Nicholas Longworth (1783 - 1863)
Encyclopedia
Nicholas Longworth was born in Newark, New Jersey
in 1783. In 1804 he moved to Cincinnati, Ohio
where he became a banker and a successful winemaker
as well as founder of the Longworth family
in Ohio. Longworth was an influential figure in the early history of American wine
, producing sparkling Catawba
wine from grapes grown in his Ohio River Valley vineyard.
in Cincinnati.
Nicholas pursued the study of law under Jacob Burnet
, one of Cincinnati's first millionaires.
and began making a sparkling wine
from the grapes using the traditional method used in Champagne. From the 1830s through the 1850s, Longworth's still and sparkling Catawba were being distributed from California
to Europe
where it received numerous press accolades. In the 1850s, a journalist from The Illustrated London News noted that the still white Catawba compared favorably to the hock wines of the Rhine and the sparkling Catawba "transcends the Champagnes of France".
The wines were also well received at home in the United States where Henry Wadsworth Longfellow
published a poem dedicated to Nicholas Longworth titled Ode to Catawba Wine. The popularity of Longsworth's wine encouraged a flurry of plantings along the Ohio River Valley and up north to Lake Erie and Finger Lakes region of New York.
So successful was he that he has been called the Father of American Grape Culture. The growing tide of German immigrants coming down the Ohio Valley to Cincinnati liked his wine. Longworth had found a lucrative market: the new German immigrants wanted an affordable, drinkable table wine to continue with the traditions of their homeland, and he enjoyed a virtual monopoly. Besides being a pioneer and leading horticultural expert in his section, he was recognized as an authority in national horticultural matters. His writings, though individually short and now out of date, exercised a wide influence in his day.
Newark, New Jersey
Newark is the largest city in the American state of New Jersey, and the seat of Essex County. As of the 2010 United States Census, Newark had a population of 277,140, maintaining its status as the largest municipality in New Jersey. It is the 68th largest city in the U.S...
in 1783. In 1804 he moved to Cincinnati, Ohio
Cincinnati, Ohio
Cincinnati is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio. Cincinnati is the county seat of Hamilton County. Settled in 1788, the city is located to north of the Ohio River at the Ohio-Kentucky border, near Indiana. The population within city limits is 296,943 according to the 2010 census, making it Ohio's...
where he became a banker and a successful winemaker
Winemaker
A winemaker or vintner is a person engaged in winemaking. They are generally employed by wineries or wine companies, where their work includes:*Cooperating with viticulturists...
as well as founder of the Longworth family
Longworth family
The Longworth family is most closely associated with Cincinnati, Ohio, and was one of Cincinnati's better-known families during the 19th and 20th centuries. The founder of the Ohio family, Nicholas Longworth , came to Cincinnati from Newark, New Jersey sometime before 1808...
in Ohio. Longworth was an influential figure in the early history of American wine
History of American wine
The History of American wine began when first Europeans to explore parts of North America which they called Vinland because of the profusion of grape vines they found. However, settlers would later discover that the wine made from the various native grapes had flavors which were unfamiliar and...
, producing sparkling Catawba
Catawba (grape)
Catawba is a red hybrid grape variety used for wine as well as juice, jams and jellies. The grape can have a pronounced musky or "foxy" flavor. Grown predominantly on the East Coast of the United States, this purplish-red grape is a likely cross of the native American Vitis labrusca and another...
wine from grapes grown in his Ohio River Valley vineyard.
Personal life
He married Susanna Howell, three years his junior, daughter of Silas and Hannah (Vaughan) Howell, on Christmas Eve, 1807. His beautiful Greek Revival villa, then on the eastern edge of Cincinnati, is now the Taft Museum of ArtTaft Museum of Art
The Taft Museum of Art is a house museum in downtown Cincinnati, Ohio. The building which houses the museum was built as a villa on the edge of Cincinnati about 1820 for Martin Baum and then was the residence of Nicholas Longworth. David Sinton lived in the house with his daughter Anna, who...
in Cincinnati.
Nicholas pursued the study of law under Jacob Burnet
Jacob Burnet
Jacob Burnet was an American jurist and statesman from Ohio.He was born in Newark, New Jersey on February 22, 1770, the son of Dr. William Burnet. He studied law, moved to the Northwest Territory and settled in Cincinnati in 1796. His half-brother David G...
, one of Cincinnati's first millionaires.
Winemaking
Becoming interested in grapes, he established grape culture as a successful venture on the hills adjoining the city of Cincinnati. He planted a vineyard of Catawba along the Ohio RiverOhio River
The Ohio River is the largest tributary, by volume, of the Mississippi River. At the confluence, the Ohio is even bigger than the Mississippi and, thus, is hydrologically the main stream of the whole river system, including the Allegheny River further upstream...
and began making a sparkling wine
Sparkling wine
Sparkling wine is a wine with significant levels of carbon dioxide in it making it fizzy. The carbon dioxide may result from natural fermentation, either in a bottle, as with the méthode champenoise, in a large tank designed to withstand the pressures involved , or as a result of carbon dioxide...
from the grapes using the traditional method used in Champagne. From the 1830s through the 1850s, Longworth's still and sparkling Catawba were being distributed from California
California
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
to Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
where it received numerous press accolades. In the 1850s, a journalist from The Illustrated London News noted that the still white Catawba compared favorably to the hock wines of the Rhine and the sparkling Catawba "transcends the Champagnes of France".
The wines were also well received at home in the United States where Henry Wadsworth Longfellow
Henry Wadsworth Longfellow
Henry Wadsworth Longfellow was an American poet and educator whose works include "Paul Revere's Ride", The Song of Hiawatha, and Evangeline...
published a poem dedicated to Nicholas Longworth titled Ode to Catawba Wine. The popularity of Longsworth's wine encouraged a flurry of plantings along the Ohio River Valley and up north to Lake Erie and Finger Lakes region of New York.
So successful was he that he has been called the Father of American Grape Culture. The growing tide of German immigrants coming down the Ohio Valley to Cincinnati liked his wine. Longworth had found a lucrative market: the new German immigrants wanted an affordable, drinkable table wine to continue with the traditions of their homeland, and he enjoyed a virtual monopoly. Besides being a pioneer and leading horticultural expert in his section, he was recognized as an authority in national horticultural matters. His writings, though individually short and now out of date, exercised a wide influence in his day.