In regards your De Vere ancestors, was the De Vere name also assumed by Esther's father Thomas Wallace De Vere?
He doesn't seem to appear until the 1891 census when he is listed as the husband of a Clara Sweet, though they don't appear to marry. The 2 children are Clara's but they do have children before Clara dies and he marries Esther Baker.
Haven't be able to track Thomas down before 1891, my best guess is that he is a Thomas Wallace Yardley from Coventry but there are a number of them and it might just be a red herring. The son of John & Catherine is the most likely.