| The Story of "Johnny Appleseed" |
| The story of “Johnny Appleseed” is a glorious saga in the history of United States. |
| He was a wanderer, explorer, and a free spirit. |
| He had a mission in his life. |
| “Making America fruitful”. |
| The real name of this American hero was “John Chapman”. He was born on |
| September 26th 1774 in Leominster Massachusetts. He grew up to be a skilled nurseryman |
| and set up Apple orchards. |
| In early 1800’s the fertile lands towards the west of the “Ohio River” were opened for |
| settlement. Everyday John watched covered wagons, full of pioneer families rolling by to |
| the west. John was kind and gentle. He thought about the hard life these families were |
| going to face and wanted to help them. This is when he started on his mission, |
| which continued till the last day of his life. |
| He used his skills to fill people’s hearts |
| with hope and happiness. |
| He started exploring the new territory himself |
| This is the territory from which the states of Ohio, Michigan, Indiana |
| and Illinois were formed. His method of working was simple. He filled a bag with apple seeds |
| and roamed the wilderness. Whenever he found a spot for planting, |
| he planted the apple seeds |
| in neat rows and fenced the area. |
| When the settlers came by, he gave them the precious gifts of Mother Nature- |
| “apple seedlings” to plant near their new homes. The settlers gladly accepted the plants. |
| The young trees lifted their spirits and planted hopes for a new beginning and prosperity. |
| He worked alone for years. He obtained his seeds every fall. He washed them and |
| packed them in bags and planted them in spring. |
| Thus he created hundred’s of nurseries and planted millions of seeds. |
| Thus went on John Chapman’s mission. He happily endured the hardships of his life in |
| the wilderness. He roamed bare footed. |
| He carried just a cooking pot with him. |
| He did not eat meat. He would gather fruit and nuts from the forest, boil potatoes, |
| get milk from the settlers and fix a simple meal. They say that when he was not cooking |
| he would use the cooking pot as his hat. |
| Soon he became famous as the’ Apple seed man” or “Johnny Appleseed”. |
| Legends about him grew. They say that the birds perched on his shoulders. |
| Rabbits and deer ate from his hands. He even played with the bear cubs while the mother |
| bear was watching near by. |
| Johnny Appleseed befriended every one. The Indians considered him a friend too. |
| As the settlements grew, |
| Johnny Appleseed was always a welcome guest in any cabin. , |
| Though he had never married he loved children. He was also a very religious man |
| and carried his bible with him. At night time, after meals, he would tell stories to the |
| children from his bible. |
| No one knows how many apple trees he planted. |
| He spent 50 years growing Apple trees and |
| traveling to spread them in his country. |
| People all across United States even in the valleys |
| of California would point to the orchards and say that these trees were obtained from |
| Johnny Appleseed. |
| Today United States is one of the largest apple producers in the world. |
| John Chapman died in March 1845, at the age of 70, in Indiana. |
| When the news of his death reached Washington D.C. even members of the Congress |
| paid him a tribute for his life long, selfless hard work. |
