Howell: Full description and color plate in Hedrick (1921). Raised in 1829 or 1830 by Thomas Howell of New Haven, Connecticut from a seed of a local variety named 'Jonah'. Fruit first exhibited by Massachusetts Horticultural Society in 1840. Recommended by APS in 1856. Fruit medium or larger in size, round-ovate, symmetrical in form. Skin quite smooth, waxy, pale yellow in color, numerous green dots, quite free of blemish, attractive. Flesh white, buttery, somewhat granular, fairly juicy. Moderately sweet, somewhat tart, second rate in dessert quality. Fruit loses ability to ripen if kept in cold storage too long. Early midseason. Tree moderately vigorous, spreading habit, productive, fairly susceptible to fire blight. After numerous trials, Howell has failed to establish itself as a commercial variety. - H. Hartman 1959.Howell's Seedling. Howell is everywhere condemned with faint praise. After having said that, the trees are not above the average in vigor, healthfulness, hardiness, and fruitfulness, it remains only to be said that their spreading tops make them desirable orchard inhabitants and handsome dooryard ornamentals. The fruits cannot be praised for attractive appearance or good quality, but they are meritorious in that they are more often uniform in appearance, quality, and freedom from the ravages of the scab fungus than those of almost any other pear. These qualities make Howell an estimable variety for the home orchard where intensive care cannot be given. The trees bear early, annually, and abundantly. Howell seems to be better suited to the middle western states than to the eastern states. About 1830, Thomas Howell, New Haven, Connecticut, planted pear seed., in his garden; one of the trees resulting from these seeds was named Howell.