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VOICE ONE:
I’m Faith Lapidus.
VOICE TWO:
And I’m Steve Ember with the VOA Special English program Peoplein America. Today we tell about a man known as Johnny Appleseed.Many people considered him a hero.
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VOICE ONE:
Johnny Appleseed was the name given to John Chapman. He plantedlarge numbers of apple trees in what was the American wilderness twohundred years ago. Chapman grew trees and supplied apple seeds tosettlers in the middle western Great Lakes area. Two centurieslater, some of those trees still produce fruit.
As a result of stories and poemsabout Chapman’s actions, Johnny Appleseed became an American hero.However, some of the stories told about Johnny Appleseed over theyears may not have been really true.
VOICE TWO:
John Chapman was born in Leominster, Massachusetts, inseventeen-seventy-four. His father, Nathaniel Chapman, served inAmerica’s war for independence. He fought British troops in thebattle of Concord in seventeen-seventy-five.
John was the second of three children. Little is known about hischildhood. His mother Elizabeth became sick with tuberculosis anddied a short time after the birth of her third child. Inseventeen-eighty, Nathaniel Chapman married Lucy Cooley ofLongmeadow, Massachusetts. John and his older sister moved toLongmeadow with their father and his new wife. This new marriageproduced ten more children.
VOICE ONE:
When John Chapman was old enough to leave home, he asked hishalf-brother, Nathaniel, to come with him. They slowly traveledsouth and west from Massachusetts to the state of Pennsylvania. Atthat time, much of western Pennsylvania was undeveloped.
Government records show that John lived in the AlleghenyMountains in seventeen-ninety-seven. He is said to have cleared landand planted apple seeds near a waterway. In a short time, the seedsgrew to become trees that produced fruit.
VOICE TWO:
Pennsylvania was the first stop in what would become a life-longeffort to plant apple trees. The reason for John Chapman’s life’swork is unknown. Some people said he loved to watch the flowers onapple trees grow and change into tasty fruit.
Apples were an important food for the early settlers of NorthAmerica. Apples offered something different in daily meals. Theywere easy to grow and store for use throughout the year. They couldbe eaten raw, cooked or dried for eating during the winter. And theycould be made into other products, like apple butter and applejuice.
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VOICE ONE:
After a few years, Chapman left the hills of western Pennsylvaniaand traveled west into the Ohio Valley. He transported sixteenbushels of apple seeds down the Ohio River in eighteen-oh-one. Heplanted apple seeds in several areas near a place called LickingCreek. Some of the seeds were planted on land owned by a farmernamed Isaac Stedden.
Chapman was careful about where he planted apple seeds. He didnot leave them just anywhere. First, he would find rich, fertileland in an open area. Then, he cleared the land, carefully removingunwanted plants. Then, he planted his seeds in a straight line andbuilt a fence around them. The fence helped to keep the young treessafe from animals. As the trees grew, he returned to repair thefence and care for the land.
VOICE TWO:
Chapman planted with thoughts about future markets for his crops.His trees often grew in land near settlements. He often sold hisapple seeds to settlers. Sometimes, he gave away trees to needysettlers. When low on seeds, he returned east to Pennsylvania to getmore. He got the seeds from apple presses — machines used to makeapples into a drink called apple cider.
Before long, Chapman’s trees were growing in fields across Ohio.People began calling him Johnny Appleseed.
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VOICE ONE:
Johnny Appleseed was a small man with lots of energy. He had longdark hair. His eyes were black and bright. He never married. Helived very simply. For years, he traveled alone in the wilderness,without a gun or knife. He slept in the open air and did not wearshoes on his feet.
Some people gave him clothing as payment for his apple trees. Butsometimes he wore a large cloth bag or sack as clothing. The sackhad holes for his head and arms. On his head, he wore a metalcontainer for a hat. He also used this pot for cooking his food.People said he lived this way because he wanted to. He had enoughmoney for shelter and clothes if he had wanted to buy these things.
VOICE TWO:
Johnny Appleseed looked like someone who was poor and had nohome. Yet he was a successful businessman. He used his money toimprove his apple business and help other people. He was famous forhis gentleness and bravery. Both settlers and native Americans likedhim. Everywhere he traveled, he was welcomed. Reports from thatperiod suggest that some native Americans believed he was “touchedby God.” Others called him a great medicine man.
During his travels, some families asked Johnny to join them for ameal. He would never sit down until he was sure that their childrenhad enough to eat. His diet was as simple as his clothing. Hebelieved that it was wrong to kill and eat any creature for food. Hebelieved that the soil produced everything necessary for humans. Healso criticized people who wasted food.
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VOICE ONE:
There are a number of other stories about Johnny Appleseed. Oncea rattlesnake attempted to bite him while he slept. Johnny struckthe creature, killing it. This was an action he said he alwaysregretted.
Another time, he was trapped in the wilderness during a severesnowstorm. He found shelter in an old tree that had fallen to theground. In the tree, he discovered a mother bear and her cubs. Hedid not interfere with the animals, and left before they knew he wasthere.
As the years passed, Johnny Appleseed decided to leave Ohio. Hemoved west into wilderness areas in what is now the state ofIndiana. The woods were filled with bears, wolves and other wildanimals. Yet he never hurt these creatures.
VOICE TWO:
Johnny Appleseed has sometimes been called the American SaintFrancis of Assisi. Saint Francis established a Roman Catholic groupthat cares for the poor and the sick. Saint Francis also isremembered for his love of animals and for honoring nature.
John Chapman was a very religious man. He liked to read from theChristian holy book, the Bible. He was strongly influenced by theSwedish scientist and Christian thinker, Emanuel Swedenborg. Chapmanbelonged to the Church of New Jerusalem, a religious group based onSwedenborg’s teachings.
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VOICE ONE:
In about eighteen-thirty, John Chapman got some land in FortWayne, Indiana. There, he planted apple seedlings that grew andproduced crops. He sold, traded and planted in other areas. Somereports said he also traveled to the nearby states of Kentucky andIllinois. His travels lasted more than forty years.
It is estimated that, during his lifetime, he planted enoughtrees to cover an area of about two-hundred-sixty-thousand squarekilometers. Over time, some adults said they remembered receivingpresents from Johnny Appleseed when they were children.
VOICE TWO:
In eighteen-forty-five, John Chapman became sick and developedpneumonia during a visit to Fort Wayne. He died in the home of afriend, William Worth. Chapman was seventy years old. He was buriednear Fort Wayne. The marker over his burial place reads, “He livedfor others.”
When word of Chapman’s death reached Washington, D-C, Senator SamHouston of Texas made a speech honoring him. Houston praisedChapman’s work as a labor of love. He said people in the futurewould remember his life and work.
Strangely, stories about Johnny Appleseed continued to spread toother areas, long after John Chapman died. Some people claimed theyhad seen Johnny Appleseed as far south as Texas. Others were surethat he planted trees as far west as California. Even today, somepeople still claim they are Johnny Appleseed.
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VOICE ONE:
This Special English program was written by George Grow. It wasproduced by Lawan Davis. I’m Faith Lapidus.
VOICE TWO:
And I’m Steve Ember. Join us again next week for another Peoplein America program on the Voice of America.
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