Pleasant Valley Wine Co.
J.W. Kelly founded his company and distillery in Chattanooga in 1866. Pleasant Valley Wine Company was founded in 1860 and is the oldest winery in the Finger Lakes in New York. From their website:
“The Pleasant Valley Wine Company, located near the village of Hammondsport, New York, is the oldest winery in the Finger Lakes region.
On March 15, 1860, Charles Davenport Champlin and 12 local businessmen consolidated their holdings under “Articles of Association for the Manufacture of Native Wine” and, with $10,000 capitalization, built the first winery in this region. Pleasant Valley Wine Company was designated as Bonded Winery No. 1 in its State and Federal districts.
The original winery was constructed on land whose price had soared from $10 to $100 an acre in one decade! It was built on a slope owned by Mr. Champlin overlooking Pleasant Valley, two miles south of Hammondsport. All winemaking operations were carried out by Jules and Joseph Masson, noted French-born winemakers of the time, in still-used wooden and stone structures, with adjacent cellars carved deep into the hillside. Eight of these Great Western Winery buildings were listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1980.”
It turns out that J.W. Kelly had a long-standing relationship with the winery, and was the local distributor for their champagne.
“Because of the internationally recognized excellence of Pleasant Valley Champagnes, and because of the similarities of climatic and soil conditions between the area and the Champagne district of France, Pleasant Valley came to be called the “Rheims of America.” When the U.S. Postal Service opened a branch at the winery in 1870, it used the postmark, “Rheims, N.Y.,” which was used until 1945 when rural delivery took its place.”
We were sent copies of various bills between JWK and Pleasant Valley Wine Co. This one is the favorite of our company historian:
Courtesy of Jimmy Blaylock.
Guess Kelly hadn’t used all of the old Kelly/Davenport stationery up yet after G.W. retired in 1890. ;)
By the way, check out Pleasant Valley Winery’s website!
