The Notability of certain Wellers....
I'm going to start this one off a little different, because it's starts in the present, instead of the past. Last week or so, in this very small world of ours, I, hailing from Central Illinois and only recently moving to Sarasota Florida, met a young woman about my age who's last name is Weller; my mom's maiden name and the most extensive branch on my family tree. We got to talking, and her family is from Maryland, one of the first places 'we' settled. Eventually she and I will connect not just with each other, but also the dots from her lineage to mine. But that's later. I said, "Did you know there's a Weller pottery? It was pretty famous." She replied with, "Did you know there's Weller whiskey?"
I did, in fact. I also know it's founder is my second cousin six times removed (although I can't tell you what that means.) I told my mom (the official Weller, haha) and she wanted a picture with said whiskey. Picture, Hell. I want to drink it. And thus began my quest. In Sarasota we have a chain of very large alcohol stores called Total Wine. It is my happy place, no lie. If you can't find something there you can't find it anywhere except online, so in I go.
I know it's Kentucky made....but it's not in that section. I know it's Rye instead of wheat whiskey....not in that section either. In fact, it's not to be seen anywhere, so I ask. "We had it, but it hasn't been stocked since June." 'So....' "So we probably won't get any more." Now, this is one of the top 5 whiskey brands in the US. Why would you not carry this? 'Can I order it?' "No." Out I went, completely agitated, with a very expensive bottle of German beer for the hubs and a very cheap bottle of cherry vodka as they didn't carry my favorite brand in that either. -_-
"I can never find it either," says a man who very clearly knows and enjoys a good whiskey. "Sometimes you can get lucky at ABC." Thanks, random stranger!
So today I visited ABC Fine Wine & Spirits. Much smaller store, I figure there's know way their going to carry it, and after perusing the isles I found I was correct. But I'll ask anyway, if nothing else maybe they can order it. Surfer guy at the counter looks promising, I go to him and he's super helpful (and kind of adorable.)
"We literally can't keep it in. Two years ago the stuff wouldn't move at all, now everyone has realised it comes from Buffalo Trace Distillery and I literally have people following our delivery trucks in to get some." Holy wow. OK then. I'm like, 'No lie, I only want it because it's a maiden name, the founder is relation, I just want it to have it, I don't care if it's the whiskey or the bourbon and I don't care about bottle size or price.' He shuffles around under the counter, claiming they occationally get the small bottles in, but nope, they are out of those to. I mutter and expletive and shift my gaze to the right...."OH MY GOSH THERE IT IS!" I was not quiet, I probably made a complete ass out of myself, but there were only like three people in the store and being the nature of said store they probably thought I was drunk so..... "You literally just made my week." The best part? It was only $12. I was budgeting on at least $40 (Mind you this is not a large elaborate bottle, but still.)
So why all the hype? Let me give you a small history on a few notable members of the Weller family, and then I'll talk about Mr. W. L. Weller and his famous whiskey.
The first Weller I have on record is my 11th great grandfather, Hans Johan Weller, born January 1585 in Diedenshausen, Westfalen, Germany. Now of course Hans was not the first Weller, he's just the furthest back I can verify records for. Either records before him have been lost, destroyed, or were never kept in the first place, at leats not with any sense of regularity. Hans married a woman with the last name of Polcher in 1617, and they had at least two children; Johann Phillip and Hans George, before Hans died in Girkenhausen, Westfalen, Germany September 13th, 1638 at the age of 53.
The first to emigrate (at least along my line) was Johannes "John" Weller, born May 24, 1716 in Diedenshausen, my 7th great grandfather. He arrived in Philadelphia Pennsylvania Sept 19, 1743 aboard the Strassburg-Hinkel Pioneer Ship. Somehow he knew his wife, Catherine Salome Ambrose, before arriving, as they married the same year he arrived and September to December doesn't lave much time for courtship. She too had been born in Germany and emigrated Oct 11, 1732. They traveled the same path, although why is still a mystery to me; from Philadelphia to Frederick Maryland. Here's where our notoriety begins.
