Billie Harris - Jun 13, 2008
When I did the book, there was so much on this particular Lewelling family that I didn't include it all. I've just located some of what I had on them and although I can't type it all tonight, I'll add some in this post (edit it in) until I've finished typing it. You'll note above that I believe I've also found another son and descendants of the William and Mary Lewelling, that of Joseph Lewelling. If indeed more of the family was in Wake County, N.C., then some of us may be related and not know it.
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Seth Lewelling made a journal March 23, 1850 - September 10, 1852. Excerpts from the journal have been typed and a copy is on file with the California State Library.
On page 33, there is a note "(There then follows a written ink and in a handwriting other than that of the journal, a group of poems: The Dying Californians signed E. Luelling: THE WANDERER signed E. Luelling; THE OREGON SONG un-signed..." "...(Then follow some pages of childish drawings and scribbling bearing variously the names 'Alice Luelling', 'William Lewelling,' 'Mr. Moor,' "Margaret Beeny", Elisha E. D. Lewelling'; Mary Tonner Milwaukie Ogn.').
"There appear these written in indeligible pencil: Henderson & Phebe went back to the States in the Fall of 1851 and Clarrissa & the children Elva Addie & Alice came back with them. They had a hard trip by water were 3 months on the way detailed one month at Panama & 12 days at Sanfrancisco arrived in Portland the 22nd of March 1852.
"I was born in North Carolina Randolph Co. March 6th 1820. Father moved to Indiana 1822. Clarrissa was born in Henry Co. Indiana Mar 26, 1826."
"Page 34:
"It is reported that Henderson and Seth had some differences at one time, which led to H. spelling the surname Luelling while Seth rendered it Lewelling.
Mrs. Herman O. Ledding of 2105 Harrison St., Milwaukie, Oregon, is owner of the journal from which all the foregoing is transcribed. She states that Henderson and John were the eldest children of Meshach Luelling by his first wife; that Seth and others were issue of a subsequent marriage; that H and J had the advantage of college education (probably in North Carolina) while Seth and others did not. Could be accounted for by pioneer state of life in Indiana in those years..."
The following was taken from a letter sent by Mrs. Frank Shumway:
"The first grafted fruit trees were brought to Oregon Nov. 27, 1847, from Salem, Iowa, by Henderson Luelling family. The trees included different varieties of apples, pears, peaches, plums and cherries. they purchased a land claim from a Mr. Wilson, near Milwaukie, Oregon, on the Willamette River - near what is now known as The Oaks. Alfred, son of Henderson, took a claim north of his father's. The "Luelling School" is on this claim. On the western or riverside of the Henderson claim is now "The Waverly Golf Course."
"Seth Lewelling (changed spelling because of a dispute), a brother of Henderson, came to Oregon in 1850. Seth was a nurseryman. He originated the Black Republican Cherry, also the Bing Cherry, the latter named after a chinaman that worked for Seth. He also developed other fruits, and berries. Seth also helped get the initiative and referendum for Oregon. Seith, his two wives and some of their children were buried in Pioneer Cemetery near Milwaukie, Oregon. Seth, born 1820-died 1896. Henderson's son Alfred (1831-1904) and his wife Mary Campbell Luelling (1834-1919) are also buried in this cemetery. Others also...
"Henderson and Seth were members of a large family of Meshach Luewlling. they were born in Randolph County, North Carolina. In 1825 Meshach and family moved to New Castle, Indiana, then in 1837 moved to Salem Iowa
"In 1849 William Meek came to Oregon to have a claim joining Henderson Luelling. Meek married Mary Luelling, 16, daughter of Henderson (1809-1878). last died in California ..... "
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"NAPA REPORTER" Dec. 28, 1883, carried the following article:
"Another Prominent Citizen Gone. Mr. John Llewelling, a well known and highly respected citizen of Napa County died at his home near St. Helena shortly after 12 o'clock Tuesday morning of erysipelas and dropsy combined. At the time of his death, Mr. Lelewelling was President of the Grangers Bank of California and filled a prominent part in other extensive enterprises. Deceased was born in Randolph County, North Carolina January 16th, 1811. He came across the plains to California arriving in Hangtown (Placerville) July 7, 1850. He immediately began mining, which he followed for sometime and then in 1855 he went to San Lorenzo and planted a large orchard and in 1856 he moved his family to the place. He remained there until 1864 when, on account of poor health, he came to Napa County. While he was a resident of Alameda County, he was a member of the Board of Supervisors several terms. He was married in May 1832 to Miss Elvy Elliott, who was born near Richmond, Ind. Oct. 11th 1815. they have two sons living, Eli now on the old farm at San Lorenzo, and Harvey J., who is living in St. Helena. the remains were conveyed from Vineland Station Wednesday morning in charge of an escort of pall bearers to San Lorenzo where the funeral services were held."
