Lewnes Family History
The Lewnes family was originally the Liounis (Λιούνης) family. They were largely from the village of Arna, which they came to by way of several nearby villages, including Dafni, where Pangiotis Izanetus Liounis was born. His son, Anastasios Liounis, was born there in 1820. He was a farmer, moved to Arna as a young man: Electoral Rolls show him living in Arna at age 24, working as a farmer. Anastasios and his wife, Katerini Vorvi, married in 1846. They had at least eight children, who are listed in Annex A.
1872 Greek Electoral Rolls, Arna. Number 218: “Anast Liounis – Panagiotis – 26 – farmer” 
Above: View of the mountains surrounding Arna; Map of Laconia within Greece; Map of Laconia (with Arna and other towns and villages)
Arna is a small village settled along the eastern slopes of the Taygetus, the mountain range that runs 60 miles through the middle of the Peloponnese peninsula. The area is verdant, with many walnut, apple, chestnut, and sycamore (plane) trees. Arna is famous for its chestnuts, and still hosts an annual chestnut festival every October. The village’s central square features one of the largest and oldest sycamores in Europe, standing 30 metres (nearly 100 feet) tall, and 13.5 meters (nearly 46 feet) in circumference.
Above: The famous Plain Tree (Sycamore) in the Arna City Center; Mycenean burial chamber ruins outside of Arna.
In addition, the landscape around Arna has many sources of spring water, giving it an abundant fresh water supply: these include a gorge carved out by the nearby Sminos River, as well as caves and cave springs (referred to as Agia Marina Springs) and an underground river.
Located around 25 miles south of Sparta, it is a village with ancient history. Settlement in Arna dates back thousands of years, and ceramic remnants and other artifacts discovered from many different eras throughout history indicate that Arna was a stop on the road from Sparta to Messenia since the Bronze Age. Two Mycenean-era domed burial chambers (referred to as “Arkina”) are situated right outside the village and were most likely built by passing Minyean or Boeotian settlers from Central Greece. Some of these travelers may have remained in the area and joined the local population in Arna. The ruins are pictured in the image above.
Under Ottoman rule, when the conditions for most Greek people were miserable and insecurity and unrest were widespread, the area was largely independent and enjoyed relative autonomy. Some of this autonomy was due to geography: while Ottomans closely controlled Sparta for economic reasons, Arna and the surrounding villages were relatively inaccessible, obscured from sight—both physically and in terms of colonial prospects.
Arna and the surrounding area were majorly impacted by The Greek War of Independence (1821-1829). Since the Ottoman Empire did not have bases or any significant presence there, local Laconian organizers and rebels were able to properly amass the manpower and other resources necessary to form centers of revolutionary resistance against Ottoman rule.
The Ottoman Empire (and later, their Egyptian allies) fought a bloody, massacre-laden war to prevent Greeks from declaring independence, with all of the resources, influence, and connections of a major colonial power. Ottoman troops tore through the Peloponnese, massacring whole populations and selling the few survivors into slavery. This caused massive disruptions and displacements as people fled the approaching armies.
By the end of the war, though, the Turko-Egyptian forces retreated, and independence was finally won. The new Greek State had to be built from scratch, even as the war and its effects were still raging.
Things did improve somewhat those first years, with educational, military, and administrative reforms rolling out steadily. Greek was being modernized, for better or for worse: local elders were replaced by formal mayors, and state-mandated schools were established in all municipalities of the country.
Many changes came about in the Arna region during this time. Sparta, the closest city to Arna, was re-planned and modernized in 1834. Gytheio (formerly known as Marathonisi), the second-largest city closest to Arna, became the capital of Eastern Mani.
This era brought about a population shift from villages like Arna in the mountains—which were formerly popular due to safety from Ottoman presence—to lowland and coastal cities. In Arna, the result was economic isolation: the region became increasingly poor, and emigration elsewhere—whether to larger cities within Greece, or to other countries like the U.S.—became increasingly attractive, especially for young people.
This was the atmosphere in 1906, when Spireon Liounis, a boy of 14, ventured from Arna to America.
Georgios (“George”) Liounis/Lewnes (1847-1914), the oldest son of Anastasios Liounis, married Panagiotitsa Gavaris (1960-November 9th, 1903). She came from Tsakonia, a region in the eastern Peloponnese, around Pera Melana in Arcadia. She was likely a member of an ethnolinguistic minority who spoke a dialect called Tsakonian Greek.
Georgios and Panagiotitsa were married in Arna on October 26th, 1880. A full list of their children is included in Annex B.
Sperion “Sam” George Liounis was one of those children, born on September 25th, 1890, in Arna, Greece. At fourteen, he set out on the long journey from the mountains of the Peloponnese to the shores of America, seeking a life of opportunity.