In 1746, a group from both church congregations in Graceham, Thurmont, KY; these were the "Monocacy" Churches, one Lutheran, one Reformed) withdrew to found a Moravian congregation at the house of Jacob Weller. This eventually became the Graceham Moravian Church. After the French and Indian War, many of the homes along the Blue Ridge Mountains had been destroyed, those who stayed behind did so by fortifying John Weller's house, by then known as Graceham Moravian. This apparently appalled the 'peaceful' Moravians that it had to be done in the first place. (I'm not going to make this already long winded post even longer by talking about the Moravian church, but those who are interested can go here: http://www.moravian.org/the-moravian-church/history/ ) Peter Apple gave a deed of one acre to Matthias Ambrose, Catherine's father, as a trustee to build a schoolhouse, which for a while had the dual function of the church as well. I'm going to stop that story there, but if you'd like to continue your education of Apple's Reformed Church you can do so here:
http://www.germanmarylanders.org/churches/apples-church-jacob-s-thurmont
I was going to tell you about Weller Pottery out of Ohio, but as it turns out I don't have his line in my tree, and after a bit of researching looks like I'm going to have to do some serious digging to connect us up. So we'll come back to that one.
Back to W.L. William LaRue Weller, my second cousin 6x removed, born July 25 1825 in LaRue county, Kentucky to Samuel Weller and Phoebe LaRue (who's family have clearly been in that county a very long time and are quite proud of it.) William served in the Louisville Brigade in the 1840's, fighting in the Mexican American War, then returned to Louisville to open a wholesale liquor business, "William LaRue & Brother." He married Sarah B Pence April 25th, 1850. William went into his business with his brother Charles, between what are now Jefferson and Liberty Streets. Developing his own bourbon recipe using Wheat instead of Rye, giving it a 'mild, gentle, and smooth taste.' Weller is reported to have used the slogan “Honest Whiskey at an Honest Price.” The concoction was so popular and often imitated Weller started putting his thumbprint in green on the bottles to distinguish his brand.
The Civil War threw a wrench in the brother's plans, however. William's brother John served in the Orphaned Brigade, rose to the rank of Captain, and was ultimately wounded in Chickamauga. Brothers William and Charles stayed behind to run the business, while two other brothers fought at Butternut for the Confederacy. Ironically, it was Charles, not those off fighting in the War, who was killed, murdered by bandits in Tennessee in 1862 while trying to collect on a debt. Now-Captain John came into the business to replace Charles, and as William's sons grew, they joined the firm as well, and by the 1870s the business had moved to Louisville’s Main Street and was known as “William Larue Weller & Sons.”
Yet it was in 1893 when Weller made his second truly significant move in the history of American whiskey, when he hired Julian Van Winkle. Later known as “Pappy,” Van Winkle got his start in the whiskey trade working for Weller. A few years later, Weller retired, leaving the business to his brother John and his eldest son, George. He died in 1899, and his company later came to merge in 1909 with the A. Ph. Stitzel Distiller owned by his former employee, Julian “Pappy” Van Winkle. Today the William Larue Weller name continues in a line of Buffalo Trace bourbons, including W.L. Weller 12 Year, W.L. Weller Special Reserve and the Antique Collection W.L. Weller.
Pretty special if you ask me.
A shorter yet more informative version of Weller's history is seen here:
"Long before there was a highly sought-after wheated whiskey named for him, William LaRue Weller was a whiskey rectifier who, ironically, didn’t even drink. He had fought in the Mexican War alongside Zachary Taylor after he was orphaned in a Typhus epidemic as a child that wiped out most of the Weller family in LaRue County, Kentucky. Typhus spread easily through the underground limestone aquifers where most people got their water.
As his business grew, Weller hired Alex T. Farnsley and Julian P. Van Winkle as salesmen for his rectified products. The pair would later buy the business from Weller’s sons after W.L.’s death in 1896.
Weller never sold a wheated bourbon- that’s a recipe that was developed after Prohibition nearly 30 years after his death. Instead he bought his whiskey from the Stitzel brothers, who later sold whiskey to Farnsley and Van Winkle after they bought W.L. Weller and Sons. Van Winkle, Farnsley, and the Stitzel brothers merged their businesses after Prohibition was over to form Stitzel-Weller Distillery in Shively. The trio developed the wheated whiskey because they thought it would taste better at a younger age.
Weller was never hugely successful, but he made some major contributions to the city of Louisville. He was one of the founding members of the Baptist Orphan Home, serving on the board for a significant portion of his life. He was the person who interviewed prospective adoptive parents to be sure the children would be going to a good home.
