Ephraim Wales Bull
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Ephraim Wales Bull (March 4, 1806 – September 26, 1895) was the inventor of the Concord grape. Born in Boston, Bull moved to Concord in 1836, settling with his wife on a farm next door to Bronson Alcott.
In 1843, Bull began the deliberate process of breeding a grape that could thrive in the cold New England climate. By 1849, having planted 22,000 seedlings, he had created a large, sweet variety from a native species. By 1853, the grapes were for sale, but within several years, competing growers had begun growing their own crops of Concord grapes, purchased from Bull for $5 per vine. Bull saw little profit from the strain after the initial sales.
Ephraim Bull was elected to the Massachusetts House of Representatives in 1855. In 1893, after a fall, he ended up in the Concord Home for the Aged. He died in 1895. His epitaph reads, He Sowed Others Reaped.
[edit] References
- Collins, Paul. Banvard's Folly: Thirteen Tales of People Who Didn't Change The World. Picador USA, 2001.
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