A Moulton Love Story
Nellie Gail and Lewis Moulton in a formal studio portrait taken circa 1908. 54-year-old Lewis and 29-year-old Nellie Gail were married.
A Moulton Love Story
While many may have differing opinions on what makes a truly good love story, we are especially fond of the personal journey from acquaintances to friends to loving partners. One might assume 54-year-old Lewis Moulton and 29-year-old Nellie Gail would not in fact share enough common interests to pursue a relationship, yet they did.
Now, over 100 years later, this unique pairing built a legacy of hard work, appreciation, and perseverance. As true examples of the pioneer spirit, we invite you to take a behind-the-scenes look at how Nellie Gail and Lewis Moulton’s love story came to be.
Introducing an Eligible Bachelor
In 1874, Mr. Lewis Fenno Moulton was an eligible bachelor who arrived in Southern California as a strappy twenty-year-old seeking his own enterprise starting at Rancho San Joaquin (Irvine Ranch). His strong work ethic and perseverance came from years of hard work, from working on Daniel Webster’s farm during his adolescence to toiling in a Boston shipyard packing shingles.
By 1895, Lewis established his ranch by purchasing land for sheep herding with a Basque business partner, J.P. Daguerre. This was no small feat—the ranch consisted of 21,723 acres. While he managed the ranch, he also had a network of esteemed friendships with Judge Egan of San Juan Capistrano, Shakespearean actress Madame Modjeska, and her husband Count Bozenta.
A Chance Encounter
In 1903, society ran by trains and telegrams. On a warm, sunny day in El Toro, California (now known as Lake Forest), a very important conversation took place between the Moulton and Gail families. It was in this turn-of-the-century Victorian culture that Miss Nellie Gail first met Mr. Lewis Moulton.
At 49 years old, Lewis was formally introduced to 24-year-old Nellie at the El Toro Train Depot. Nellie was a school teacher visiting from the Seattle area. Her entrepreneurial father, John Gail, had brought the family to southern California and became the manager of El Toro Mercantile Store and postmaster for the town from 1902-1904.
Nellie had acquired an education that included business coursework which helped her father, John Gail, manage his business. She would visit him seasonally when on break from teaching. The Orange County station on which she arrived by train was the center of town with all the town news and gossip.
In Nellie’s memoir, she shared, “My next stop, El Toro. With father’s confining hours tending the store, I spent considerable time around the place and sort of helping out. One day a Mr. Moulton, one of the ranchers, came in to get his mail and make a few purchases. Father introduced me and I helped wait on him. We exchanged some pleasantries, then, his errands done, he left. Nothing more. My only and immediate impression was that he seemed a very nice gentleman of a customer. That was the summer of 1903. Five years later I became Mrs. Moulton.” (Living Memories: All About Me Nellie Gail Moulton, 49)
Courtship
Courting was a common dating practice at the turn of the century. Often, dances and formal dinners were allotted for meeting new prospective suitors. Ladies were called upon with calling cards by gentlemen for a supervised visit at the family or friend’s home. These visits were often arranged with the intent of marriage.
Dating culture was developing with city dwellers as the Victorian era ended with the Queen’s passing in 1901. It was five years of Lewis pursuing Nellie that led to their matrimony in 1908. Nellie had approved visits in Seattle when she returned to her classroom in the fall and reminisced about this in her memoir—
“One Friday, at recess, one of the little girls ran up to me with the mail to hand me a special message. It was from Mr. Moulton. This was the first, actual and direct correspondence I had ever received from him. Father had mentioned him once or twice in his letters and he had sent on books and baskets of oranges and a treat to those of us living in the north country. That was the extent of any contact. The message had been sent from Kentucky. It stated he would be arriving in Seattle at eight that evening, for me to meet the train and be his guest for the weekend.” (Living Memories: All About Me Nellie Gail Moulton, 52-53)
A Date to Remember
Nellie continued to describe her incredible date seeing Ben Hur live in the theatre with Lewis.
“Once more Lewis set out to try his luck, and succeeded. That evening Lewis put himself out to make it an enjoyable one for me – dinner at Rathskeller’s and then, the pièce de résistance – the surprise – at the theatre we were ushered to box seats. The play met every expectation, magnificent and colorful. In those days background scenery, although done with great skill, was hard to set up to give utmost in reality, the treadmill visible to the audience, worked by the backstage crew. Live horses were harnessed to the chariots. A marvel and great effort for that time. As the curtain went down on the last act, it took a while to come back to earth and the mundane present. The next day, Sunday, after lunch, Lewis escorted me to the boat landing. We said our goodbyes. I went back to my teaching, he to return to his ranch. Apparently, as the future revealed, he had other things in mind, but I must honestly say that seeing him to me was simply a touch of friendship and nothing more than having the attention of a very nice gentleman, and what girl doesn’t enjoy that!” (Living Memories: All About Me Nellie Gail Moulton, 54-55)
