There is one pear that is the most common variety throughout the world, excluding Asia. But is it the Stair, Williams, or Bartlett pear?

Stair

What you probably know as the Bartlett pear was discovered by John Stair, an English schoolmaster, in Berkshire in 1765. It became known as Stair’s pear.

Williams

Stair sold some cuttings to a horticulturalist named Williams, who developed the variety and named it Williams’ bon chrétien (“good Christian”). The pear became known through England as the Williams pear.

Bartlett

The Williams pear crossed the Atlantic around 1799; James Carter imported several trees, which were planted on the grounds of Thomas Brewer in Roxbury, Massachussetts. When Enoch Bartlett acquired the Brewer estate he propogated the trees, naming them after himself.

In 1828 when new trees arrived from Europe it was realized that the Bartlett pear of the United States and the Williams pear of England were the same variety. In North America it is still know as the Bartlett, while it goes by Williams in many other parts of the world.

Trivia

Bartletts reached California during the gold rush, transported in the covered wagons of 49ers.

The Williams pear is used in making several spirits: Poire Williams (brandy), Viljamovka (brandy), and Belle de Brillet (cognac). Some bottles of Viljamovka have a whole pear inside them because the producers attach the bottle to a budding pear tree so that the pear will grow inside it!

Sources

• “Pear Varieties – Bartlett” via USAPears.org
• “Bartlett Pear” via NaturesProduce.com
• “Williams Pear” via Wikipedia