This interesting and unusual name means 'servant of the vicary' or perhaps, as a topographic name, 'one who lives at the vicarage'. The name 'Vic(k)ar', an occupational name for a parish priest, derives from the Middle English 'vica(i)re' or 'vikere', from the Latin 'vicarius' meaning substitute, or deputy. The word was originally used to denote someone who carried out pastoral duties on behalf of the absentee holder of a benefice, and thus became the usual word for a parish priest since most benefice-holders were absentees. The spelling of the surname as 'Vickress' does not appear until the 18th century, one William Vickress married Sarah Oliver at St. George's, Hanover Square, London in 1765. The first recorded spelling of the family name is shown to be that of Hugh Vicaries which was dated 1332 Calendar of Letter Books of the City of London during the reign of King Edward III The Father of the Navy 1327-1377 Surnames became necessary when governments introduced personal taxation. In England this was known as Poll Tax. Throughout the centuries, surnames in every country have continued to "develop" often leading to astonishing variants of the original spelling.

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