John Vause was born in 1737. On 10 November 1768 he married Margaret Rainford at All Saints church.
On 29 August 1769 their son John was baptised. Their address was given as Millgate.
In 1771 John and Margaret were involved in a dispute over property:
21 August 1771: Plea of covenant final agreement between James Hodson plaintiff and John Vause Margaret his wife and Cuthbert Finch and Rachel his wife deforeceants, as to five cottages, buildings, lands at Wigan Woodhouses and Ince within Mackerfield, as right of James Hodson for £400.
Deforeceants were people who wrongfully withheld something from someone by force. So it seems that John & Margaret Vause and Cuthbert & Rachel Finch had seized property belonging to James Hodson, and were ordered to pay compensation.
In 1774 he was one of the two bailiffs for the town. A bailiff was one of the public administrators in a district, who had the power to execute writs and processes, distraints and arrests.
1788 Elected mayor for the first time.
11 March 1795 the burial of his wife Margaret. The cause of death was consumption.
In 1880 Vause was elected mayor for the second time. As mayor, he became involved in a dispute over who should succeed Orlando Bridgeman and member of parliament for the town. Bridgeman was elevated to the House of Lords on the death of his father, Lord Bradford. He was to be replaced by his brother-in-law, George Gunning. There was opposition to this private deal, led by John Vause. At the Michaelmas elections he and others contrived to secure the admission of enough new freemen to outnumber the supporters of the sitting members. Some people favouring Gunning and his Bridgeman sponsors wanted to take the matter to court in order to have the hostile freemen disqualified, but Gunning disagreed, and he remained the MP until 1802. .
John Vause died in 1808 and was buried in All Saints churchyard on 20 April 1806. His address was still Millgate, and he was described as a surgeon.
The National Archives holds the abstract of administration of the estate of John Vause, which was proved in the Court of Chester on 9 July 1808.
Sources:
LDS film 1885674
Archives: Wigan & Leigh D/D Lei Add/19/24
LDS film 1885700
www.historyofparliamentonline.org