Washburne-Waterfill House

The oldest known photo of the Washburne-Waterfill House on the western corner of Ash Avenue and LaGrange Road appeared in "Beautiful Pewee Valley" published in 1909 by George R. Washburne, the home's original owner; and Powhattan Wooldridge, owner of Locust Lodge.

1989 sketch of the Washburne-Waterfill House property by Carolyn Brooks for the National Register of Historic Places nomination.

On August 15, 1900, George Rudy Washburne (June 15, 1860-February 11, 1923) and his wife, Mary Ann "Annie" Moore Washburne (March 8, 1872 - April 28,1959), paid W.N. Jurey $3,500 for a four-acre lot at the corner of what is now LaGrange Road/Highway 146 and Ash Avenue. On it, they built a home now known as the Washburne-Waterfill House. The house appears to have been erected about two years after they purchased the lot, based on this news brief from page 3 of the February 15, 1902 Courier-Journal:

Mr. G. R. Washburne will shortly erect a handsome Queen Anne cottage on Railroad Avenue in Pewee Valley. (Editor's note: In 1902, Highway 146/LaGrange Road didn't exist. Portions of Railroad Avenue eventually became Mt. Mercy Drive and LaGrange Road after the Train Depot was demolished.)

The cottage the Washburnes built was not a Queen Anne as the Courier-Journal reported. The National Register of Historic Places nomination describes the style as "eclectic," and notes that several changes have been made to it since it was originally built. The house was widened on the east side and extended to the rear. The two-story back porch is also likely an addition.

Also located on the property are two sets of historic gates, a servants' cottage, a pump house and a carriage house.

In 1989, when the house was submitted to the National Register as part of Pewee Valley's Ashwood Avenue Historic District, it was in extremely poor condition as the result of a fire. It was subsequently purchased and renovated by the new owners.

The Washburne Years

George Rudy Washburne from "Pacific Wine and Spirit Review," 1893.

Mary "Annie" Moore Washburne, from Find-a-Grave. Date and source unknown

By the time George and Mary Washburne built their Arts & Craft-inspired bungalow, they had been married ten years and had two daughters. Their girls were ages nine and two when they moved to Pewee Valley:

Annie Louise Washburne Williams (January 23, 1893 - April 23, 1962)

Mary Elizabeth Washburne Ford (1900 - 1967)

This description of the Washburne-Moore wedding appeared in the April 28, 1892 Courier-Journal:

The marriage of Mr. George R. Washburne and Mary A. Moore, which took place last night at the First Christian Church, was solemnized by a very elaborate and highly impressive service. The ceremony was performed at 8:30 o'clock by the Rev. Mr. Powell, and the church was crowded to suffocation. It has been very beautifully decorated by Nanz & Neuner, who made a feature of the flowers, which were used in great profusion both in designs and pots. In the center of the church each aisle was spanned by an arch of green, from which were suspended heart-shaped designs in white flowers. All the flowers used were white, except those composing the large marriage bell, which was made chiefly of Marchal Neil buds. (Editor's note: a climbing yellow rose)

Just in front of the altar a very large arch was erected, which extended the full width of the platform, which was connected by festoons of smilax, with another resting upon the pulpit, giving a very beautiful effect from the front. Under this first arch the bridal party were grouped during the ceremony.

The Mendelssohn Wedding March was played as the procession entered the church. It was led by the ushers, Messrs. Harry Bush, William Johnson, William Simmons, E. E. Payne, Arthur Foster and Wallace Morris. They were followed by the bridesmaids and groomsmen ... Then came the flower girls .. then the maid of honor, Miss Joyce Moore, the sister of the bride, and finally the bride leaning upon the arm of her father.

The bridesmaids were Miss Susan Ball of Versailles; Miss Virginia Thompson, also of Versailles; Miss Olive Cromie; and Miss Irene Washburne, the sister of the groom. They were all dressed in simple

gowns of pure white, with the long Watteau bows falling from the shoulders to the end of the demi-trains, and carried bouquets of Mermet roses. (Editor's note: Mermet roses are a pale pink tea rose.) The groomsmen were Mr. J. Monte Hunter, Harry W. Robinson, John L. Moore, the brother of the bride, and William C. Fenley. The little flower girls were Misses Eva Prewitt, Betty Campbell Meguiar and Dante Sperry. They wore charming Greek gowns in soft white material, and carried bunches of easter lilies and upon their arms large hats filled with flowers which they scattered before the procession as it passed out of the church.

The bride wore a very simple gown of white corded silk, very simply made, but trimmed with very handsome duchess lace. Her flowers were orchids, lilies of the valley and orange blossoms. The procession was met at the altar by the groom and the best man, Mr. Andrew Buchanan, and during the ceremony, Mrs. Holmboe (nee Magrane) played a violin solo. The Lohengrin March was played as the procession left the church, Mr. William Frese acting as organist ...

... The bride is the oldest daughter of Mr. W. B. Moore, and the groom is a prominent young business man of this city and the editor and proprietor of the Wine and Spirits Bulletin ...

Mr. and Mrs. Washburne left last night for a trip to Old Point, Washington, Niagara and New York.