He first travelled to the U.K., where he stayed briefly before boarding the RMS Campania. When the ship left port from Southampton, Sperion—or as he’d later be known, Sam—had sparse few belongings: just one suit of clothes, and $57 in his pocket. This was enough to cover fare, food, and the immigration law of the day, which stated that all arriving emigrants had to have at least $25 on their person to enter America.
RMS Campania
Upon arrival in New York City, Sam Lewnes settled with Greek friends in Brooklyn, New York and found a job as a pin boy in the bowling alley of the Germania Club in Boerum Hill. He made what he would later call “good money”, at a rate of $1.50 a week.
Sam diligently saved what he could, and soon had $15 stowed away: enough to buy a pushcart. Thus began a long career in the food business, as the young entrepreneur pushed his cart through Rockaway Beach, New York, selling peanuts and popcorn by the boardwalk.
Rockaway Beach, around the time that Sam Lewnes pushed his cart.
At the urging of a cousin, Sam came to Annapolis to meet Cecelia (Vassilia) Mandris, whose beauty and charm captured his heart. She was from a small village in Laconia close to Arna and had arrived in the United States not long before meeting the man who would become her husband.
(Left) Arrival of Cecelia Mandris (Lewnes)
In 1913, Sam and Cecelia were married, and Annapolis became their new and permanent home.
Sam Lewnes’ WWI Draft Registration, from
Soon afterward, Sam’s sister, Christina Liounis, and his brother, Ioannis “John” Liounis, joined Sam in Annapolis. Both John and Christina soon married, paring up with Greek immigrants like them in Annapolis.
John (September 24th, 1888-August 1st, 1961) married Eleftheria “Ethel” Nicholas/Nichols (November 8th, 1898-February 26th, 1986). Ethel and John became restauranters in Annapolis, joining both of their family trades and establishing classic Annapolis mainstays like the Little Campus Inn.
Little Campus Inn Advert/Menu Cover and later, 50th anniversary announcement
John Lewnes and Ethel Nichols’ Marriage Registration.
Christina married William Katsereles (b. February 25th, 1889). William was the first barber in Eastport, Maryland, then a sub-division of Annapolis, with a shop on Third Street (which is now Fourth Street). They later also went into the bar and restaurant business, becoming the owners and operators of The Town Hall, a restaurant and nightclub that was located where Mike’s Crab House stands today, in nearby Riva, Maryland.
Christina and William had six children: Petres/Pata “Beatrice” Katsereles (Adviotis), Anna Katsereles (Sakers), Charles “Charlie” Katsereles, Golfe Katsereles (Bounelis), Athena Katsereles (Lambros), and Ethel Katsereles (Hayes). These children and their descendants are listed in detail in Annex C.
Right: William and Christina, later in life.
Kastereles Siblings
Cecelia, Sam Lewnes’ wife, had a brother named Nick Mandris, who was already making moves in the restaurant industry in Annapolis. Nick was married to Helen Apostolakou (1894-1961), who was born in Xirocampi, a village in the same region as Arna. They lived on Conduit Street, where they raised four children: Jim Mandris, Mary “Mamie” Mandris (Apostol), Georgia Mandris (Nichols), and Stavroula “Crossie” Mandris (George). These children and their descendents are listed in detail in Annex D.
Nick Mandris, pictured in overalls.
Aspiring to break into the Annapolis food scene, Sam went into business with his brother-in-law.
What followed was the founding of many classic Annapolis restaurants and bars, which occupied central spots in Annapolis and Eastport, and key locations in the surrounding areas. It also represented multiple generations of the Lewnes family (and families linked to them by marriage, including the Mandris, Apostol, Katsereles, Nichols, and Lambros families, among others) thriving in the Annapolis and Eastport food and hospitality business.
As their first joint venture, Sam Lewnes and Nick Mandris first opened the Palace Confectionary on Main Street.
Sam and his brother John then opened the Sugar Bowl on West Street, as well as the Busy Bee Lunch on Calvert Street.
In 1921, Sam bought one of Nick Mandris’ other businesses at the corner of Fourth Street and Severn Avenue in Eastport and transformed it into what would become Sam’s Corner. At the time, the sole bridge between Annapolis proper and Eastport connected to the end of Fourth Street, making it the de-facto center of commerce and commercial heart of Eastport. This was the “main drag”, where you could do all your shopping, go out to eat, get your hair cut, and generally see and be seen.
During the Sam’s Corner hayday, the spot was immensely popular with dock workers going to and from the nearby Annapolis Yacht Yard. It started out as a place where you could get sundry, everyday indulgences—tobacco, soda pop, liquor, and ice cream foremost among them—and evolved into a restaurant from there. Sam Lewnes would greet his customers at the counter, dressed in a dapper white jacket and bow tie.
