Nicholas
Longworth, often called the "father of American
grape culture" was born in Newark, New Jersey. Early
in his life he settled in Cincinnati where he became a
most successful and wealthy merchant.
He early became interested in grapes and by means
of utilizing the cultivar Catawba he established grape
culture as a successful venture on the hills adjoining
the city of Cincinnati. As a matter of fact Longworth
and several other horticulturists made Cincinnati the
horticultural center of what at that time was called
"The West."
He observed that many strawberry cultivars required
cross pollination. He introduced Ohio Everbearing
raspberry which was the first improved cultivar of
Rubus occidentalis.
In 1846 he issued a pamphlet entitled The
Cultivation of the Grape and Manufacture of Wine.
He also was responsible for one entitled, Character
and Habits of the Strawberry Plant. He also
contributed a chapter on the strawberry to Buchanan's
Culture of the Grape.
The history of Ohio fruit culture would not be complete without
mentioning the initiative and imagination of Longworth
in his efforts to further horticulture in its varied
aspects in Southwestern Ohio and in Cincinnati in particular.
