts yc? His legacies. with the maintenance and support of his wife in a comfortable manner, during her life, if she chuse to reside in his dwhouse. But in case she be minded to live elsewhere then subject to and chargeable with the payment of one and ninety of £10 during the remainder of her life..half ?.