Nick, in turn, opened Mandris’ Restaurant in 1933. The building he bought for the restaurant is historic; dating back to around 1740, it got its original name as an “Inn for Seafaring Men” owned and operated by a Mr. Horatio Middleton, a prosperous early Annapolis businessman.
Horatio Middleton’s Tavern hosted central players in the American Revolution, including Ben Franklin, Thomas Jefferson, and George Washington, and other participants in the Continental Congress. It was a gathering spot during notable events in a notable time in history. Delegates ate, drank, and slept there during Washington’s resignation of his commission in December of 1783; during the proceedings surrounding the ratification of the Treaty of Paris, ending the Revolutionary War in January of 1784; and during the Annapolis Convention in the months that followed, which laid the groundwork for the Constitution.
After Horatio Middleton and his wife Anne, the Tavern was run by several generations of Middleton men, and then a few other proprietors, among them John Randall (a notable Revolutionary War figure and architect who helped design Annapolis’ Hammond-Harwood House). During those years, the Tavern remained a central stopping point for travelers, especially those traveling by ferry. For many years afterward, the tavern also hosted meetings of the famed Tuesday Club, a weekly meeting of Annapolis’ most prominent men, who would gather to drink, smoke, gamble, and generally blow off steam while discussing matters of import. A more in-depth exploration of the history of the building and property can be found here.
Eventually, as the Tavern became slightly less central to American history at large, it changed hands to the Mandris, Lewnes, and Apostol families, and remained central to Annapolis history. It was leased and then sold to Nick and Helen Mandris and Cleo and Mary (Mandris) Apostol. The family renovated the old tavern, using the building at 2-6 Market Space for the Mandris Restaurant, and an attached former tenement at 50 Randall Street for a dwelling, where Nick and Helen and Sam and Cecelia Lewnes lived together when their first few children were still young.
Interior, Mandris Restaurant.
In its post-1933 incarnation, the Mandris Restaurant was a vibrant neighborhood spot. It was especially popular with watermen and dock workers but was frequented by locals and regulars of all stripes, who appreciated the non-fussy hometown fare. Several of the Mandris children went on to work at the restaurant throughout the years, especially Mamie, who could often be seen in the kitchen and behind counters.
These were places that opened early and stayed open late, offering service virtually round the clock. If you walked into the Mandris Restaurant, for example, at six in the morning on a given weekday, you’d find it packed with watermen chowing down as they got ready to go out crabbing or working the oyster boats. It might be just as packed at six PM that evening, as they pulled back into shore, or even later as they spent long evenings at one of the areas’ favorite watering holes.
As Sam and Cecelia worked hard to build up their various businesses, they had five children, born head-first into the restaurant life.
On March 25th, 1916, they welcomed their first-born, George Lewnes. Soon thereafter, they had another son, Nick Lewnes, who passed away at a very young age. A third son, Gustadinos “Deno” Samuel Lewnes, was born on November 18th, 1918, followed by Louis “Lou” Samuel Lewnes, who was born on August 2nd, 1921. On March 1st, 1927, they welcomed Anna Cecelia Lewnes, the baby of the family and the only girl.
Left: Anna Lewnes, high school photo.
Census, 1920. Starting at the third line of entries, William and Catherine Katsereles and their daughter Pata are listed, followed by Sam Lewnes, Cecelia Lewnes, George, Nick, and Gus.
The children grew up in old Eastport and Annapolis, learning the restaurant business from the time they could walk and talk, and regularly spending their time at their family’s extended network of restaurants and convenience stores.
At that point in Annapolis and Eastport history, there were swamps, creeks and streams surrounding the city center, coming off the Chesapeake Bay and the Severn River. They were teeming with fish and crabs, and the creeks that were big enough for swimming had cold water perfect for summer day dips. The Lewnes kids (as well as their cousins, and the other Annapolis and Eastport children) were able to explore relatively undeveloped nature while also being in the middle of the small but bustling city center.
Map of Annapolis and Eastport around the time of Sam Lewnes’ arrival.
Sam’s Corner/Sam’s Place.
Some of these natural areas and tidal wetlands were filled in, covered up, or closed off after the public works projects of the 1930s and the development of the area by the growing Naval Academy.
Furthermore, the area around the family’s restaurants became less of the focused center of Eastport when the Spa Creek Bridge was moved from Fourth Street to Sixth Street in 1947. The original Spa Creek Bridge, which was built in 1868, was for many years the main means of travel and transport between Annapolis and Eastport, which were then separate cities. The first bridge was a wooden span that connected Duke of Gloucester Street in Annapolis to the end of Fourth Street in Eastport. It was replaced by a metal swing-span bridge in the same location in 1907, which is the bridge that these families were familiar with throughout their early years. That bridge itself was replaced by the shorter metal drawbridge that people may be familiar with today.
