3o8 THE GRAPES OF NEW YORK. 



Isabella is now of little more than historical interest yet for a half 

 century after its introduction, about 1816, it and Catawba were the main- 

 stays of American viticulture. In the early days of grape-growing in this 

 country Isabella was the grape of the North Atlantic and New England 

 States while the vineyards of the South were planted with Catawba, the 

 latter requiring too long a season and being too susceptible to fungal diseases 

 for a northern grape. Isabella has been almost wholly replaced in the 

 North by Concord, because the latter is earlier, hardier and more productive, 

 and the older variety can now hardly be found except in the collections 

 of experimenters and amateurs. 



In appearance Isabella is quite as attractive as any of the black grapes, 

 having large, well-formed clusters and a deep black color with thick bloom. 

 The flavor is good but the thick skin and muskiness in taste are objection- 

 able. The fruit keeps and ships well and seldom rattles or cracks but the 

 variety is surpassed in vine characters by many other standard kinds, notably 

 Concord, which, as stated above, has taken its place. The lustrous green, 

 ample foliage which remains late in the season, and the vigor of Isabella, 

 make it an attractive ornamental, well adapted for growing on arbors, 

 porches and trellises. Individual vines of this variety growing in New York, 

 the Middle States, and New England, realize more than any other grape 

 that ideal of peace and plenty for which the grape has been the symbol 

 since the vines of Judah and of Israel. While it is of small commercial 

 importance, Isabella is still worthy a place in the garden and as an 

 ornamental. 



The origin of Isabella is not certainly known. It was secured by 

 William Prince of Flushing, Long Island, from Mrs. Isabella Gibbs, the 

 wife of Geo. Gibbs, a merchant then living in Brooklyn, New York. Prince 

 states that he first saw this grape in 1816 and was so struck with its appear- 

 ance that he considered it worthy of a name and introduction to the public. 

 It was consequently named in honor of Mrs. Gibbs and introduced shortly 

 after 1816. In answer to a request from Prince as to the place of its origin. 

 Mrs. Gibbs reported that it had come originally from the vicinity of Dor- 

 chester, South Carolina. This account of its origin was published at the 

 time in several agricultural periodicals and later in Prince's Treatise on ilie 

 Vine. The whole question was thoroughly discussed in the agricultural 