Washburne Family Roots

Headstone for George's parents and sister Jennie at Cave Hill Cemetery

George Washburne was one of seven children born to Louis Jermaine Washburn (September 29, 1810-September 14, 1893) and Mary Ann Rudy Washburn (February 3, 1831-January 19, 1906). His father was a farmer in what was then known as Gilmans Point, now St. Matthews/Lyndon, in Jefferson County, Ky. According to the 1880 census, his brothers and sisters included:

Sarah Eliza "Sallie" Washburne (1854 - 1930)
Dulaney L. Washburne (1855 - 1897)
Emma Washburne (b. about 1858)
Jennie S. Washburne (1866 - March 6, 1924)
Nellie G. Washburne (b. about 1868)
Irene Washburne Mabry (1872 - 1943), who was a bridesmaid at George's wedding and later married Milton H. Mabry

The Washburn House, where George R. Washburne grew up, at 711 Fountain Avenue in St. Matthews. The house is caddycorner on a corner lot, rather than facing the street, as the rest of the homes in the area do. Photo July 14, 2017 by Donna Russell.

Donna M. Neary and Grady Clay described the Washburn house, where George grew up, in "Historic Jefferson County" (Jefferson County Historic Landmarks and Preservation Districts Commission; 2000), page 137:

In 1815 members of the Washburn family purchased a 50-acre tract including this house lot. Oral tradition credits this two story frame "I"-house to Delaney Washburn or his son Lewis (sic) Washburn with an 1830s construction. Lewis Washburn (George's father) inherited the land, known as the "home-tract," after his father's death in 1853. Possibly he added the two-story rear wing. The dwelling is a two-story, five-bay frame house with a brick foundation and interior brick end chimneys. The center bay front entrance features a leaded glass transom and sidelights...

The house is still standing at 711 Fountain Avenue.

Dr. Dulaney L. Washburne, from Kornhauser Health Sciences Library History Collections, University of Louisville, medical class of 1890-1891.

In 1880, both George and his brother Dulaney were employed at their father's farm. However, the boys had no interest in spending their lives behind a plow. Dulaney became a physician. This tribute to his accomplishments as a clinician and educator was reprinted in the 1897 Journal of the American Medical Association { XXVIII(19):906-907} after his death:

Dulaney L. Washburne, M.D., of Louisville, an alumnus and prosector of the University of Louisville, is the subject of a warm tribute in the American Practitioner and News, April 3. He was born in Jefferson County, near Louisville, in 1855. He received his literary education in the public schools of that city. In 1880 he began the study of medicine under Prof. H. A. Cottell. As a student his progress was exceptionally rapid, and at the time of his graduation his rank was far above the average. He immediately found employment as assistant in the clinics of the University and teacher in the sub department. He served as assistant to Prof. John A. Ouchterlony in the medical clinic till 1886, when he was appointed prosector to the chair of anatomy and quiz master under Prof. J. M. Bodine. Here his proficiency, learning and energy found full scope and profitable exercise. ... (Editor's note: a prosector is a person who dissects corpses for examination or anatomical demonstration.)

George took a different career path. He skipped higher education and went straight into business, starting in the dairy industry. He was listed in the 1883 and 1884 Louisville city directories as a "Foreman with the Southern Dairy" and in the 1885 directory as "with Lou. Creamery and Supply." By then, the Washburne family had left their farm and was living at 106 E. Breckinridge St. in Louisville.

Career in the Wine & Spirits Industry

From "The industries of Louisville, Kentucky, and of New Albany, Indiana" published by Charles E. Elstner in 1886

In 1886, George partnered with Harry Tamplet to form Tamplet & Washburne, a Louisville-based wholesaler of butter, cheese and general dairy supplies, and distiller's agents and brokers. While the partnership didn't last, 1886 also marked the beginning of a long-term venture in the liquor industry for George. That was the year he founded the "Wine and Spirit Bulletin," a business he would operate for 32 years until 1919, when Prohibition put the publication to an end.

The bulletin started out as a four-page weekly covering Louisville and Cincinnati and by the third year had become semi-monthly. The March 10, 1890 Bonfort's Wine and Spirits Circular reported:

Either Louisville, Ky., has become too cramped for the business ability of George R. Washburne, or the hustling editor of the Bulletin is desirous of invading the Queen City, for every few days we find him in our midst. On his last trip, he was accompanied by Mr. Wm. M. Bulllitt, associate editor.

In 1893, the year after he married Annie Moore, George and the "Wine and Spirit Bulletin" were profiled in "Pacific Wine and Spirit Review:"

GEORGE R. WASHBURNE
_____________________________________________________
The General Manager and Editor of the "Wine and Spirit Bulletin."

We have the pleasure of presenting herewith an excellent likeness of George R. Washburne, the general manager and editor of the Wine and Spirits Bulletin of Louisville, one of the four leading trade publications of the country.

Mr. Washburne is a young man comparatively, but he has been identified with the liquor trade for some years. While still a prosperous whisky broker in Louisville, he established the Wine and Spirits Bulletin which has grown in the past five years from a bantling to one of the most influential journals in the trade. The Bulletin now issues a sixty-four page edition semi-monthly, besides two special numbers -- the midsummer and holiday edition. Being established in the heart of the bourbon whisky producing and distributing centre of the United States it is always a welcome visitor.

Mr. Washburne is certainly to be congratulated on his success. Mr. Washburne is a jovial, good-natured man personally, whom it is a pleasure to meet and his visitors always receive a royal welcome.

By the time it ceased publication in 1919, it was over 1,000 pages.

Wine and Spirit Bulletin Covers Through the Years

Several issues of the Wine and Spirit Bulletin can be viewed online:

In 1911, in response to the temperance movement, George published "Beverages de Luxe" for the consumer market. It was designed as a "guide to connoisseurs and those who serve them," according to the foreward, which further explained:

Despite a spirit of fanaticism that periodically passes over the land, there is no denying that fine beverages are among the things that make life brighter, happier and worth while. A knowledge as to the best of them, their selection, their care and their serving, is, therefore, not amiss.

