Napa County Biographies

H. A. Pellet

Transcribed by: Bonnie Phelan

This file is part of the California Genealogy & History Archives
http://www.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~cagha/index.htm

 
It is with pleasure that we accord herewith a leading position to this worthy 
pioneer of winemaking in California, one who, by hearty, earnest work for the 
business of his life and the country of his choice, has accomplished much in the 
past with still greater promise of the future, and is today regarded as one of 
the foremost wine men of our state, being thoroughly acquainted with every 
detail of the business and an authority second to none other. A visit to his 
charming home, situated amid a splendid grove in the center of the valley, with 
an unequaled view on every side and surrounded by flowers, will long be 
remembered by the writer as one of those pleasant occasions that come all too 
infrequently to man kind. Very much of the general information to be found in 
another place in this volume has been verified and amplified from his ready 
stores of information. About his place nothing for show alone was found, but in 
every instance, in cellar arrangements and all else, utility and convenience was 
evidently first consulted. In the twenty-seven years since Mr.Pellet purchased 
and began the improvement of his charming place, he has done a very great deal 
of work, not alone for himself, but as well as the State at large. From time to 
time he has imported and experimented with something like sixty varieties of 
grapes for the purpose of testing their adaptability to our climate and 
conditions. As a result, his experience limits him to about ten varieties, in 
which he was followed generally by others in the valley. These are for red 
wines, the Zinfandel, Mataro, Grenache, Grosse Blanc, Carignane, St. Macaire and 
Malbec, and for white wines, the different varieties of Riesling, the Chasselas 
and the Burger. These are grafted upon native resistant stocks. The cellar, 
which has a capacity of about 80,000 gallons, was erected in 1866, being sunk 
partially beneath the surface of the ground. That it contains samples of some of 
the grandest vintages ever grown in California, will be asserted by anyone who 
visits Mr. Pellet and profits by his generous hospitality.
      We draw largely for the details of Mr. Pellet�s busy and useful life from 
the history of Napa and Lake counties, which gives them fully and succinctly. 
Henry Alphonse Pellet was born February 6, 1828, in Canto Neufchatel, 
Switzerland, and is the second son of John Samuel and Elizabeth (Javet) Pellet. 
He remained with his parents until he was fifteen years of age, receiving in the 
meantime the rudiments of his education, and also working in his father�s 
vineyards. At that age he entered the high school, which he attended for two 
years. He then studied surveying for one year. In 1846 he accepted the position 
of bookkeeper for Messrs. Perret & Co., which manufacturers in La Chaux de 
Fonds, which he held until February, 1848, when he resigned the position, and 
served as a volunteer in the revolution that freed the canton of Neufchatel from 
the sovereignty of the King of Prussia. In May of 1848, he emigrated to the 
United States, and having brought a stock of watches, clocks, etc. with him, set 
up in business in St. Louis. In the fall of that year he returned again to 
Switzerland, having disposed of his previous stock, and in the following spring 
came once more to St. Louis, bringing with him a replenished stock of watches 
and watchmaker�s goods. In the spring of 1850, determining to follow the tide to 
California, he fitted up two six-mule teams, and organized a company of twelve 
men for the trip overland. The trains were sent to St. Joseph, whither he 
followed by steamer; and on May16th they set out for the tedious journey. They 
chose the northern route, coming via Sublette�s cut-off and Fort Hall to the 
Humboldt River, then down that river to the sink, across the desert to Truckee 
and across the Sierras, reaching Nevada City, September 6, 1850. The trip was a 
hard one, much suffering being felt for lack of provisions and loss of cattle, 
necessitating the abandoning of one wagon. For six weeks they were without 
bread, and for four weeks had to subsist on jerked beef, procured from the 
abandoned cattle along the route. Mr. Pellet engaged at once in mining, and met 
with good success. In February, he with five others, went to Rich Bar on the 
north fork of the Feather River, and worked for five months, returning then to 
Nevada City. In the fall of that year he, with others, opened a quartz mine, 
erected a mill, and in less then six months found the whole undertaking a 
failure. With the dauntless sprit of the early days, this disaster served only 
to nerve him to greater efforts. He accepted a position as foreman in a quartz 
mill at $8 a day, holding it until the fall of 1852. He then came to San 
Francisco, where in partnership with J.L. Cabanne he put up a flourmill at North 
Beach. This they carried on for a year with varying success. In the fall of 1853 
the mill was removed to Napa City, being the first gristmill in the county. This 
mill Mr. Pellet carried on until June 1855, with no very large profit to 
himself, although an immense convenience and benefit to the farmers, who came 
many miles to have their grain reduced to flour. He then returned to the mines, 
going to Siskiyou County. In 1858 he came back again to Napa County, and engaged 
in farming. In 1860 he leased John Patchett�s vineyard near Napa City, and 
entered upon the making of wine. This was the second wine made in the county, 
Mr. Charles Krug having preceded him one year on the same place. In 1863 he 
purchased his present beautiful place, the whole of which (forty-five acres) is 
in vineyard, saving only the site of his comfortable home, the winery, barns, 
stables, and etc. Until 1866 he had charge of Dr. Crane�s vineyard and cellar, 
when he built his cellar and, and in partnership with Mr. D.B. Carver, now a 
banker, he went extensively into the wine business, buying grapes and making 
wine. The firm of Pellet & Carver was dissolved in 1878, since which time Mr. 
Pellet has continued the business alone, but on a like large scale. Mr. Pellet 
is now also the Superintendent of the wine cellars for the Natoma Wine Company, 
the most extensive makers of wine in the vicinity of Sacramento. He makes the 
wine for the company, attending to every detail from the moment the grapes come 
in from the vineyards until the wine is sold. He has always been actively 
identified with every movement that looks to be the betterment of the wine 
industry of the states, being a leading figure in the formation of the 
Viticultural Commission. He has also held more then one elective office, in 
which he was able to serve his beloved industry to great purpose. In the session 
of 1885-86, he was chosen a member of the State Legislature. During this time he 
was Chairman of the Committee on Viticulture, and was the author of the Sweet 
Wine Bill, and aided largely in promoting Congressional action on the subject. 
Previous to this he had served his county and district as Supervisor for several 
terms, and was also for several terms a member of the Board of Trustees of St. 
Helena.
      Mr. Pellet was married February 5, 1856, to Miss Sarah S. Thompson, of 
Sandusky, Ohio. They had three sons, Frank and Louis, now in the lumber in St. 
Helena, two of the most worthy citizens of that town, who are following closely 
in the footsteps of their father, and John S.  Mrs.  Pellet is deceased, and Mr. 
Pellet has again remarried. 
      Such in brief is the record of a busy and eventful life, the 
characteristic feature of which is energy, indomitable pluck, and the strong 
determination that compels success, an example worthy the emulation of the 
young.
 
Memorial & Biographical History of Northern California The Lewis Publishing Co., 
1891, Pages 815-816