Timeline of George Husmann’s Life & Work
1827
On November 4, George Husmann is born to Martin Husmann and Louise Charlotte Wesselhoeft Husmann in Meyenburg, Germany
1832
George’s uncle, J.G. Wesselhoeft, and oldest sister, Marianne, immigrate to Philadelphia
1836
Martin and Fritz (George’s brother) purchase shares in the German Settlement Society of Philadelphia
1837
The Husmann family board the ship Clementine out of the German port of Bremerhaven
In September, the Husmanns arrive in Philadelphia and meet Dr. Constantin Hering, Marianne’s husband
J.G. Wesselhoeft and his cousin, William Wesselhoeft, plant one of the first commercial vineyards in Pennsylvania, likely giving young George his first exposure to viticulture
1838
The Husmanns make their way to St. Louis, where Martin Husmann rents a 10-acre farm outside the city
1839
In March, the Husmanns arrive in Hermann
1840
On November 4, George’s 13th birthday, his mother Louise dies of “brain fever”
1844
The trustees of Hermann encourage citizens to grow grapes by offering lots to grape growers at $50 with a no-interest period of five years
1847
George plants his first vines of Isabella and Catawba grapes
Charles Teubner meets the Husmanns after wandering onto their property while hunting
On September 20, Charles Teubner and Josephine Husmann, George’s older sister, are married in an orchard on Charles’ property, which is today’s Hermann Farm
In November, Martin Husmann dies in a machinery accident at the mill in town (now the Tin Mill Restaurant), prompting George to move in with Charles and Josphine and begin a nursery apprenticeship under his brother-in-law
1850
George Husmann follows the promise of gold in California
1851
On September 10, Charles Teubner dies unexpectedly, leaving behind a young son, Charles, and Josephine, pregnant with their second child, a boy to be named Fred
1852
George Husmann returns to Hermann in March, moves into the Teubner-Husmann house with Josephine, and takes over his late brother-in-law’s nursery business
George takes it upon himself to learn as much as he can about winemaking and share his knowledge with the grape-growers of Hermann
1853
The Gasconade County Agricultural Society is formed and George Husmann is elected as the first president
1854
On May 19, Josephine Teubner dies after treating cholera patients who had arrived from St. Louis. In her will she appoints George as the guardian of her two sons, Charles and Fred
On July 13, George marries Louise Kielmann
1855 or 56
George introduces the Concord grape to Missouri
1857
George Husmann publishes his first work on wine, Weinbau in Amerika (Viticulture in America)
1858
Charles Manwaring of New York arrives in Hermann and begins a business partnership with George Husmann, also moving in with George in the Teubner-Husmann House
1859
George purchases 120 acres east of Hermann to plant vineyards — this land is now the site of Oak Glenn Winery
1861
George Husmann and Charles Manwaring both volunteer to serve in the Union Army
On December 5, Charles becomes George’s brother-in-law when he marries Amalia Kielmann, Louise Husmann’s sister
1863
George Husmann returns to his vineyard and nursery work full-time
Husmann publishes “As Essay on the Culture of the Grape in the Great West”
1864
On Saturday, May 14, Charles Manwaring is shot by Confederate bushwhackers at Hermann Wharf, dying the following day at the Teubner-Husmann house
1865
George Husmann serves as a delegate to the Missouri State Constitutional Convention, where he adds his signature to the Ordinance Abolishing Slavery
1866
Husmann publishes his first full-length book, The Cultivation of the Native Grape and the Manufacture of American Wines
Husmann begins development of the Bluffton Wine Company, of which he served as president, across the river from Hermann in the town of Bluffton
1869
Bluffton Wine Company is ready for production, Husmann sells his property at what is now Oak Glenn Winery and moves with his family to Bluffton to dedicate himself to the new company
Husmann begins publication of the monthly journal The Grape Culturist
1872
Bluffton Wine Company fails
The Grape Culturist publishes its final issue
Husmann moves to Sedalia, Missouri, and establishes a commercial nursery
1870s
European vines are suffering from an epidemic of the Phylloxera louse. Husmann helps save the French wine industry by sending native American Phylloxera-resistant rootstocks to Europe
1878
Husmann begins working as the first Professor of Pomology and Forestry at the University of Missouri at Columbia
1879
Three of Husmann’s children — son Carl Georg and twin daughters Johanna and Josephine — enroll in the University of Missouri School of Agriculture
1880
Husmann publishes his second book, American Grape Culture and Wine Making
In July, Husmann’s 8-year-old son, Charlie, dies after a teenage boy playing with a gun accidentally shoots him
1881
Husmann resigns from the University of Missouri and moves with his family to California, where he takes over management of James Simonton’s Talcoa Ranch
1884
Husmann, along with two of his sons, purchase the land that will become Oak Glen Winery in Napa’s Chiles Valley
1886
Husmann is appointed State Statistical Agent for California for the USDA
1888
Husmann publishes his third book, Grape Culture and Wine Making in California
1889
Husmann collects California wines for an exhibition at the World’s Fair in Paris
1893
Husmann acts as delegate for the California Wine Industry at the World’s Fair in Chicago
1902
On November 5, the day after his 75th birthday, George Husmann dies. He is buried in the Tulocay Cemetery in Napa