Lincoln Coreless
Pear
Origin/History
Lincoln Coreless originated in Lincoln County, Tennessee, near the Alabama line, about 1830. According to William Parry of Parry, New Jersey, the original tree was rated as productive and free from blight, and young trees propagated from it were unusually healthy and vigorous. The variety was introduced about 1890 by William Parry.
Tree
Small, vigorous, upright, very dense, pyramidal, hardy, an uncertain bearer. Trunk shaggy. Branches smooth, zigzag, reddish-brown mingled with ash-gray, marked with small lenticels. Branchlets short to medium, dull brown, smooth, glabrous, with conspicuous lenticels.
Leaf-buds large, obtuse, plump, appressed. Leaves 3 in. long, 1¾ in. wide, elongated-oval, leathery; apex taper-pointed; margin finely serrate; petiole 1½ in. long, reddish; stipules very long. Flower-buds short, obtuse, plump, free; flowers 1½ in. across, very large and showy, averaging 6 buds in a cluster; pedicels 1⅜ in. long, thick, pubescent, pale green.
Nursery catalogs describe the trees as "blight proof," though they blight on the grounds of the New York State Agricultural Experiment Station. (Hedrick)
Fruit
Size and Form: Very large, 4½ in. long, 3 in. wide, uniform in size, obovate-acute-pyriform (Thomas: pyriform), somewhat ribbed, with unequal sides. Among the largest of all pears, outweighing all others unless it be those of the Pound variety.
Stem: 1¾ in. long, thick, curved.
Cavity: Obtuse, shallow, narrow, russeted, furrowed, often lipped.
Calyx: Open, large; lobes separated at the base, narrow, acute.
Basin: Very shallow, narrow, obtuse, furrowed. Calyx-tube long, wide, conical.
Skin: Very thick, tough, coarse and granular, smooth, dull. Color greenish-yellow (Thomas: yellow), with a handsome blush on the cheek exposed to the sun, making the fruits rather attractive despite their grossness. Dots many, brownish-russet, very conspicuous.
Flesh/Flavor: Yellowish-white, very firm, granular at the core, crisp, tough, medium juicy, rather bitter and astringent. Quality poor — worthless for dessert and but a coarse makeshift for culinary purposes.
Core/Seeds: A defining characteristic of the variety: very small core, with few or sometimes no seeds. Core closed, with clasping core-lines. Seeds few, narrow, often abortive, acute.
Season
Fruit ripe in February (Hedrick); late winter (Thomas). Ripens later than any other pear on the grounds of the New York State Agricultural Experiment Station. Keeps until April.
Uses
Worthless for dessert. A coarse makeshift for culinary purposes. The variety is of interest only as a curiosity and monstrosity, notable for its enormous size, uniquely small or absent core and seeds, and exceptional late-keeping qualities.
Subtypes/Variants
Not described in source.
Other
The variety receives attention primarily as a pomological curiosity. Its distinguishing combination of characteristics — enormous size, very small core with few or no seeds, very late ripening (February), and keeping well into April — makes it unique among pears.
Book Sources
Described in 2 period pomological works
Nursery Catalog Sources
Found in 16 catalogs (1890–1936) from Maryland, Massachusetts, New Jersey, New York, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Washington
- William H. Moon Co. , Morrisville, Bucks County , Pennsylvania — 1890
- Rogers Nursery Co. , Moorestown , New Jersey — 1893
- Green's Nursery Co. (Charles A. Green) , Rochester , New York — 1894
- The Lovett Company , Little Silver , New Jersey — 1896
- Reading Nursery , Jacob W. Manning, Proprietor, Reading , Massachusetts — 1898
- Brown Brothers Co. , Continental Nurseries, Rochester, NY (also operated from Toronto, Canada) — 1899
- Washington Nursery Co. , Toppenish , Washington — 1901
- Brown Brothers Co. , Continental Nurseries, Rochester, NY (also operated from Toronto, Canada) — 1901
- The Dalles Nurseries , The Dalles , Oregon — 1906
- Russellville Nursery Co. , Montavilla Station, Portland, OR (three miles east of Portland, one mile from Montavilla car line) — 1907
- Carlton Nursery Co. , Carlton , Oregon — 1909
- Wm. J. Corse (successor to Robert Sinclair / Sinclair Nurseries) , Baltimore , Maryland — 1909
- Washington Nursery Company , Toppenish , Washington — 1909
- Pacific Nursery Company , Portland , Oregon — 1912
- Washington Nursery Company , Toppenish , Washington — 1912
- Hudson's Wholesale Nurseries , Tangent , Oregon — 1936
View original book sources (2)
— U.P. Hedrick, The Pears of New York (1921)LINCOLN CORELESS
- Parry Cat. 9, fig. 1891. 2. Ann. Hort. 185. 1892. 3. Ill. Hort. Soc. Rpt. 137. 1894. 4. Ibid. 52, 178. 1896. 5. Rural N. Y. 64:256. 1905.
The product of Lincoln Coreless is worthless for dessert, and but a coarse makeshift for culinary purposes. The variety receives attention only because the pear is a monstrosity and a curiosity. The fruits are enormous in size, outweighing all other pears unless it be those of the Pound. They are unique in having a very small core and few or sometimes no seeds. They are further characterized by very late maturity, ripening later than those of any other pear on the grounds of this Station and keeping until April. While usually rather dull greenish-yellow in color, the cheek is often enlivened by a bright blush which makes the fruits rather attractive despite their grossness. The catalogs describe the trees as "blight proof," but they blight on the grounds of this Station. The variety is worth growing only as an interesting curiosity.
According to William Parry, Parry, New Jersey, Lincoln Coreless originated in Lincoln County, Tennessee, near the Alabama line, about 1830. The original tree was rated as productive and free from blight, and young trees propagated from it have been unusually healthy and vigorous. The variety was introduced about 1890 by William Parry.
Tree small, vigorous, upright, very dense, pyramidal, hardy, an uncertain bearer; trunk shaggy; branches smooth, zigzag, reddish-brown mingled with ash-gray, marked with small lenticels; branchlets short to medium, dull brown, smooth, glabrous, with conspicuous lenticels.
Leaf-buds large, obtuse, plump, appressed. Leaves 3 in. long, 1¾ in. wide, elongated-oval, leathery; apex taper-pointed; margin finely serrate; petiole 1½ in. long, reddish; stipules very long. Flower-buds short, obtuse, plump, free; flowers 1½ in. across, very large and showy, average 6 buds in a cluster; pedicels 1⅜ in. long, thick, pubescent, pale green.
Fruit ripe in February; very large, 4½ in. long, 3 in. wide, uniform in size, obovate-acute-pyriform, somewhat ribbed, with unequal sides; stem 1¾ in. long, thick, curved; cavity obtuse, shallow, narrow, russeted, furrowed, often lipped; calyx open, large; lobes separated at the base, narrow, acute; basin very shallow, narrow, obtuse, furrowed; skin very thick, tough, coarse and granular, smooth, dull; color greenish-yellow, with a handsome blush on the cheek exposed to the sun; dots many, brownish-russet, very conspicuous; flesh yellowish-white, very firm, granular at the core, crisp, tough, medium juicy, rather bitter and astringent; quality poor. Core closed, with clasping core-lines; calyx-tube long, wide, conical; seeds few, narrow, often abortive, acute.
— John J. Thomas, The American Fruit Culturist (1903)Lincoln Coreless. Large, pyriform, yellow. Late winter.