Shawnee-Leavenworth County KS Archives Biographies.....Wellhouse, Frederick 1828 - ************************************************ Copyright. All rights reserved. http://www.usgwarchives.net/copyright.htm http://www.usgwarchives.net/ks/ksfiles.htm ************************************************ File contributed for use in USGenWeb Archives by: Joy Fisher sdgenweb@yahoo.com September 26, 2006, 3:53 pm Author: James L. King (1905) HON. FREDERICK WELLHOUSE. HON. FREDERICK WELLHOUSE, one of the leading horticulturists of the State of Kansas, and a prominent and valued citizen of Topeka, was born November 16, 1828, in Wayne County, Ohio, and is a son of William and Hannah (Yohe) Wellhouse. The father of Mr. Wellhouse subsequent to the latter's birth removed to Summit County, Ohio, where he purchased a farm of 300 acres. He died there in 1843, leaving the management of this large estate and the care of several younger children to our subject, then a youth of 15, and his brother, who was 18 months older. In 1853 Mr. Wellhouse moved to Christian County, Illinois, where he engaged in farming and in literary pursuits. In 1858 he located at Indianapolis, Indiana, and entered into the publication of an agricultural journal known as the Indiana Farmer. A year later he sold this newspaper to his partner, J. N. Ray, and then moved to Kansas, locating in Leavenworth County, in 1859. Here Mr. Welhouse set out great orchards, the care of which interested him for a number of years. While it was something of an experiment, Mr. Wellhouse had made horticulture a scientific study and the remarkable success which rewarded his care and industry sufficiently demonstrated his wisdom as well as his knowledge of horticulture. In the fall of 1880, Mr. Wellhouse and his son Walter, who is associated with him, gathered the first crop of apples, the yield of 437 acres of orchard being 1,500 bushels. In 1890, 10 years later, the crop amounted to the vast amount of 79,170 bushels. The total yield of this great orchard up to 1905 has been 498,148 bushels, which sold for $199,253.20, with net profits amounting to $139,481.44. The fruit is shipped both to home markets and foreign ports. The whole extent of orchard land includes 1,630 acres, making the Wellhouse orchard the largest one in the world under one management. No other orchard in the State of Kansas or in the world, conducted by one man and his family, has ever equaled its record in annual yield of apples. Between the rows of trees in the orchard Mr. Wellhouse has also grown 160,000 bushels of corn. Five varieties of apples are grown: Jonathan, Ben Davis, Gano, York Imperial and Missouri Pippin; the orchard is noted as much for the quality as for the quantity of the product. While Mr. Wellhouse has always been an enthusiast in the growing of apples, he has also been much interested in the culture of all kinds of fruit. He was one of the first horticulturists to call the attention of other States to the possibilities of fruit culture in Kansas, the fine exhibits made at Philadelphia, Richmond, Boston and New York attracting universal and favorable notice and resulting in attracting capital and good settlers to this section of the State. Mr. Wellhouse has continued his active interest in horticultural affairs and he was chosen, as eminently fitted, to take full charge of the fruit display for Kansas, at the World's Columbian Exposition at Chicago in 1893 and at the Trans-Mississippi Exposition at Omaha, Nebraska, in 1898. Mr. Wellhouse has been an active member of the Kansas State Horticultural Society almost since its organization, has been its president for the past 10 years and for 15 years was its treasurer. He has been vice-president Kansas State Fair Association in which he has been a director almost since its organization. During the Civil War, Mr. Wellhouse took an active part in military matters and was captain in the 19th Kansas State militia. In 1861 he was elected county commissioner and made chairman of the board, and in 1866 he was elected by the Republican party to the Legislature and was reelected in 1888. Other marks of party favor have been shown him at various times and for years he was a prominent figure in public life. Mr. Wellhouse married Susan Housely, a daughter of Daniel Housely, and they reared four children, namely: Walter, who is married and lives in Topeka; Mary C., Horace M., deceased; and Cora A., wife of H. S. Bullard, of Leavenworth County, who is living on one of subject's farms. Additional Comments: Extracted from: HISTORY OF SHAWNEE COUNTY, KANSAS AND REPRESENTATIVE CITIZENS EDITED AND COMPILED BY JAMES L. KING TOPEKA, KANSAS "History is Philosophy Teaching by Examples" PUBLISHED BY RICHMOND & ARNOLD, GEORGE RICHMOND; C. R. ARNOLD. CHICAGO, ILLINOIS, 1905. File at: http://files.usgwarchives.net/ks/shawnee/bios/wellhous48nbs.txt This file has been created by a form at http://www.genrecords.net/ksfiles/ File size: 5.0 Kb