Since the original location of the Spa Creek Bridge led traffic from Annapolis directly to Fourth Street, it drew larger crowds, and became the natural city center of that area. This was a boon to the Lewnes family and their extended family in the restaurant, bar, barber, and corner store businesses.
However, in 1947, in a project associated with Annapolis’ annexation of Eastport and the Horn Point Peninsula, the main crossing was moved, and a new bridge was constructed which connected at Sixth Street in Eastport. This funneled traffic away from Fourth Street and changed the economic prospects in that area for a number of years.
First Eastport Bridge
But as George, Deno, Lou, and Anna were growing up, they still had the “best of both worlds” of the developed and less developed parts of Annapolis and Eastport land. Laughter, voices, sirens, and honking filled the narrow streets as cars steadily replaced horses and buggies. Church circle was only a stone’s throw away, as were the docks, which blew salty sea air through Main Street when the wind was right. On clear days, they could see straight across the bay, around five miles away to the Eastern Shore of Maryland.
The community would come together often, congregating in spaces like Eastport Elementary School during long spring and summer nights for softball games, played by the locally organized Eastport Athletic Club, in which Lou Lewnes later played as a leftfielder. Most people were blue-collar workers and may not have had their own radios (or later, TVs), so these gathering served as the evening’s entertainment.
Lou recalled in an interview, “It was the kind of thing where everyone in the neighborhood showed up. Maybe hundreds of people for one game”, despite most of the players being restaurant workers, contractors, builders, and electricians who weren’t particularly athletic.
1940 Census. Sam, Cecilia, Gust/Deno, George, Louie, and Anna are the last family listed on the page.
Sam Lewnes and daughter Anna Lewnes, preparing dishes for lunch rush.
As time passed and the children grew, George Lewnes fell in love with a dark-haired beauty named Helen Diamond (Diamantakos), and they were married in 1940.
Helen Diamond (Lewnes)
Helen was the daughter of Stavroula Harakas and George Peter Daimantakos (Diamond), who were from around the same area as Arna, and emigrated to the United States around 1920.
When America joined WW2, George enlisted in the Navy, and was counted on the Naval Muster Rolls on the USS Salisbury Sound, a seaplane tender. He served as a multilith operator, facilitating the ship’s printing press, through the Pacific Theater, primarily in Guam.
USS Salisbury Sound
Sam Lewnes’ WW2 Draft Card
George Lewnes’ WW2 Navy Muster Rolls (bottom listing of the first section)
The other Lewnes boys also served in WW2. Lou Lewnes enlisted in 1942, as Private First Class in the Army. He served in the Chemical Warfare Service with the 3rd Chemical Mortar Battalion (now the 83rd Chemical Mortar Battalion) and helped give fire support to Darby’s Rangers in the Italian Campaign of the European Theater. Afterward, he continued on fighting in France, and then participated in the storming of Germany. He was honorably medically discharged after incurring an injury that affected his hearing in December 1944.
Deno Lewnes served in the Army Air Corps, enlisting in 1942. He fought in the Aleutian Island campaign, protecting U.S. territory off of the southwest tip of Alaska from Japanese invasion.
Upon the end of the war and the safe return of all three of Sam Lewnes’ sons, the remaining bachelors found their spouses. Deno fell in love with Norma “Jackie” Hubbard (1925-2012), one of fourteen children from a local Eastport family and his childhood sweetheart. Deno and Jackie were lifelong Eastporters, and they worked outside the restaurant business. Jackie worked at the front office of the local A & P Supermarket. Deno worked as a budget analyst for the Experimental Station (later known as the David Taylor Naval Ship Research and Developmental Center), which was a testing center for new equipment and machinery for use by the US Navy in North Severin.
Deno and Norma’s Marriage Certificate
They had three children: their first-born, Rozanne Lewnes, was born on October 6th, 1943. Soon thereafter, on New Year’s Day, 1946, Dena Mae Lewnes was born, followed by Deno and Norma’s youngest child, Keith Lewnes, who was born on September 13th, 1953.
Dena, Keith, and Rozanne Lewnes
Louie Lewnes also married a woman named Norma: in 1956, he married Norma Horseman (b. January, 1926), who was from a small town called Bivalve, on Maryland’s Eastern Shore. Norma was trained as a teacher and taught at Anne Arundel County schools for around ten years, before she left to become a homemaker when their first son, Gregory Jay Lewnes, was born on June 11th, 1957.
