049. Johnny Appleseed: Planting apple nurseries all his life

Johnny Appleseed

(Image from Howe’s Historical Collection)

Johnny Appleseed was born as John Chapman in Massachusetts, US, in 1774. Not much is known about his family except that his mother died when he was young and that his father fought in the American Revolutionary War. He is known in the US as the legendary outdoorsman who is said to have traveled on foot across the country planting apple tree nurseries.

He began planting his first apple tree nurseries in the Allegheny Valley in Pennsylvania around 1798. He then travelled west through Ohio, planting as he went. He walked long distances every day and slept outdoors. He had a knack of predicting where the pioneer immigrants would settle and planted nurseries in those spots. He planted nurseries rather than orchards, built protective fences around them, and returned every year or two to tend the nursery. The nurseries were available for the settling pioneers.

Johnny Appleseed got his nickname late in life, but he became famous early on for his wilderness skills and remarkable physical endurance. He was also seen as an eccentric: He had no shirts and usually wore a sack with holes for his head and arms. He also wore worn-out shoes or no shoes at all. And, of course, he always carried a bag of apple seeds. (Remember The Man Who Planted Trees?)

The trees that Johnny planted did not produce the kind of apples we eat today. They were mostly cider apples, small in size and with an unpleasant taste. Such apples are used to produce hard cider, an alcoholic beverage. Apple cider was popular with the pioneers who didn’t always have access to clean drinking water.

At some point in his life, Johnny became a follower of the mystical teachings of the Swedish theologian Emanuel Swedenborg. As he travelled, he would distribute Swedenborg’s books and explain his philosophy. Following Swedenborg’s teachings, Johnny insisted on treating all animals with kindness. He is said to have turned a vegetarian at some point. He never married.

By the end of his life, Johnny Appleseed had planted apple nurseries in large parts of Pennsylvania, Ontario, Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, and Virginia. He became a legend even during his life due to his kind, generous ways, his commitment to conservation, and the symbolic importance he attributed to apples. Johnny Appleseed died in Fort Wayne, Indiana, in 1845.

Afterword: There is a 1948 Walt Disney animation on the life of Johnny Appleseed. This version emphasized his Christian faith, depicting him as walking in the wilderness armed only with his Bible and a bag of apple seeds. The cartoon did not mention that he was a Swedenborgian and not a follower of any Christian denomination. There are several books on Johnny Appleseed for adults and children.