A second edition was published in 1914. Both include cocktail recipes gathered from fine hotels and exclusive clubs from New York to New Orleans. Louisville is represented by the Pendennis Club with turn-of-the-century recipes for their Ananias Punch, Lord Baltimore Cocktail, Pendennis Cocktail, Pendennis Eggnog and Pendennis Mint Julip -- excellent libations to serve at a Kentucky Derby celebration.

Secretary of the National Model License League

George also occasionally contributed articles on the distilling industry to the Courier-Journal, and as Secretary of the National Modern License League wrote a letter to the editor speaking out against prohibition on September 21, 1908. According to the February 14, 1910 Los Angeles Times:

The National Model License League (was) an organization whose active and associate members (were) men interested directly and collaterally in the legalised (sic) manufacture and sale of alcoholic beverages. It exists for the avowed purpose of advocating the enactment of laws designed "to take the liquor business out of politics and put the law breakers out of the liquor business." The model license law was formulated at a meeting of ten men in Louisville in October, 1907, and was submitted to the trade and to the public at a convention held in Louisville in January, 1908.

The gist of the Model License League's arguments against prohibition was outlined in George's 1908 Letter to the Editor:

Some days ago you printed an article from the pen of Mr. George G. Brown (editor's note: George Garvin Brown and George Forman founded Brown-Forman in 1870) in which Mr. Brown, as Vice President of the National Model License League, called attention to the activities of Prohibitionists in connection with the Kentucky State Fair, and pointing out that the State Fair is supposed to exploit the resources and industries of the State, asked this question:

"What industry or resource of the State does the Anti-Saloon League represent?" Mr. Brown quoted the national organ of the Anti-Saloon League and Aaron S. Watkins, Prohibition candidate for Vice President, to the effect that there is not in America a prohibition law that prohibits the use of alcoholic beverages.

He called attention to the fact that without the use there can be no abuse of alcoholic beverages and suggested that the Prohibitionists should advocate a law against the use of liquor in dry territories. Mr. Brown protested against the destruction of $150,000,000 of Kentucky property when it is admitted this destruction will not stop either the use or abuse of alcoholic beverages. The Rev. L.L. Pickett has attempted to answer Mr. Brown, but in his open letter so far ignored the rules of decorum that govern the discussion of public questions by gentlemen as to make offensive insinuations about the personal habits of Mr. Brown, a man of unquestioned integrity and one whose life is regulated by a high sense of the duties and responsibilities of Christian citizenship. Naturally Mr. Brown will not care to reply to the wholly unjust attack of the Rev. Dr. Pickett. It may be that the representative of the Prohibitionists intended to offend Mr. Brown and thus end a debate in which the Prohibitionists can gain nothing but loss. However that may be, I, as Secretary of the National Model License League, ask the indulgence of the Editor of the Courier-Journal in putting a few plain questions to the Rev. Dr. Pickett as follows:

(1) Will the Prohibitionists of Kentucky demand the amendment of prohibition laws so that they will provide a penalty for the purchase, use or possession of liquor in prohibition territory?

(2) Do the Prohibitionists of Kentucky think it would be honest for them to destroy their neighbors' property without compensation?

(3) What proportion of the Prohibitionists would be loyal to prohibition if passing prohibition laws would deprive the Prohibitionists of their legal right to purchase, use or possess alcoholic beverages?

(4) What right has a Prohibitionist to vote against the sale of that which the Prohibitionist intends to buy, regardless of prohibitory law?

(5) Is it wrong per se to use alcoholic beverages?

(6) If the example of Jesus Christ a safe example for the guidance of the Christian?

(7) Did Christ do wrong in "manifesting his glory" by making wine for use at a wedding feast?

The Prohibitionists have presented numerous bills in Congress with the ostensible purpose of stopping the shipment of liquor from wet States to dry States. Every one of these bills has been declared unconstitional on the ground that the nation has no right to destroy an article of interstate commerce.

The Rev. Dr. Pickett admits that prohibition laws of Maine and Oklahoma are nullified by the laws governing interstate commerce. He expresses his opinion that this is a "shame," and declares that "by the grace of God," the national laws will be changed to meet the demands of the Prohibitionists. Why do the Rev. Dr. Pickett and his friends call for the aid of the Lord in an attempt, hopelessly absurd and futile, to break down the Constitution of the United States, when in five minutes they can frame a State law that will cover the case by providing a penalty for the use of alcohol in dry territory?

The Rev. Mr. Pickett talks about the anti-saloon league as the friend of the home. How will the substitution of liquor products of other States for those of Kentucky help the Kentucky home? It would destroy $150,000,000 worth of the property of Kentuckians of a livelihood. Would a crushing blow like this help the home? Certainly it would deprive many women and children of their homes and would drive many men, disheartened and poverty-stricken to the solace of the wine cup.

However, the Anti-Saloon League can be a friend to the home in one respect: it furnishes homes and sustenance to a lot of persons who might find difficulty in earning sustenance in some legitimate line of endeavor.

The Rev. Mr. Pickett is unfortunate in his reference to parasites. It ill-becomes a prohibitionist to talk of parasites when the leaders of that movement, as a rule, live on charity, dependent upon illogical and hysterical agitation towards a movement that does not help the community in its morals, but is calculated to a great extent to destroy the material prosperity of the people. In this connection we must consider that a great many of the most active prohibitionists in Kentucky are imported agitators, men who have no interest in the State of Kentucky, further than to make profit out of the prohibition propaganda and who feel no sense of remorse over the destruction of one of Kentucky's greatest industries and the consequent impoverishing of thousands of Kentucky citizens.

