Heritage Corner: Bellevue’s Vineyards

From roughly 1920 through 1950, Adolph Hennig’s eight-acre vineyard was located on Clyde Hill above the present location of First Presbyterian Church. The small baskets that Mr. Hennig is using in this picture indicate that he is probably picking for the fresh market. (During the Prohibition years, home vintners came frequently to Hennig’s farm to purchase grapes.) However, most grapes went into juice, and picking for juice was a high volume effort that continued seven days a week until finished. Adolph Hennig could sell 12,000 gallons of juice in a year, and his product appeared in stores from Bellingham to Olympia.

May 24, 2008 12:00 am
Adolph Hennig in his vineyard
Adolph Hennig in his vineyard

Heritage Corner is a weekly feature of the Bellevue Reporter. Material is provided by the

Eastside Heritage Center.

From roughly 1920 through 1950, Adolph Hennig’s eight-acre vineyard was located on Clyde Hill above the present location of First Presbyterian Church. The small baskets that Mr. Hennig is using in this picture indicate that he is probably picking for the fresh market. (During the Prohibition years, home vintners came frequently to Hennig’s farm to purchase grapes.) However, most grapes went into juice, and picking for juice was a high volume effort that continued seven days a week until finished. Adolph Hennig could sell 12,000 gallons of juice in a year, and his product appeared in stores from Bellingham to Olympia.

Hennig’s was only one of several vineyards in the neighborhood. Clarke, Loughran, and Simpson also had vineyards west of Bellevue Way. The Loughrans’ more modest two and a half acre farm only sold 5,000 gallons of juice per year.

To learn more about Bellevue and Eastside history, contact the Eastside Heritage Center at 425-450-1049 or visit www.EastsideHeritageCenter.org.