During that time, Louie opened up his own restaurant, a small bar and grill known as Lou’s Corner, in homage to his father’s Sam’s Corner.
Louie and Norma’s second son, Nick L. Lewnes, was born on June 6th, 1960. Tragically, Norma died suddenly from medical complications from an underlying condition soon after Nick was born. This left Louie to raise both boys—then a toddler and an infant—as a single parent. Louie stepped up, and though there were limited resources for men at the time—or anyone, given that it was 1960—on how to manage single parenthood, he raised both of his sons while managing Lou’s Corner.
Anna Lewnes also married around this time. She married Elmer Hagner, Jr. (1919-2004), a tall, Baltimore-born, Orchard Beach-raised man several years her senior, who had just returned from WWII a highly decorated Sergeant. They soon had a son, Daryl Ryan Hagner (b. February 11th, 1949), and a daughter, Barbara Lynn Hagner (b. May 12th, 1956, d. November 15th, 2021). Elmer became a police officer with Anne Arundel County, eventually rising to Police Chief from 1964-1969, and then entered politics, serving four terms in the Maryland House of Delegates. Anna continued working at her family’s’ restaurants, and also supported her husband’s career as a police chief and lawmaker while raising her children.
(Above) Daryll Hagner in high school.
George and Helen already had two children when George shipped out to the War: Spiro Lewnes, who was born on January 2nd, 1941, and Charles “Charlie” Lewnes, who was born on March 17th, 1942. When he returned, they had another child, Vicki Helen Lewnes, born on November 16th, 1946. A fourth child, Pericles Lewnes, would come along much later, in 1960.
Spiro, Vicki, Charlie, and Pericles Lewnes
George and Lou eventually took over Sam’s Corner and gave it a new name: Lewnes’ Bar & Grill. This took the spot from a sundry store to a hamburger and hot dog joint. It was a favorite lunchroom with the locals, many of whom were workers at the nearby Trumpy’s Boatyard, on various crabbing and fishing ships, or at the Naval Academy. The family would prep for meal rushes around break times: when the whistle blew, workers streamed in, ate fast, paid fast, and got back to work.
Generally, no matter what it was called, the Lewnes joint on the corner of Fourth and Severn was a major hangout in those days. It functioned during this time as a sort of makeshift bank of Eastport: Sam Lewnes offered check cashing, so Trumpy’s workers often came to him to turn their pay stubs into usable tender.
After WWII, in which many of Annapolis’ men served overseas, veterans found a place to congregate and talk about their experiences at the restaurant, as well as at Leon’s, the adjacent barber shop. Veterans who’d served all over the various fronts of the war—from North Africa and Sicily to Normandy and the penetrating cold of the Bulge, from Pearl Harbor and Guam to Saipan and Tinian—talked about what they had been through, largely as very young men, and what they’d seen and done. Lou Lewnes, for example, recounted his time off the coast of Alaska, trading stories about how they “lived like rats”, commiserating about common complaints.
George and Helen, meanwhile, embarked on a side hustle together in the restaurant business by opening a small concession stand at Horn Point Beach, where they sold hot dogs, peanuts, and soft drinks. For years, they also operated a concession stand at the Eastport Fire Department carnivals.
In 1956, George left Lewnes Bar and Grille in the capable hands of his brother Lou, who for a time renamed it Lou’s Restaurant. Then George, Helen, and Sam opened up shop two blocks away, with a small 50-seat establishment they called Bridgeview Restaurant.
Newspaper Clippings referring to the Bridgeview Restaurant and the Yardarm Restaurant
George and Helen’s sons Spiro and Charlie eventually joined their parents in the family business. By 1966, they spearheaded the decision to add a lounge to the Bridgeview and change its name to The Yardarm. With many expansions over the years, the restaurant finally evolved into Spiro’s in 1975.
In 1981, Sam passed away, and his son George passed away two years later. Once both Sam and George had passed on, the family decided to lease the property to Jim Foote, who remodeled it and named it “Jason’s”.
Meanwhile, both Spiro and Charlie had families of their own, as did Vicki and Pericles.
Spiro married Carol Spelsberg (b. April 11th, 1949), and they had two daughters: Alyse Maria Lewnes (b. April 27th, 1963) and Dayna Kathleen Lewnes (b. November 28th, 1977).
Alyse (Lisa) married Charles Hudson Gordy, and they had two children: John Daniel Gordy (b. February 18th, 1994), who married Mariah Dittrich, and Bryce William Gordy (b. February 17th, 1996). Dayna opened a real estate agency and married Rob Blumel. They had one son, Owen Robert Blumel.