The National Model License League is not fighting temperance. It is fighting for temperance and its leaders believe that time will show that the National Model License League is the leader of the temperance movement in the United States.

Real Estate Development

Warwick Villa subdivision map dated December 1, 1892. The plat was submitted to show the developer's changes to a previous plat. It corrects Alabama Avenue (top far right of the plat) and shows the extension of Fenley Avenue, running parallel to Alabama. Courtesy of Ed Schumacher, Louisville Metro Records Management & Archives.

In business, as in so many things in life, timing is everything. Flush with the initial success of the Wine and Spirits Bulletin, George decided to try his hand at real estate development. His concept: develop his parents' 50-acre "home-tract" near Lyndon into a new suburb catering to the middle class. In 1891, he acquired the family home and land from his father and gathered a group of investors. Thus, Warwick Villa, "the beautiful little suburb on the high tide of prosperity," was born.

Washburne's unique selling proposition for the development? Healthy country living combined with all the amenities available in town. As Neary and Clay observed in "Historic Jefferson County:"

... Warwick Villa Subdivision was promoted with such advantages as "no coal smoke; no malaria; no city taxes; no manufactories; no nuisances" and attractions including a "beautiful park, fountain and lake; block tile sidewalks; handsomest depot on the Short Line" ...

Historian Carolyn Brooks, in her June 1996 National Historic Register submission of the Lindenberger-Grant House in Lyndon, described Warwick Villa as:

... a large middle class suburban town with all the modern conveniences found in the city including gas and water hookups. Washburne erected a picturesque station house and promised a clubhouse .... The theory behind the development was to provide the same healthy country living environment for the middle class that had early been available to the wealthy with the country estate ...

The concept seemed sure-fire. Development east of downtown Louisville all the way to Oldham County was flourishing. Three commuter trains were required to handle the morning traffic during the off season, with more pressed into service during the summer as vacationers flocked to the country to beat the city's heat. A February 28, 1892 Courier-Journal feature on "The Suburban Resident; His Individualities Best Displayed on the Commuters' Trains" described the growth seemingly popping up overnight along the tracks:

... Between LaGrange and Louisville towns are springing up like magic. From Clifton to the reservoir, on either side of the track, is an unbroken line of handsome residences. Reservoir Park and Warwick Villa are further on. Lyndon is building up fast, and another town is to be laid off at Bashaw's. Just this side of LaGrange, Beard's (now Crestwood) and Peru are thriving localities. In fact, it is almost impossible to look from the car window anywhere between Louisville and LaGrange without seeing new and elegant residences....

Initial lot sales at the development, as reported periodically by the Courier-Journal, were reasonably strong:

October 3, 1891: 12 lot sales
October 10, 1981: 2 lot sales
December 12, 1891: 7 lot sales

Advertisement for Warwick Villa from "Louisville, 1780-1892" by Paul B. Woodlief (Louisville Real Estate Exchange, 1892)

But the real estate market started tanking the following year. The August 13, 1892 Courier-Journal reported that George had purchased 10 lots himself for $3,000, and H.W. Robinson had purchased another 10 for the same sum. That attempt to pay off the Warwick Villa Land Company's debts proved a harbinger of worse times to come. The Panic of 1893 turned the "high tide of prosperity" into an ebb tide. Over the next four years, 500 banks would fail, countless family farms would be lost, and 15,000 businesses would close their doors across the U.S. The Warwick Villa subdivision was among the panic's early casualties.

On December 21, 1892, the Courier-Journal reported the first lawsuits against the development. The People's Bank of Kentucky filed three separate suits against the Warwick Villa Land Company, George R. Washburne, F.F. Gilmore, J.M. Hunter, Hamilton Hunter, A. Smythe, T.M. Gilmore, H.S. Estep and W.L. Linney. Another lawsuit was reported on May 6, 1893. Five months later, the company was bankrupt. The October 6, 1893 Courier-Journal reported:

SUBURBAN SCHEME EXPLODES
__________________________________________
Warwick Villa Land Company
Forced By the Stringency
To Give Up

The Warwick Villa Land Company yesterday afternoon assigned all its property to the Louisville Trust Company for the benefit of creditors by a deed filed in the County Clerk's office about 3:30 o'clock. The deed was acknowledged by President H.V. Loving, of the Trust Company, and President Hamilton Hunter, of the Warrick Villa Company. President Loving was able to give exact figures. Their assets were placed at $67,575, while the liabilities foot up at $19,622, leaving a balance in favor of the company of $47,953. Some difficulty may be experienced, however, in realizing on some of the assets.

The failure is due entirely to the financial stringency. The company started the suburban town of Warwick Villa seven or eight miles out on the Short Line, some time ago, laid the ground off in lots, and put a good deal of money into it. The enterprise seemed a success. The shortness of money, however, made sales very few and far between during the past summer, and as the company's obligations fell through, there was no money to meet them. There is no end of land, but no money. The officers of the Warwick Villa Land Company are: Hamilton Hunter, President, and F.F. Gilmore, Treasurer. Their offices were at 208 W. Main Street.

Within a year, George declared bankruptcy himself. On September 28, 1894, the Fidelity Trust Company took charge of his assets. The next day's Courier-Journal noted, "... no estimate of assets and liabilities could be given. It seems that there is small demand for real estate in the country, which is said to form a considerable portion of Washburne's assets, he being one of the promoters of the Warwick Villa scheme ... It is understood that his liabilities are much larger than his assets."

