78 THE EVOLUTION OF OUR NATIVE FRUITS 



Nicholas Herbemont, who was a public spirited grape- 

 grower of South Carolina in the early part of the 

 century (page 67). This grape had begun to attract 

 attention about Cincinnati as early as 1850, and in 

 1853 Nicholas Longworth strongly recommended it to 

 the members of the Cincinnati Horticultural Society. 

 Wine making was still the leading motive in Long- 

 worth's time, and he was attracted by the Herbe- 

 mont largely because of its merits for wine. "The 

 singularity of the wine is," he says, "that it has the 

 aroma and flavor of the Spanish Manzanilla, but su- 

 perior." 



While the Herbemont was the leading grape in the 

 South, and was becoming established as far north as the 

 Ohio Valley, another epoch-making grape was coming 

 into notice in the middle South. This was the Norton's 

 Virginia. It was a wild grape, found by Dr. F. A. 

 Lemosq on Cedar Island, in James River, near Rich- 

 mond, Virginia, in 1835. It was recommended to public 

 favor as a wine grape by Dr. D. N. Norton, an enterpris- 

 ing horticulturist living near Richmond, and the variety 

 now bears his name. The grape early reached the Cin- 

 cinnati grape settlement, but it was first brought dis- 

 tinctly to the fore in the pioneer West (page 69). Hus- 

 mann, writing in 1865, details its introduction into 

 Missouri: "It was about this time [1850] that the 

 attention of some of our grape -growers was drawn to- 

 wards a small, insignificant looking grape, which had 

 been obtained by a Mr. Wiedersprecker from Mr. Hein- 

 richs, who had brought it from Cincinnati, and, almost 

 at the same time, by Dr. Kehr, who had brought it with 

 him from Virginia. The vine seemed a rough customer, 

 and its fruit very insignificant when compared with the 