W. L. Weller was a pioneer in the bourbon industry in Kentucky, and his mentoring of Alex T. Farnsley and Julian P. Van Winkle was probably his longest lasting contribution to the bourbon industry."
I did, in fact. I also know it's founder is my second cousin six times removed (although I can't tell you what that means.) I told my mom (the official Weller, haha) and she wanted a picture with said whiskey. Picture, Hell. I want to drink it. And thus began my quest. In Sarasota we have a chain of very large alcohol stores called Total Wine. It is my happy place, no lie. If you can't find something there you can't find it anywhere except online, so in I go.
I know it's Kentucky made....but it's not in that section. I know it's Rye instead of wheat whiskey....not in that section either. In fact, it's not to be seen anywhere, so I ask. "We had it, but it hasn't been stocked since June." 'So....' "So we probably won't get any more." Now, this is one of the top 5 whiskey brands in the US. Why would you not carry this? 'Can I order it?' "No." Out I went, completely agitated, with a very expensive bottle of German beer for the hubs and a very cheap bottle of cherry vodka as they didn't carry my favorite brand in that either. -_-
"I can never find it either," says a man who very clearly knows and enjoys a good whiskey. "Sometimes you can get lucky at ABC." Thanks, random stranger!
So today I visited ABC Fine Wine & Spirits. Much smaller store, I figure there's know way their going to carry it, and after perusing the isles I found I was correct. But I'll ask anyway, if nothing else maybe they can order it. Surfer guy at the counter looks promising, I go to him and he's super helpful (and kind of adorable.)
"We literally can't keep it in. Two years ago the stuff wouldn't move at all, now everyone has realised it comes from Buffalo Trace Distillery and I literally have people following our delivery trucks in to get some." Holy wow. OK then. I'm like, 'No lie, I only want it because it's a maiden name, the founder is relation, I just want it to have it, I don't care if it's the whiskey or the bourbon and I don't care about bottle size or price.' He shuffles around under the counter, claiming they occationally get the small bottles in, but nope, they are out of those to. I mutter and expletive and shift my gaze to the right...."OH MY GOSH THERE IT IS!" I was not quiet, I probably made a complete ass out of myself, but there were only like three people in the store and being the nature of said store they probably thought I was drunk so..... "You literally just made my week." The best part? It was only $12. I was budgeting on at least $40 (Mind you this is not a large elaborate bottle, but still.)
So why all the hype? Let me give you a small history on a few notable members of the Weller family, and then I'll talk about Mr. W. L. Weller and his famous whiskey.
The first Weller I have on record is my 11th great grandfather, Hans Johan Weller, born January 1585 in Diedenshausen, Westfalen, Germany. Now of course Hans was not the first Weller, he's just the furthest back I can verify records for. Either records before him have been lost, destroyed, or were never kept in the first place, at leats not with any sense of regularity. Hans married a woman with the last name of Polcher in 1617, and they had at least two children; Johann Phillip and Hans George, before Hans died in Girkenhausen, Westfalen, Germany September 13th, 1638 at the age of 53.
The first to emigrate (at least along my line) was Johannes "John" Weller, born May 24, 1716 in Diedenshausen, my 7th great grandfather. He arrived in Philadelphia Pennsylvania Sept 19, 1743 aboard the Strassburg-Hinkel Pioneer Ship. Somehow he knew his wife, Catherine Salome Ambrose, before arriving, as they married the same year he arrived and September to December doesn't lave much time for courtship. She too had been born in Germany and emigrated Oct 11, 1732. They traveled the same path, although why is still a mystery to me; from Philadelphia to Frederick Maryland. Here's where our notoriety begins.