Louisville Trust President H.V. Loving's belief that "some difficulty may be experienced in realizing on some of the assets" proved to be an understatement. At a Commissioner's Sale held July 22, 1895, the price averaged $10-$11, a far cry from the $250-$500 the lots commanded when sales were booming.

For George, Warwick Villa's failure must have marked the lowest point in his career. His father, Louis, had died on September 14, 1893. Though he must have been aware of the way things were headed, he didn't live to see the Warwick Villa Land Company's bankruptcy or resultant bankruptcy of his son. His mother and most of his siblings did. How they felt about it, whether it affected their relationship with him, is unknown.

George may have been referring to the bloody financial beating he took on Warwick Villa when he wrote these personal observances about the late Julius Freiburg, Cincinnati and Northern Kentucky distiller, in the January 1, 1906 Wine and Spirit Bulletin:

Mr. Freiberg’s death will arouse deep feeling in the hearts of many members of the trade. Strongly outlined in his nature was the idea of giving assistance to young men in the early stages of their career. Sometimes this assistance would take a financial form, and sometimes it would be of that definite sympathy and moral backing which would assist in overcoming the discouragements of youth. The writer has a vivid recollection of an incident along these lines which occurred some twenty years ago in his own experience and as a result of which he has ever held Mr. Freiberg in the highest esteem, and shall ever venerate his memory.

Although the development bellied up, vestiges of Warwick Villa remain. There is a Warwick Villa subdivision in St. Matthews off Westport Road, where the "Southern Extension" was planned in 1892. Several streets bear their original names, including Washburn, Fenley and Fountain, where the Washburns' 1830s-era homestead still stands today.

George also managed to maintain a business relationship -- and possibly a friendship -- with at least one of the investors in the scheme: Thomas Meador "T.M." Gilmore. At the time Warwick Villa got started, T.M. was the Louisville agent for a New York-based competitive trade journal called Bonfort's Wine and Spirit Circular. In 1912, he bought Bonfort's and continued publishing it until prohibition. His brother, F.F. Gilmore, another Warwick Villa investor, worked for Bonfort's while it was under T.M.'s ownership. During the decade leading up to Prohibition, George and T.M. worked together on the National Model License League. T.M., who masterminded the league, served as President, while George served as Secretary.

Real Estate Development in Pewee Valley

During his years in Pewee Valley, George also dabbled in real estate, though nowhere near on Warwick Villa's scale. After building their home in Pewee Valley, George and Annie bought the lot next door from W.N. Jurey in 1903. About 1905 they built a second residence now known as the Washburne-Swan House, also in the Ashwood Avenue Historic District.

They may have used it as a rental before selling it in 1910. Although Pewee was already a popular resort destination in the 1880s, the summer rental market got another shot in the arm in 1902, when the interurban started service in eastern Jefferson and Oldham counties. The July 18, 1904 Courier-Journal noted:

... The summer boarding-houses at Anchorage; Pewee Valley and along the suburban lines are doing a "land office business." Their owners are progressive, and are alert to furnish every convenience. Businessmen who spend their days in town are carried to and from the station by conveyances furnished by their landlords, and as a consequence of this arrangement the early-morning suburban cars are crowded. When they return late in the afternoon the conveyances meet them at the stations and the passengers are conveyed back to the country homes for the night. Truly, this fad of spending the summer in the rural districts has been given an impetus this summer that will revolutionize the manner of whiling away the vacation period of the heated term ...

The 1900 fire at the Kentucky College for Young Ladies across the street from Washburne's home, combined with the conversion of the Villa Ridge inn to the Kentucky Confederate Home in 1902, had also considerably tightened summer rental availabilities in Pewee Valley.

"Beautiful Pewee Valley" was published ca. 1909 by George Washburne and Powhattan Wooldridge. Kate Matthews, who lived across Ashwood Avenue from the Washburnes, was enlisted to take many of the photos. The promotional brochure featured many of Pewee Valley's most famous homes, as well as scenes of the picturesque countryside.

George Washburne served as Mayor of Pewee Valley from ____ to _________. About 1909, he and Powhatan Wooldridge published a promotional booklet called "Beautiful Pewee Valley," a puff piece extolling the town's livability:

... Every resident of the city desiring a change of scene, and to escape the grime and clatter of the metropolis, would do well to consider Pewee Valley as the site for either a summer or permanent home. The views in this little booklet, some of them showing nature at her fullest during the heart of summer, and others evidencing she is equally attractive during other seasons of the year, will correct the impression of the urbanite that the suburbs are only desirable in the summer time ...

Many of the photos featured in the book appear to have been taken by Pewee Valley pioneer photographer Kate Matthews, who lived across the street from the Washburnes at Clovercroft.

What Became of the Washburnes

The "grime and clutter of the metropolis" notwithstanding, the Washburnes sold their Pewee Valley properties in 1910 -- possibly with a little help from "Beautiful Pewee Valley!" -- and moved to St. James Court in Louisville. George continued publication of the Wine and Spirit Bulletin through 1919, the year before the 18th amendment took effect and alcoholic beverages were banned in America.