Dana, Rob, and Owen Blumel John and Mariah Gordy
Vicki got into the family restaurant business, working with her brother Charlie, and married James Oliver Steinberg (b. April 13th, 1946). They had two children: Tracey A. Steinberg (b. July 16th, 1966) and Jimmy Steinberg, Jr (b. July 27th, 1969). Tracey married Ed Green and they had two children, Dylan J. Green, and Justin E. Green. Jimmy married Stacey Lynn Petrovich, and they had two children: James Steinberg and Sydney Steinberg.
Jimmy, Stacy, and Sydney Steinberg
Pericles considered pursuing a career in wrestling, but went into filmmaking instead, making a few of his own films and working with the film production company Troma for many years. He has since gone back into the family line of business and opened In Grano, an artisan bistro and bakery, in Annapolis. He married Lisa Delucia (b. July 2nd, 1961), and they had one child, Alex Lewnes.
Charlie married Pam Mack (b. May 19th, 1952), and they had two sons, Sam Lewnes (b. December 2nd, 1984), and Mack Lewnes (b. November 15th, 1987). Even after his dad’s old spot was sold, Charlie felt that the restaurant business was still in his blood, so he and Pam and young Mack and Sam returned to the old Lewnes family roots.
By that time, Lou Lewnes, who was by then known as “Uncle Louie”, was ready to retire, and Charlie and his young family ventured back to Fourth Street to buy the restaurant from him.
In the 1980s, after extensive remodeling, Sam’s Corner was reopened in honor of Sam Lewnes. It was a multi-generational family effort, with Helen helping to organize, Vicki working the cash register, Pam taking the orders, and Charlie cooking. Some days, according to the parties involved, it got pretty heated in that kitchen.
People came from all around for the Sam’s Corner specialties, like the foot longs and the Philly cheesesteak sandwiches. Charlie became quite the grill man, and the boys grew up in the back of the restaurant, like their father had before them.
Unfortunately, one night in 1994, a cold front came through and froze the pipes in the restaurant, which then burst. The resulting flooding caused so much damage that the restaurant had to close.
Still, Charlie was determined to continue on in the restaurant business in Annapolis and decided to take things in another direction. He was attuned to a growing demand for prime steaks, which encouraged him to establish Lewnes’ Steakhouse that same year. Lewnes’ was re-imagined as a top-shelf steakhouse, a brand which took root rather quickly.
Today, Lewnes is operated today by Sam and Mack, both of whom are graduates of prestigious hospitality/management programs. As they co-ran the restaurant, they also started families. Mack married his college sweetheart, Kimberly, and they had two children, Lily and ____.
“While there are Lewneses all over the country, we are fortunate to have so many of us together in this wonderful city of Annapolis, which is steeped in Greek heritage.”
ANNEXES:
Annex A: Children of Anastasios Liounis and Katherine Vorvi:
- Aspasia Liounis (born in June of 1850), who married Efstoltheos Mellas. They had four children: Kaliopi Mellas (b. 1880), Theofanis Mellas (b. 1889), Spyros Mellas (b. 1892), and Marigo Mellas-Amerini (b. approximately 1894). They remained in Greece.
- Kaliopi Liounis (born in March of 1853), who married Stavros (“Charles”) Zaharakos, also of Arna. They had three children: Dimitrios Stavros Zaharakos, Michael Stavros Zaharakos, and John Zaharakos, who moved to Chicago and New York.
- Constantina Liounis (born in June of 1857), who married Stavros Atseves, from Kotsatinas, Greece. They and their children settled in New York: Stylianos “George” Atseves (b. August 16th, 1889, Arna, d. March 1964, Brooklyn NY), Andrew Charles Atseves (b. June 21st, 1892, Arna; d. February 6th, 1970, New York, NY), and Pota Atseves.
- Panagiotis Liounis (born in September of 1859), who married Ekaterini (Katherine) Tsamasirou (Chamas), from Zellina, Laconia, Greece. They had Louis Liounis (Lewnes) (b. May 15, 1881, Arna), who went to New York, Theodoros (“Eddie”) Liounis (b. 1890, Arna), who went to California, Andrea “Andrew” Liounis (Lewnes) (b. February 2nd, 1889, Arna), who went to New York, Basilios/Vasilios “William” Liounis (Lewnes), who went to New York, Aristotelis Liounes (Lewnes) (b. March 27th, 1892, Arna), who went to New York, Leonida Liounis (Lewnes) (b. 1898, Arna), who went to New York, and Prokopis “Peter” Liounis (Lewnes), (b. July 1st, 1909, Arna), who went to New York/New Jersey.
- Kostas Liounis (born in July of 1861), who married Ekaterini Drogaris, also from Arna,
- Vasiliki Liounis (born in February of 1863), who married Christos Grigorakis, and had a daughter, Aristea Grigorakis.