The NAPA REGISTER Dec. 28, 1883, had an article on the death also which said basically the same thing.
ST. HELENA STAR of Nov. 1944
"1883. John Lewelling died on Christmas morning, at the age of 73 years. He had arrived in California in January of 1854, planted a large orchard of one hundred acres, mostly in cherries, at San Lorenzo, and came to St. Helena in 1864. He bought the Murray place of four hundred acres adjoining town, planted a vineyard and built a home. for many years he was president of the Grangers Bank of California. An outstanding leader of the community, he was active on local enterprises, in particular the Grangers and viticulture associations."
The following information was given to me by Mrs. mabel Lewelling Johnson, as well as the one immediately above.
"Henderson Luelling's Wife. From the brown folder of Jane Lewelling's records. Elizabeth Presnall. b. April 8, 1815 d. March 7, 1851. In 1825 she moved to Indiana with her parents and settled at Newcastle at the same time the Lewellings came north, traveling with ox teams and covered wagons over Cumberland and other mountain ranges and unbridged streams.
At fifteen years of age, married to Henderson. When fifteen moved to Iowa in 1837 - a good team of young mares on that trip instead of oxen. Ten years there with five more children to love and work for. Then the long toilsome journey across the plains in 1847. Her youngest son born in a camp a few days after their arrival in Oregon. no wonder she laid down her life at the age of 36 years, in a land so many weary miles from where she was born. She was a very pretty woman, fair complexion, blue eyes, and wavy brown hair, almost auburn, very beautiful. A wise, loving mother."
The following was taken from The National Cyclopaedia of American Biography" page 82:
"LLEWELLYN, Fred Warde, lawyer and army officer, was born in Hillsboro, Oreg. May 8, 1878, son of William Alfred and Marian (MacLeod) Llewellyn and grandson of Alfred William and Mary elizabeth (Campbell) Llewellyn. His father was a lawyer. Fred W. Llewellyn received his preliminary education at public schools in hillsboro and in Portland, Oreg., and at Tualitin Academy, Forest Grove, Oreg., and attended Pacific University in Forest Grove during 1895-98. Meanwhile, in Spokane, Wash. and subsequently he studied law in the office of Leander H. Prather, Spokane, and served as county clerk in 1901-02. Admitted to the bar in Washington in the latter year, he worked in the office of the adjutant general of the State of Washington at the state capital, Olympia during 1902-05. From this time until 1911 he practiced law successively in Bellingham, Aberdeen, Tacoma, and Seattle, Wash. Meanwhile, he had begun what was to be an active military career in 1898, when he enlisted in the Washington National Guard. In subsequent years of continuous military service he was advanced to the rank of major of Infantry. in 1911 the governor of Washington appointed him adjutant general of the Washington National Guard, with grade of brigadier general. During his service in this capacity, Llewellyn adopted strong preparedness measures with the aid of influential and civic minded citizens, and he was instrumental in building the strength of the National Guard regiment to wartime levels, so that it might be mustered into federal reserve in the event of war. Subsequently he resigned as adjutant general in order to return to private practice, resuming his rank of senior major in the Washington National Guard in 1914. He saw active service as a battalion commander on the Mexican border in 1916, prior to the entry of this country into the First World War. In March 1917, the Washington regiment was mustered into federal service as the 161st Regiment, 41st Division, AEF and in December, 1917, Llewellyn, then in the rank of major, went to France as division intelligence officer. his previous military training enabled him to serve with distinction throughout the War, for the first eight months in command of a battalion of Infantry, for three months as a student at the Army General Staff College in Langres, France, from which he was graduated with the highest rating conferred, and thereafter for ten months on the General Staff of the First Army Corps and the 28th Division. The last named assignment included five months of practically continuous combat duty in several major engagements, the last of which was the Argonne Offensive.... He was also a member of the American, Washington State and District of Columbia bar associations, the fraternity, and BPOE. His religious affiliation was with the Presbyterian church. Politically he was a Republic. His chief recreations were golf and chess. He was married twice: (1) in Olympia, Wash. Jan. 4, 1905 to Maude Flesher, and had two sons: Fred Warde and James Glen; he was divorced from his first wife in 1914; (2) in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada, June 24, 1917, to Mildred, daughter of John Howard Shrewsbury of that city, a merchant. Fred W. Llewellyn died in Washington D.C. Aug. 22, 1955."