Though he turned 60 in 1920, he founded two new enterprises: Revista Publishing and George R. Washburne Advertising. In 1920, American Printer and Lithographer, Vol. 71, pg 66 reported:

The Revista Publishing Company, organized August 23, will publish a trade magazine in the Portugese language which will be circulated exclusively in South American countries, particularly Brazil, according to an announcement by officers of the company. The incorporators are George R. Washburne, Angus McDonald and John I. Woodbury. W. Jonreau Williams, of Rio de Janeiro, formerly of Louisville, was also interested in the publication. The capital stock of the company is $15,000, and as soon as 50 per cent of this is subscribed the operation of the publishing house will begin. The magazine will deal with both the import and export business in the South of interest to countries in South America.

Courier-Journal, June 27, 1920

Annie Louise Washburne Williams from ancestry.com, date unknown.

W. Jonreau Williams was George's son-in-law, and had eloped with the Washburnes' older daughter Annie Louise in 1913, scandalizing their neighbors on St. James Court. (From the July 16, 1913 Courier-Journal, pg. 12):

MISS ANNIE WASHBURNE
BRIDE SINCE JULY 10
______________________________________

SECRET MARRIAGE TO NEW
YORKER IN JEFFERSONVILLE
JUST ANNOUNCED

The marriage of Annie L. Washburne, of Louisville, and William Jonreau Williams, of New York, was announced yesterday by Magistrate Oscar M. Hay, of Jeffersonville, who performed the ceremony last Thursday. He had been asked to keep the marriage a secret for ten days, but received a telephone message from the bridegroom yesterday asking that it be announced at once. Mr. and Mrs. Williams had been at the Seelbach since their wedding, but left shortly after noon yesterday on a honeymoon trip.

Mrs. Williams is the daughter of George R. Washburne, editor of the Wine and Spirit Bulletin and Secretary of the National Model License League. Mr. Washburne's office is in the American National Bank Building and the family residence is at 1430 S. Fourth St. Both Mr. and Mrs. Washburne have been on a trip in the east for two weeks. It was stated at Mr. Washburne's office yesterday that the marriage came as a surprise even to the bride's most intimate friends.

According to Magistrate Hay, Miss Washburne gave her age as twenty-one years, while Mr. Williams said he is forty-two years old. The license shows the bridegroom was born in England and his father, James B. Williams, was a capitalist. Mr. Williams was engaged in the automobile business in New York, but his headquarters are now in Louisville. He said he was divorced from a former wife in 1902.

Melville Otter (Briney), classmate and confidante of Louise's younger sister, Mary Elizabeth, wrote about the elopement in her personal scrapbook, available at the Filson Historical Society:

(Editor's note: Briney later became a columnist for the Louisville Times and wrote a sentimental story about the demolition of Pewee Valley's Train Depot in 1960.)

Mary Elizabeth Washburne's graduation picture from Semple Collegiate School in Louisville.

The Williams moved to Rio de Janeiro ca. 1918 and returned to Louisville in June 1920. The June 27, 1920 Courier-Journal carried a photo of Annie Louise with sons William, Jr. and George, noting their recent return to the city after two years in South America. Jonreau became president of Revista in 1922. By then, the company has expanded their foreign trade publications to French- and Spanish-speaking countries.

The Washburnes' younger daughter, Mary Elizabeth, married Emmett Brown Ford on October 27, 1921. Her wedding was covered by the Courier-Journal the next day:

The wedding of Miss Mary Elizabeth Washburne and Mr. Emmett Brown Ford was solemnized at 6 o'clock last evening at St. Paul's Episcopal Church. The ceremony was performed by Rev. David Cady Wright. The church was decorated with palms and ferns. The pews for the two families were marked by white standards topped by white chrysanthemums. The chancel was banked by ferns and lighted with cathedral candles. On the altar were white chrysanthemums. Mrs. W. Jonreau Williams was her sister's matron of honor. Miss Mary Gunn Powell was the maid of honor and the bridesmaids included Misses Harriet Buchanan. Kansas City; Melville Otter; Henrietta Henning; Margaret Norton; Alice Latham; and Mary Johnston Fenley. Master George Washburne Williams was the flower boy and Master William W. Jonreau Williams, Jr., was the ring bearer. Mr. Salem Ford was his brother's best man and the ushers were Messrs. John Atherton Miller, Preston Joyes, William Cecil Dabney, George Bickel, Torbitt Mengel, William E. Stoll and Capt. Craigie Krayenbuhl.

The bride, who was given in marriage by her father, Mr. George R. Washburne, wore a wedding gown of white kittens ear crepe ... (and) ... a wedding veil of rose point and point applique which had belonged to her grandmother and was born by the mother of the bride at her wedding ...

... The wedding was followed by a reception given by the bride's parents at the Woman's Club ...

Little is known about the George R. Washburne advertising agency, other than he went into partnership with Alfred B. Flarsheim. The 1922 Cincinnati City Directory published the following listing for the agency:

Meanwhile, Annie got involved with the Red Cross and served as chairman of the Fifth Annual Roll Call, a fundraiser sponsored by the Louisville organization in 1922.

Vice Consul to Brazil at Louisville

George R. Washburne from the January 15, 1922 Courier-Journal

George's last major business venture was his appointment as Vice Consul to Brazil at Louisville. A story he wrote about his new position, "Brazil: Land of Opportunity," ran in the January 15, 1922 Courier-Journal:

An announcement was recently made in the Louisville papers which created a large amount of interest, in fact, the announcement advised the general public that, in line with the new Brazilian policy Vice Consuls were being appointed and Vice Consulates organized in various sections of the United States. An important and interesting note is seen from the fact that virtually the first Vice Consulate Office to be opened is in Louisville, Mr George R. Washburne having had the honor of receiving the appointment for Vice Consul of Brazil. The selection of this city indicates clearly that the Brazilian government expects American manufacturers in this section will be deeply interested in developing and extending their sales in Brazil ...