- Ioannis Liounis (born in September of 1866), who married Vasiliki Delamanaras, from Kamina, Greece. They moved to New York and had one son, Charles John Liounis (Lewnes).
- The oldest of their children was Georgios Liounis (who would later go by George Lewnes, born in December of 1847. Detailed below.
Papou Panagiotis Liounis/Lewnes
Annex B: Children of Georgios Liounis (“George Lewnes”)
- Paraskevas “Peter” George Liounis/Lewnes: (b. June 24th, 1881 in Arna, Greece. d. November 20th, 1952, New York, NY). Emigrated in 1901; went to New York. Married Poltimi “Pauline” Karembelas/Campbell (January 26th, 1898-November 1984). Had three children: Tula “Pauline” Lewnes (1921-2008), George Peter Lewnes (1923-2010), and Nicholas Peter Lewnes (1930-2006).
George P. Lewnes, wedding.
- Ekaterini Liounis (Tsamarisou): (b. September 22nd, 1883, in Arna Greece. d. 1938). Remained in Greece; married Tsamarisou.
- Karolos “Charles” George Liounis/Lewnes: (b. January 16th, 1887, Arna, Greece. d. June 11th, 1986, Brooklyn, NY). He married Maria “Mary” Klonis (May 12th, 1905-April 24th, 1996), from the village of Krokees (aka Levetsova), near Arna. They emigrated to Brooklyn, New York, and had one son, George C. Lewnes, who was a doctor at New York Methodist hospital for over 35 years. Married Barbara Stull, and had two children: Alexia Lewnes (Mehlman) and George C. Lewnes, Jr.
George Charles Lewnes
- Ioannis “John” George Liounis/Lewnes: (b. September 24th, 1894, Arna, Greece. d. August 1st, 1966, Annapolis, MD). Emigrated in 1909, through New York; settled in Annapolis, MD. Restauranteur. Married Eleftheria “Ethel” G. Nicholas/Nichols (1898-1986). Explored in-piece.
- Dimitra/Demetra “Tula” Liounis/Lewnes (Karembelas): (b. August 19th, 1890, Arna, Greece, d. July, 1979, New York). Emigrated to the U.S. in 1915, through New York. Married Nikolas George Karambelas (July 22nd, 1881-May 1967). Moved to Buncombe County, North Carolina. Had 6 children: Virginia Karembelas (Manos) (b. 1917), Beulah Karembelas (Pareshes) (May 28th, 1917-February 25th, 2011), Iphigenia “Effie” Karembelas (April 15th, 1919-November 1st, 2004), Georgia N. Karembelas (Gobos) (October 1st, 1920-January 5th, 2009), George Nicholas Karembelas (April 16th, 1922-July 26th, 2004), and James N. Karembelas (November 1st, 19240-August 20th, 1998).
Georgia Karembelas (Gobos)
- Speron “Sam” George Liounis/Lewnes: (b. February 12th, 1891, Arna, Greece. d. June 3rd, 1980, Annapolis, MD). Detailed in-piece.
- Christina Liounes/Lewnes: (b. March 4th, 1892, Arna, Greece. d. April 2nd, 1982, Annapolis, MD). Detailed in-piece.
- Frank George Liounes/Lewnes: (b. June 16th, 1896, Arna, Greece. d. June 11th, 1986, Brooklyn, NY). Came to the U.S. and settled in Brooklyn, New York. Married Helene Kalkanis. They had two children: Chris F. Lewnes (b. January 11th, 1934, in Brooklyn, NY) and Pauline Lewnes (b. June 18th, 1935, Brooklyn, NY).
Pauline Lewnes
- Antonia Liouns/Lewnes (Politis): b. August 21st, 1899, Arna, Greece. Arrived in the US in 1916. Married James “Jim” Andrew/Demetrios Politis. Moved to New Jersey. They had three children: Katina “Catherine” Politis (1924-2012), Andrew James Politis (1927-1987), and George James Politis (1933-1999).
- Hartini Liounis: (b. February 23rd, 1903 in Arna, Greece). Lived for only three months.
TOP, right to left: Antonia Lewnes (Politis) and Family; Andy Politis
BOTTOM: Catherine Politis Diamantis (Antonina Lewnes’ daughter) and daughter Niessa; James Politis and Antonina Lewnes and family
Christina Lewnes/Katsereles and daughter Athena
Christina Katsereles with family
Annex C: Children of Christina Liounis/Lewnes and William Katsereles
- Petres Pata “Beatrice” Kastereles (Adviotis) (b. May 5th, 1919, in Annapolis, MD, d. November 21st, 2006, in Annapolis, MD), who married George W. Adviotis (b. April 16th, 1916, Greece, d. March 24th, 1959, Annapolis, MD).
