Above is a representation of the monument over the Vassall tomb in Cambridge burying-grounds, containing, probably, the
remains of Colonels John and Henry Vassall, and of some of their relatives. It does not bear any inscription ; but there
are engraven upon it the figures of a vase and the sun, the amorial bearings of the family, assumed, probably, from the
similarity in sound of the Latin words vas and sol to the family surname. The Vassall family is of French
origin, and has been traced back in France to the eleventh century. From it descended " the gallant John Vassall, an
alderman of London, who, in 1588, at his own expense, fitted out and commanded two ships of war, with which he joined the
royal navy to oppose the Spanish Armada." He had two sons, William and Samuel, both of whom were among the original patentees
of Massachusetts, in 1628. The former, William Vassall, Esq., first came to New England in 1630 with Governor Winthrop, and
in 1634, settle at Scituate. In 1646 he returned to England, went thence to Barbadoes, where he died in 1655. He left
daughters, married in this country. His son, Captain John Vassall, sold his estate at Scituate in 1661, and removed, it is
supposed, to the West Indies also. Samuel, the brother of William, remained in England. He was a merchant in London, an
alderman, and, in 1640 and 1641, a member of Parliament. In the year 1766, his great-grandson, Florentius Vassal, of
Jamaica, caused a monument to be erected in honor of him, in King's Chapel, Boston. It is recorded thereon that "he was
one of the largest subscribers to raise money against the rebels in Ireland ; a steady and undaunted asserter of the liberties
of England in 1628 ; the first who boldly refused to submit to the tax of tonnage and poundage, an unconstitutional claim
of the Crown, arbitrarily imposed; for which ( to the ruin of his family) his gods were seized, and his person imprisoned
by the Star Chamber Court. The Parliament, in July, 1641, voted him L10445.12.2 for his damages, and resolved that he should
be further considered for his personal sufferings; but the rage of the times, and the neglect of proper applications since,
have left his family only the honor of that vote and resolution." He had a son John, who purchased large tracts of land in
Jamaica, and settled there, having married Anne, the daughter of John Lewis, Esq., an English resident at Genoa. The children
of John and Anne Vassall were a son ( from whom descended Florentius, the above-named great-grandson of Samuel), who remained
in the West Indies, and Leonard, who came here and settled at Quincy. Major Leonard Vassall married a Miss Gale, and had four
sons, Lewis, John, William, and Henry, all of whom, except the last, were graduates of Harvard College,respectively in the
years 1728, 1732, and 1733. He had a daughter Susanna, who was married to George Ruggles, Esq., of Cambridge, and another
daughter, who became the wife of Lieutenant-Governor Thomas Oliver. Lewis died a t Quincy, Sept. 15, 1743, leaving a son,
Lewis, who graduated in 1760, and died abroad, before August, 1785. Colonel John, the second son of Major Leonard Vassall,
lived in Cambridge, where he built two large houses, one, which he gave to his brother Henry, and the other which he occupied
himself, and where he died Nov. 27, 1747. His wife was Elizabeth, the daughter of Lieutenant-Governor Spencer Phipps, of
Cambridge. They had a son, John and daughters, Ruth, Elizabeth, and Lucy. William Vasall, Esq., the third son of Leonard,
resided in Boston, and also part of the time in Cambridge, in the house lately occupied by Dr. B. Waterhouse. Mr. G. Whitney
states that he was sheriff of Middlesex county. He went to England before the Revolution, and did not return. His son William
also left the country for ever in 1772, in company with the son of Governor Hutchinson.

Colonel Henry Vassall, of Cambridge, the youngest son of Major L. Vassall, was married to miss Penelope Royall, of Boston,
in 1741. He lived in the respectable mansion, his brother's gift, now occupied by Samuel Batchelder, Esq. His only child and
daughter, Elizabeth, became the wife of Dr. Charles Russell, who went to the West Indies in 1775, and died, a refugee, at
Antigua, May 27, 1780. Colonel Henry Vassall died in Cambridge, March 17,1769.

Major John Vassall, of Cambridge, the son of Colonel John, and grandson of Major L. Vassall, of Quincy, graduated at Harvard
College in 1757. He, as well as his father, was an officer in the militia, and held a commission of justice of the peace
in the county. He married Elizabeth, the sister of Lieutenant-Governor Thomas Oliver, and had five sons and two daughters;
namely, John, Spencer Thomas, Thomas Oliver, Robert Oliver, Leonard, Elizabeth, and Mary. The second son, Spencer Thomas
Vassall, rose to the rank of Lieutenant-Colonel in the British army, was mortally wounded at the storming of Monte Video,
and died Feb. 7, 1807, aged 40. His remains were carried to England, and interred in St. Paul's Church, Bristol, where a
monument, designed by Flaxman, and an inscription, partly from the pen of Mrs. Opie, perpetuate the memory of his bravery.
Major Vassall, who took a very active part with the Loyalists, was compelled to leave the country, as well as others of the
family, all of whom held the same political sentiments. It is said, "His loyalty went so far, that he would not use on his
arms the family motto, saepe pro rege, semper pro republica." He died suddenly at Clifton, near Bath, England, Oct.
2, 1797. Madam Vassall, his widow, also died at Clifton, March 31, 1807. The estates of the family were confiscated, and
the noble mansion of Major Vassall, in Cambridge, became, successively, General Washington's head-quarters, the residence
of Andrew Cragie, Esq., and of his relict, the late Madam Cragie, of Joseph E. Worcester, Esq., and lastly, the home of
Professor Henry W. Longfellow.

The Vassall family has ever been distinguished for enterprise, magnanimity, and noble bearing. If some of this name were
not only often, but always, for their king, it must be admitted that they made as great sacrifices to loyalty, as did
their forefathers to liberty.

Appendix	Andrew Belcher Elijah Corlet Stephen Day Henry Dunster John Fessenden Nathaniel Gookin Samuel Green Roger Harlekenden Jonathan Mitchel Thomas Shepard Gregory Stone Rev. Joseph Willard
Linx	Cambridge Genweb Epitaphs Home Epitaphs By Year Surname Index

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