... The United States supplied Brazil with nearly 40 per cent of its imports in 1916, and it was anticipated that this figure would be increased as the war continued. This country took first place among those supplying Brazil with its merchandise in 1915. Previous to that time Great Britain held first place by a considerable margin, but was gradually being pressed by Germany whose shipments continued year by year.

Brazil has suffered to a greater extent by the war than any other South American countries. Conditions in Europe and lack of vessels have cut down the exports of coffee, which is the principal money crop of the country and which represents about 50 per cent of the exports ...

Deaths of George and Annie Washburne

George's career as Vice Consul to Brazil at Louisville was cut short by his final illness and death. On February 9, 1923, the Courier-Journal reported he was seriously ill. He died two days later, and his obituary ran on February 12:

G.R. WASHBURNE
TAKEN BY DEATH
_____________________
Was Publisher for FortyYears
and Brazilian Vice Consul
to United States
___________________________
NATIVE OF LOUISVILLE

George R. Washburne, 63 years old, publisher and advertising man for forty years and Brazilian Vice Consul here, died at 3:20 o'clock yesterday at his apartments in The Puritan. His death was not unexpected. Members of his immediate family were at his bedside.

Mr. Washburne was vice president of the Revista Publishing Company and head of an advertising company which bore his name. For many years he edited and published the "Wine and Spirit Bulletin." Prior to enactment of prohibition legislation, Mr. Washburne was secretary of the National Model License League. He was named vice consul from Brazil three years ago.

Mr. Washburne was a native of Louisville, receiving his education here. He was a member of the Louisville Board of Trade, the Louisville County Club and the Pendennis Club.

Surviving him are his widow, Mrs. Annie Moore Washburne, and two daughters, Mrs. Anne Louise Williams of Louisville, and Mrs. Mary Elizabeth Ford of New Orleans, and a sister, Mrs. Irene Mabry of Sandford, Fla.

Funeral services will be held at 2:30 o'clock this afternoon at the residence. Burial will be in Cave Hill Cemetery.

The pallbearers will be A.Y. Ford, R.W. Wathen, W.C. Wheeler, David Castleman, Thomas S. Jones, Darwin W. Johnson, Stanley Bronner and Samuel Chambers. (Editor's note: Wathen was a distiller and crony since George's "Wine and Spirits Bulletin" days. Bronner worked as an editor of the publication for some years. Johnson had a summer home in Pewee Valley that was pictured in "Beautiful Pewee Valley" and was in the insurance business.)

Rendering of the original phase of The Puritan Apartments that opened in 1914

Annie outlived her husband by 36 years. She spent 32 of them in New Orleans, where she lived for a time with her younger daughter, Mary Elizabeth Ford; sold antiques; and dined almost daily at Antoine's in the French Quarter. A story about her 20-year relationship with the restaurant ran in the May 22, 1955 Courier-Journal:

Antoine's, the famous New Orleans restaurant, is lacking one of its "institutions" these days. Mrs. George R. Washburne has moved back to Louisville after dining regularly at Antoine's since 1935.

When she first told the restaurant she was coming back home -- after 32 years in New Orleans -- Louis, her waiter, and others at Antoine's insisted that Mrs. Washburne take along the table where she sat for dinner for 20 years. And it was "her" table -- reserved for her every evening that she wasn't in Europe or wasn't up East visiting her daughters.

Mrs. Washburne didn't take the table. She has no room for it here at The Puritan.. where she now lives. So Antoine's staff, including the owner, Roy Alciatore, surprised her with a going-away gift of a complete cafe brulot set ....

... All this, Mrs. Washburne says, was in response to her saying, "Just give me something old"...

... And Antoine's isn't forgetting Mrs. Washburne. Just last week Roy Alciatore -- the third generation of his family to head the restaurant -- sent Mrs. Washburne a letter and a menu for the special dinner he gave for the French ambassador.

Throughout the years Mrs. Washburne has collected menus from all over the world and given some to Roy to frame. After moving to New Orleans in 1923, Mrs. Washburne had an antique shop for many years and each summer traveled to Europe collecting menus as well as antiques ...

... Mrs. Washburne's husband was one of the early promoters of subdivisions here. He promoted Warwick Villa between Westport Road and Lyndon ...

... Her children are Mrs. William J. Williams (the former Anna Louise Washburne), Erie, Pa., and Mrs. Emmett Brown Ford (the former Mary Elizabeth Washburne), Garden City, N.Y.

Annie also caught the genealogy bug and spent years tracing the Moore family tree back 104 generations, according to a story by Maud O'Brien Ronstrom in the November 4, 1951 Courier-Journal. She first became interested in her bloodlines when asked to join the Colonial Dames and "... found she could establish a direct descent in England from certain signers of the Magna Charta in 1215," Ronstrom reported. A New Orleans Times-Picayune photo accompanying the story showed the then 79-year-old posing beside her family tree, which measured a whopping 34-inches wide and 14 feet, four inches long.

Annie died on April 28, 1959. Her obituary ran in the next day's Courier-Journal:

Mrs. G.R. Washburne Dies;
Traced Family 3,250 Years

Mrs. George R. Washburne, whose interest in genealogy led her to trace certain branches of her family tree back more than 3,250 years, died last night at the J.B. Wilkinson Convalescent Home, 1311 S. Third.