In 1746, a group from both church congregations in Graceham, Thurmont, KY; these were the "Monocacy" Churches, one Lutheran, one Reformed) withdrew to found a Moravian congregation at the house of Jacob Weller. This eventually became the Graceham Moravian Church. After the French and Indian War, many of the homes along the Blue Ridge Mountains had been destroyed, those who stayed behind did so by fortifying John Weller's house, by then known as Graceham Moravian. This apparently appalled the 'peaceful' Moravians that it had to be done in the first place. (I'm not going to make this already long winded post even longer by talking about the Moravian church, but those who are interested can go here: http://www.moravian.org/the-moravian-church/history/ ) Peter Apple gave a deed of one acre to Matthias Ambrose, Catherine's father, as a trustee to build a schoolhouse, which for a while had the dual function of the church as well. I'm going to stop that story there, but if you'd like to continue your education of Apple's Reformed Church you can do so here:
http://www.germanmarylanders.org/churches/apples-church-jacob-s-thurmont
I was going to tell you about Weller Pottery out of Ohio, but as it turns out I don't have his line in my tree, and after a bit of researching looks like I'm going to have to do some serious digging to connect us up. So we'll come back to that one.
Back to W.L. William LaRue Weller, my second cousin 6x removed, born July 25 1825 in LaRue county, Kentucky to Samuel Weller and Phoebe LaRue (who's family have clearly been in that county a very long time and are quite proud of it.) William served in the Louisville Brigade in the 1840's, fighting in the Mexican American War, then returned to Louisville to open a wholesale liquor business, "William LaRue & Brother." He married Sarah B Pence April 25th, 1850. William went into his business with his brother Charles, between what are now Jefferson and Liberty Streets. Developing his own bourbon recipe using Wheat instead of Rye, giving it a 'mild, gentle, and smooth taste.' Weller is reported to have used the slogan “Honest Whiskey at an Honest Price.” The concoction was so popular and often imitated Weller started putting his thumbprint in green on the bottles to distinguish his brand.
The Civil War threw a wrench in the brother's plans, however. William's brother John served in the Orphaned Brigade, rose to the rank of Captain, and was ultimately wounded in Chickamauga. Brothers William and Charles stayed behind to run the business, while two other brothers fought at Butternut for the Confederacy. Ironically, it was Charles, not those off fighting in the War, who was killed, murdered by bandits in Tennessee in 1862 while trying to collect on a debt. Now-Captain John came into the business to replace Charles, and as William's sons grew, they joined the firm as well, and by the 1870s the business had moved to Louisville’s Main Street and was known as “William Larue Weller & Sons.”
Yet it was in 1893 when Weller made his second truly significant move in the history of American whiskey, when he hired Julian Van Winkle. Later known as “Pappy,” Van Winkle got his start in the whiskey trade working for Weller. A few years later, Weller retired, leaving the business to his brother John and his eldest son, George. He died in 1899, and his company later came to merge in 1909 with the A. Ph. Stitzel Distiller owned by his former employee, Julian “Pappy” Van Winkle. Today the William Larue Weller name continues in a line of Buffalo Trace bourbons, including W.L. Weller 12 Year, W.L. Weller Special Reserve and the Antique Collection W.L. Weller.
Pretty special if you ask me.
A shorter yet more informative version of Weller's history is seen here:
"Long before there was a highly sought-after wheated whiskey named for him, William LaRue Weller was a whiskey rectifier who, ironically, didn’t even drink. He had fought in the Mexican War alongside Zachary Taylor after he was orphaned in a Typhus epidemic as a child that wiped out most of the Weller family in LaRue County, Kentucky. Typhus spread easily through the underground limestone aquifers where most people got their water.
As his business grew, Weller hired Alex T. Farnsley and Julian P. Van Winkle as salesmen for his rectified products. The pair would later buy the business from Weller’s sons after W.L.’s death in 1896.
Weller never sold a wheated bourbon- that’s a recipe that was developed after Prohibition nearly 30 years after his death. Instead he bought his whiskey from the Stitzel brothers, who later sold whiskey to Farnsley and Van Winkle after they bought W.L. Weller and Sons. Van Winkle, Farnsley, and the Stitzel brothers merged their businesses after Prohibition was over to form Stitzel-Weller Distillery in Shively. The trio developed the wheated whiskey because they thought it would taste better at a younger age.
Weller was never hugely successful, but he made some major contributions to the city of Louisville. He was one of the founding members of the Baptist Orphan Home, serving on the board for a significant portion of his life. He was the person who interviewed prospective adoptive parents to be sure the children would be going to a good home.
W. L. Weller was a pioneer in the bourbon industry in Kentucky, and his mentoring of Alex T. Farnsley and Julian P. Van Winkle was probably his longest lasting contribution to the bourbon industry."
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