- Anna Kastereles (Sakers) (b. February 15th, 1921, in Annapolis, MD. d. January 13th, 2003, in Annapolis, MD), who married Theodore Lee Sakers (b. June 18th, 1928, in Annapolis, MD. d. June 28th, 1989, in Annapolis, MD). They had one daughter: Lynda Lee Sakers (Gruber) (b. January 9th, 1953), who had one son, Paul Theodore Gruber, III (b. March 17th, 1984).
Lynda (Sakers) and son Paul Gruber; Lynda Sakers in high school.
- Charles “Charlie” Kastereles (b. Jan 1st, 1923, in Annapolis, MD. d. December 16th, 2012, in Port St. Lucie, FL), who lived in Annapolis and then moved to Port St. Lucie, Florida, where he lived for many years.
- Golfe Kastereles (Bounelis) (b. August 12th, 1924, d. September 7th, 1987), who married George Pete Bounelis (b. August 4th, 1924, in Annapolis, MD, d. June 27th, 1989, in Annapolis, MD). They had one daughter, Effie Anne Bounelis (Case) (b. July 5th, 1953, Annapolis, MD), who married Gerard F. Case, Sr. (b.1951), and had one son, Gerard “Gerry” F. Case, Jr. Gerry was born on February 26th, 1978, and died tragically of bacterial meningitis at the age of 19 on March 22nd, 1997.
Golfe and George Pete Bounelis Effie Bounelis (Case)
- Athena “Ginger” Kastereles (Lambros) (b. August 21st, 1931, Annapolis, MD, d. January 2nd, 2015, Annapolis, MD), who married Gus John Lambros (b. February 14th, 1931, d. November 4th, 2016), and had a long career working for the State of Maryland, as well as four children: John Basil Lambros (b. March 29th, 1951, d. April 3rd, 1951), who died as an infant; Margaret Ann Lambros (Connor) (b. July 2nd, 1955), John Constantine Lambros (August 31st, 1956), and William Christopher Lambros (b. October 19th, 1957).
- Ethel Kastereles (Hayes) (b. March 4th, 1927, Annapolis, MD. d. April 26th, 2019, Annapolis, MD), who married Gus Charles Hayes (b. September 27th, 1923, d. January 31st, 2013). They had three children: Barbara Ann Hayes (McCadam) (b. July 24th, 1948), Pauline Constance Hayes (Buxton) (b. October 20th, 1949), Susan Christine Hayes (McCaughey) (b. June 28th, 1952).
Annex D: Children of Nick Mandris and Helen Apostolakos
- Demetrius James “Jim” Nicholas Mandris: (b. July 11th, 1917, Annapolis, MD. d. September 3rd, 1962, Annapolis, MD). Married Rose Marie Paris, in Honolulu, Hawaii. Had one daughter, Helen Leilani Mandris (b. 1943). Jim was an architect and a founding member of the architectural firm Mandris & Sippel and was involved in city architecture in Baltimore. Designed both religious and secular buildings, including the Greek Orthodox Church of the Annunciation in Baltimore and the Wilkens Police Station in Baltimore County.
Helen Leilani Mandris
- Mary “Mamie” Nicholas Mandris: (b. February 16th, 1916, Annapolis, MD. d. August 31st, 2003, Annapolis, MD). Married Cleomenos “Cleo” J. Apostolakos (Apostol). Operated the Mandris Restaurant at Market Space on the City Dock, which was opened by her father Nick. Renowned for her cooking, especially for her pastries, the most famous of which was her kourabiedes (Greek butter cookies with powdered sugar). Had three children: John Cleo Apostol (1938-2018), who was the Mayor of Annapolis from 1973-1981; Georgia Cleo Apostol (Yeatras) (b. 1943), and Nicholas Cleo Apostol (b. 1948).
- Georgia Mandris (Nichols) (b. October 7th, 1925, Annapolis, MD. d. February 3rd, 2012). Married George Theodore Nichols, with whom she co-ran the Little Campus Inn on Maryland Ave in Annapolis. Georgia was also the President of the Agia Anna Philoptochos and was active in the Sts. Constantine and Helen Greek Orthodox Church. After George died, she worked for the State of Maryland’s Income Tax Division. Had two children: Eleni Nichols (Uricoli) (b. 1953) and Ann Nichols (Lygoumenos) (1949-2007)
Georgia (Mandris) and George Theodore Nichols
- Stavroula “Crossie” Mandris (George): (b. January 17th, 1921, Annapolis, MD. d. July 23rd, 2010, Baltimore County, MD). Married George Thomas Georgeopulos “George” (1916-2000). Had two children: Thomas G. George (1944-2018), and Denise R. George (b. 1949).
Thomas George (seated, left).