(I left out much pertaining to his military information...bh)
"Sacramento Bee" October 31, 1951: (Obituary)
In St. Helena, Napa County, October 25, 1951, Mrs. Annie Lewelling, mother of Mrs. Ethel Taplin, Mrs. Mabel Johnson, Lester Lewelling, Raymond Lewelling, all of St. Helena, sister of Mrs. Marie Huntington of Stockton, San Joaquin County; a native of White Sulphur Springs, aged 85 years. Funeral services were held Oct. 27, 1951, in St. Helena.
The following is from the ST. HELENA STAR, dated Friday, May 12, 1939.
"H. J. Lewelling Passes Away. Was Prominent Valley Agriculturist For More Than Fifty Years.
"Death once more summoned a pioneer of the St. Helena area, as Harvy Lewelling, former bank president, agricultuist, and mechanical genious, passed away last Saturday evening at 7:30. The end followed a long illness, and was not unexpected, as failing health had been his portion for some time.
"Funeral services were held Tuesday afternoon at 1:30 at the Morrison chapel, with Herbert Booth Smith, pastor of th Presbyterian church, officiating. Pallbearers were old time friends of Lewelling, Walter and Arnold Metzner, Julius Goodman, William C. Wheeler, Alfred H. Smith, and E. L. Bonhote. honorary pallbearers were John Wheeler, John Money, Philo Grant, J. H. Steves, John Taplin and Henry McPike.
"Wilfred Hansen was soloist at the rites.
"Cremation followed at the Chapel of the Chimes, in Oakland.
"Lewelling is survived by his widow, Mrs. Annie Lewelling, and four children, Mrs. Albert Taplin of St. Helena, Mrs. Hamilton Johnson of Lodi, Raymond and Lester Lewelling of St. Helena. Two grandchildren also survive.
Born 84 years ago, on February 14, 1855, at Mission San Jose, Harvy Lewelling was the son of John and Elvy Lewelling, who came to California in the early days of the State's history. The family were noted horticulturists, one branch, in Oregon, developing a popular commercial cherry. The elder Lewelling also developed the almond known as Lewelling prolific," and the original tree still stands on the Deermount property where Harvy Lewelling had made his home for more than a half century.
"When Harvy Lewelling was nine years old, the family came to the Napa Valley, first settling at Oak Grove, later acquiring the present Deermount ranch, in the foothills West and South of St. Helena. On March 15, 1887, Harvy Lewelling married Miss Annie Alstrom, in the parlors of what was then known as the Windsor hotel, now Hotel St. Helena. The Windsor, as well as White Sulphur Springs, was then owned by the bride's family, who had come around the Horn from Boston.
"At the time of his marriage, Lewelling was president of the Bank of St. Helena, a position he occupied for 25 years. He was also interested in the St. Helena gas company, and in addition, managed his large property on Sulphur Springs avenue, to which he took his bride 52 years ago. With the exception of some years spent at San Leandro, where they owned property, the couple have spent their entire life here, and always called St. Helena home.
"While Lewelling led an active business life until failing ight compelled his retirement, he was unquestionably a mechanical genius of parts, with the knowledge and means to gratify a curosity about the budding marvels of the late 19th century. Years before St. Helena boasted a commercial telephone exchange, Lewelling had installed in 1881 a system between the family property at Oak Grove and Deermount, leasing a telephone receiver from the Bell company. He also built a telephone line to Aetna Springs and many are the tales told of the difficulty in keeping the line open.
"He also had installed a gas plant at his home, alter supplanting this with the first private electrical unit on the Pacific coast. This latter feat attracted the attention of scientific magazines in the East, and he was the subject of a considerable article.
"Back in the very early days of the present century, when horseless carriages were coming to public notice, Harvy Lewelling and John Money built an automobile. It really ran, in spite of intense vibration. an old picture in the Lewelling home shows this iron-tired contraption looking much like a present spray rig mounted on a wagon.
"Lewelling had another hobby. It was photography, an art in which a grandson, Kenneth Taplin, has shown marked aptitude. But Lewelling's equipment was far different from the present minature cameras and fast emulsions of 1939.
"Back in 1885 when the site of the Star office was occupied by a blacksmith shop, Harvy Lewelling took a picture of a Fourth of July parade, using the heavy glass plates, and unwieldy bulky camera of those days, plates which had to be developed almost immediately before the unstable emulsions collapsed. These pictures would flatter any amateur photographer today. Clear and sharp as the product of any camera, these pictures and many others taken 60 years ago are remarkable tributes to Lewelling's mastery of a complicated art.
"The Deermout homeplace is filled with reminders of a day when the commonplace conveniences of the present were being introduced to an awe-struck world. In all of these Lewelling was interested, and in many of them he had a part."
There is a Lewelling Boulevard in San Leandro, California, named for this family.
"Early Horticulture In Oregon" talks about the various nurserymen in Oregon, including Lewelling and Meek, on this site:
[NOTE: broken link]