| Hanson & Lavina Stevens 1852 Pink Bethany Rose
Hanson Stevens, age 37, and his wife Lavina, age 33, along with their seven children, left their home in Keokuk, Iowa, and made the arduous 6-month journey on the Oregon Trail in 1852. They left their families and possessions to come to the "promised land" of the Willamette Valley in Oregon. They settled in the Silverton/Mt. Angel area along the Pudding River on a 308-acre donation land claim.
One of the few prized items surviving the journey was a slip of rose that Lavina loved. The rose was purportedly transported in a potato to provide mosisture and protection during the trip. Once in Oregon, Lavina nurtured the rose. At some point after Lavina's death in 1859, a clipping was planted at her grave. Over time, the rose in the graveyard was the only remaining offspring of the original.
The rose was discovered to be the only one of its kind. Previously unnamed, it was christened the Bethany Rose, after the cemetery where Lavina and Hanson are buried. Clippings of this, a hardy and resilient plant, have been distributed to every branch of the family, with the original bush left here to continue growing alongside the grave of its beloved owner. In 2011, the Bethany Rose was added to the Northwest Rose Historians' Heritage Rose Registry. |