Mrs. Washburne was 87. Her genealogical study, she once said, began as a panacea for her arthritis. But it followed a trail back through the years, through signers of the Magna Charta, through Charlemange, William the Conquerer, the Druid kings of England, and to Marc Antony. Genealogists, both in this country and in Europe vouched for its accuracy.

Her first American ancestor -- or the first found by Mrs. Washburne -- was James Shelton, a kinsman of Lord Delaware, who settled in Virginia three years after the founding of Jamestown.

Mrs. Washburne was born Annie Mary Moore in Clark County, Ky., but lived much of her life here.

In 1923, when her husband died, she moved to New Orleans to live with her daughter, Mrs. Emmett B. Ford. There Mrs. Washburne operated the Little Antique Shop in the French Quarter. She retired in 1955 and returned here to live at The Puritan.

She was a member of the National Society of Colonial Dames, the National Society of Magna Charta Dames, and the Filson Club.

Surviving besides Mrs. Ford, who now lives in Garden City, Long Island, is another daughter, Mrs. Annie Louise Williams, Erie, Pa.; a sister Mrs. John H. Hundley, St. Louis; two grandchildren (editor's note: Mrs. Elizabeth Ford Dieu and Mr. Emmett B. Ford, Jr.) and seven great-grandchildren ...

She is buried with her husband at Cave Hill Cemetery.

The Waterfill Years

The Washburne-Waterfill House in 1991, from "Historic Pewee Valley" published by Historic Pewee Valley, Inc. in 1991.

On October 8, 1910, the Washburnes sold their Pewee Valley home to Joseph Hellen Waterfill (February 6, 1878-March 12, 1939) and his wife Ethel Hunt Routt Waterfill (August 20, 1881- ) for $3,500. The Waterfill family had previously lived in Louisville at 2711 W. Jefferson, but both J.H. and Ethel were Anderson County, Ky. natives.

J.H. came from a farm family.

Joseph Hellen Waterfill

Birth: Feb. 6, 1878
Anderson County
Kentucky, USA
Death: Mar. 12, 1939
Jefferson County
Kentucky, USA

Family links:
Parents:
  Flora Lee Allen Waterfill (1855 - 1881)
James M. Waterfill

Spouses:
  Ethel Routt Waterfill (1881 - 1928)*
  Arabella Routt Waterfill (1884 - 1936)*

Children:
  Martha Mills Waterfill Mercke (1909 - 2005)*
  Joseph Waterfill (1913 - 1981)*

Sibling:
  John Will Waterfill (1876 - 1958)*
  Joseph Hellen Waterfill (1878 - 1939)

1880 census
Name:Joseph Waterfill
Age:2
Birth Year:abt 1878
Birthplace:Kentucky
Home in 1880:Anderson, Kentucky
Race:White
Gender:Male
Relation to Head of House:Son
Marital Status:Single
Father's name:Jas. M. Waterfill
Father's Birthplace:Kentucky
Mother's name:Flora Waterfill
Mother's Birthplace:Kentucky
Neighbors:View others on page
Cannot read/write:

Blind:

Deaf and dumb:

Otherwise disabled:

Idiotic or insane:View image
Household Members:NameAgeJas. M. Waterfill31
Flora Waterfill24
John W. Waterfill4
Joseph Waterfill2
Eugene Waterfill3m

Joseph Waterfill in the 1900 United States Federal Census

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Name:Joseph Waterfill
Age:22
Birth Date:Feb 1878
Birthplace:Kentucky
Home in 1900:Lawrenceburg, Anderson, Kentucky
Sheet Number:9A
Number of Dwelling in Order of Visitation:132
Family Number:141
Race:White
Gender:Male
Relation to Head of House:Boarder
Marital Status:Single
Father's Birthplace:Kentucky
Mother's Birthplace:Kentucky
Occupation:Salesman Grocery
Months not employed:0
Can Read:Yes
Can Write:Yes
Can Speak English:Yes
Neighbors:View others on page
Household Members:NameAgeJesse Hyatt36
Mary Hyatt24
Eddie B Hyatt2
Joseph Waterfill22
Raymond Hahn14

Jos. H. Waterfill in the Kentucky, County Marriages, 1783-1965
Name:Jos. H. Waterfill
Gender:Male
Age:22
Birth Date:abt 1878
Marriage Date:3 Oct 1900
Marriage Place:Anderson, Kentucky, USA
Spouse:Ethel Virginia Routt

J H Waterfill in the 1920 United States Federal Census

VIE
Name:J H Waterfill
Age:41
Birth Year:abt 1879
Birthplace:Kentucky
Home in 1920:Pewee Valley, Oldham, Kentucky
Street:Ash Ave
House Number:X
Residence Date:1920
Race:White
Gender:Male
Relation to Head of House:Head
Marital Status:Married
Spouse's Name:Ethel Waterfill
Father's Birthplace:Kentucky
Mother's Birthplace:Kentucky
Able to Speak English:Yes
Occupation:Banking
Industry:Clerk
Employment Field:Wage or Salary
Home Owned or Rented:Own
Home Free or Mortgaged:Free
Attended School:No
Able to Read:Yes
Able to Write:Yes
Neighbors:View others on page
Household Members:NameAgeJ H Waterfill41
Ethel Waterfill38
Martha M Waterfill10
Joe Waterfill6
Arabella Brown36
Tom Brown17
S C Routt31

Above and below, the Washburne-Waterfill House from the Ashwood Avenue Historic District nomination to the National Register of Historic Places, 1989

The Washburne-Waterfill House in 2016