Biography of johnny apple seed
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The Disappearing Spoon podcast
Today we think of Johnny Appleseed as a kindhearted fellow who spent his life wandering the forest and planting apple seeds. But in this episode, Sam Kean points out that he was actually a shrewd businessman who provided people with the raw material to make cider.
About The Disappearing Spoon
The Science History Institute has teamed up with New York Times best-selling author Sam Kean to bring a second history of science podcast to our listeners. The Disappearing Spoon tells little-known stories from our scientific past—from the shocking way the smallpox vaccine was transported around the world to why we don’t have a birth control pill for men. These topsy-turvy science tales, some of which have never made it into history books, are surprisingly powerful and insightful.
Credits
Host: Sam Kean
Senior Producer: Mariel Carr
Producer: Rigoberto Hernandez
Associate Producer: Padmini Raghunath
Audi
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The Story of Johnny
Appleseed
Johnny Appleseed’s real name was John Chapman. He was born in Leominster, Massachusetts in 1774. His dream was to produce so many apples that no one would ever go hungry. Although legend paints a picture of Johnny as a dreamy wanderer, planting apple seeds throughout the countryside, research reveals him to be a careful, organized businessman, who over a period of nearly fifty years, bought and sold tracts of land and developed thousands of productive apple trees.
His adventures began in 1792, when John was eighteen years old. He and his eleven-year-old half brother, Nathaniel, headed west, following the steady stream of immigrants. In his early twenties, John began traveling alone, which is how he spent the rest of his life. Nathaniel stayed behind to farm with their father, who had also immigrated west. John continued moving west to Pennsylvania. From there he traveled into the Ohio Valley country and later, Indiana. He kept ahead of the settlement
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Johnny Appleseed
(1774-1845)
Who Was Johnny Appleseed?
John Chapman was an eccentric frontier nurseryman who established orchards throughout the American Midwest. He became the basis of the människor hero Johnny Appleseed, who has been the subject of countless stories, movies and works of art.
Early Life
John Chapman, better known as Johnny Appleseed, was born in Leominster, Massachusetts, on September 26, 1774. His father, Nathaniel Chapman, fought as a minuteman at the Battle of Concord, and later served in the Continental Army beneath General George Washington. In July 1776, while her husband was at war, Elizabeth Chapman died in childbirth. Nathaniel returned home and remarried shortly thereafter. He and his new wife, Lucy Cooley, had a total of 10 children together.
A limited amount is known about Chapman's early life. He may have traveled west to Ohio with his brother initially, meeting up with the rest of his family in 1805. It is likely that Nathaniel, a farmer, encourag