Llewellyn Elementary School, Portland, Oregon
Billie Harris - Oct 25, 2008
[NOTE: broken link]
Llewellyn - History of the name
Often misspelled as Lewellyn, Llewelyn, Lewelin, Llewellin
Remember - there are 4 Ls and "llewell" is symmetrical!
When the Llewellyn family moved to the US from Wales, the spelling of the family name was changed from Llewellyn to Lewellyn. Around 1830, when they embraced the Quaker faith, the name was simplified to Lueling. After arriving in Oregon in 1847, it was spelled Luelling.
The first grafted fruit trees in the Pacific Northwest were planted by Henderson Luelling in November 1847 near where the Waverly Country Club House now stands.
Mr. Luelling was descended from a long line of Welch nurserymen. When he was just a boy his father taught him the art of grafting trees. At the age of 22 he moved from North Carolina to Indiana. Having read about Lewis and Clark's exploring expedition into the Oregon country, he decided to move even further westward and continue his nursery business in a new land.
The problem of transporting young trees overland was worked out after many months of experimenting. Luelling finally hit upon the plan of planting about 700 fruit trees and bushes in earth and charcoal in the strong box beds of two wagons. He drove the first team of oxen and his young son, Alfred, the second. The trip started in April 1847 in Salem, Iowa and ended seven months later in Milwaukie, Oregon. The trees were watered from the streams along the trail. Three hundred fifty survived the trip and were the first grafted fruit trees in Oregon territory.
Around 1875, after a misunderstanding between the two brothers, Seth and Henderson, Seth changed the spelling to Lewelling.
THE SCHOOL
Llewellyn, spelled differently but named after Henderson Luelling, traces its history back to 1894 when it was annexed from another school district. From 1894 to 1907, it was called Midway School. The existing building was opened in 1928 and served grades 1-8. The school nickname was Lancers, and its colors were blue and gold. In more recent years, the colors have been blue and white. The new school motto is "Llewellyn Students Are Stars".
We welcome your inquiries about our school -- its philosophy, its programs and its staff.
THE MAN