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Hank Fincken

Not “Johnny” If You Please

CinCinnati arts assoCiation, EduCation/Community rElations, 650 Walnut st., CinCinnati, oH 45202 PHonE 513-977-4116, Fax 513-977-4150

WWW.CinCinnatiarts.org, [email protected]

SchoolTime Performance Series 2013-14

Study Guide

Written by Hank Fincken

Additional Activities, Edited & Designed by Kathleen Riemenschneider

Cincinnati Arts Association 2 Not “Johnny” If You Please

John Chapman/Johnny appleseedJohn Chapman was a real person but the facts about his life are few and far between. Every author

who has written a biography about John has been forced to invent facts or trust legends which cannot be verified. Even in this earliest known drawing (1855), it is hard to separate John the man from Johnny the legend. How come a man who never worried about his appearance is clean shaven? How accurate can this sketch be since John had died ten years before it was drawn? Where is the pot that all kids are sure John wore? As I wrote my play, I felt like a painter who has been asked to draw a portrait after having seen only the man’s shadow. If an accurate historical rendering is impossible, what could I hope to accomplish? I think a fifth grader said it best in a letter she sent me after having seen the play.

Dear Hank,Thanks for going to our school. John Appleseed has always been my favorite. When I grow up I

want to be a teacher. When I become a teacher I will tell them all about John Appleseed and the day you came to our school.

Thanks, Mary Noble

John Chapman: Time line1774: John was born September 26, 1774 in Leominster, Massachusetts.1776: John’s Mother Elizabeth (formerly Simons) dies July 18, 1776.1780: Nathaniel Chapman (John’s father) remarries Lucy Cooley July 24, 1780. The family settles in

Long Meadow, Massachusetts. Altogether, the new Chapman family will have ten children. 1796: First confirmed report of John Chapman and his apple tree business has him in Warren,

Pennsylvania. Undocumented accounts say he was planting trees in western New York in 1792. Another source says he began planting his seeds in Virginia.

1803: John plants first apple seeds in Ohio (some say sooner); by tradition in Carrollton.1804: John moves his operations full time into Ohio.1806: Nathaniel Chapman dies in southeast Ohio.1809: Map of Mt. Vernon shows two plots owned by John Chapman.1812: John makes historical ride/run to save the people of Mansfield from hostile Indians.1816: John gives July 4 speech in Mansfield, Ohio. 1817: First printed reference of John Chapman as a member of The New Church or the Church of New

Jerusalem, January 1817 (England)1816/1822: Although first nicknamed Appleseed John (date unknown), the first printed reference to John

Appleseed is November, 1822. Some ledgers mention his name as early as 1816.1828-1834: Sometime between 1828 and 1834, John moves his operations into Indiana.1845: John’s death reported March 18, 1845 by Fort Wayne Sentinel. 1871: Article: “Johnny Appleseed; A Pioneer Hero” published in Harper’s New Monthly Magazine.

November 1871. John becomes a national hero. 1871 to present: Stories old and new emerge about John Chapman


Johnny Appleseed: planTing more Than JusT seeds

By hank FinCken

Ohio has as much claim to Johnny Appleseed as any state in the union. He arrived shortly after the start of the nineteenth century and called it home even after he had moved most of his work to Indiana. Without a doubt, his most fruitful years (literally) were planting seeds and selling apple seedlings throughout the Ohio frontier.

Stories of his life here have been passed down for generations. These family histories provide clues of what the man must have been like, but few can be documented and many are contradictory. Some are based on fact; others on wishful thinking, but all are treasured heirlooms—the source of family, county, and state pride.

That is why it is almost impossible to capture the “real” John Chapman and why my interpretation can never satisfy everyone. Since the stories told were heard in youth, the image created in the mind seems almost sacred. How dare I portray him differently from what one has known since childhood? Each of us clings to something unique and special about the man or the man we wish he was. He is the devoted cleric, jolly storyteller, simpleminded peddler, eccentric handyman, and homeless wanderer. He is all this and maybe something more.

In the fall of 1982, teachers in Muncie, Indiana asked me to create a program about Johnny Appleseed. It sounded simple enough. I anticipated three months of preparation and a week or two for revision. But I was wrong. Thirty years and more than 1,300 performances later, I still wonder who John Chapman was.

The difficulties began immediately. In my research at Ball State University library, I found very little concrete information about John Chapman the man and too many unsubstantiated anecdotes about Johnny Appleseed the legend. The two were one, separate and inseparable at the same time.

John Chapman was a preacher who sold apple seedlings to help support his ministry. Johnny Appleseed tosses apple seeds everywhere, talks with rabbits, sleeps with bears, and wears a mush pot on his head. I first saw the dilemma of writing the script as John versus Johnny. Today I see it as: what do I owe the memory of John Chapman and what do I owe the audience, who prefers John’s friendly incarnation, Johnny?

For example, people want to know where, when, and why John/Johnny planted his first seeds. Although no one knows for sure, the earliest reliable sighting of John, documented in the memoirs of Judge Lansing Wetmore, is in western Pennsylvania in 1797. John’s Swedenborgian faith would illustrate the connection between planting apple seeds and planting spiritual seeds. It is in the wilderness, Swedenborgians believe, that the physical and spiritual worlds blend into each other. That is an excellent reason for John Chapman to begin his work, but it is not good enough for those who love Johnny.

Acquaintances, county history books, modern biographers, and authors of children’s books give an assortment of reasons why Johnny headed west to plant his first seeds. These include: 1) he got kicked in the head by a horse and lost his common sense; 2) he got caught in a severe snowstorm that ultimately affected his judgment; 3) his fiancée’s father disliked Johnny so much he moved west to


prevent the wedding and Johnny was forever after in pursuit; and 4) grief caused by his bride’s death on the night of their marriage prevented him from ever settling down.

All of these explanations reveal more about the people who tell them than they do about John/Johnny. His lifestyle was so unusual (and illogical for profit-oriented Americans) that contemporaries needed to create appropriate motivation. I trusted none of these reasons, as charming as they might be. They are common to many folk characters, and there was no way to verify sources.

Of course, John’s “real” reasons for setting out may have been much more humdrum than religious zeal or mental deficiency. John’s mother died when he was two. His father remarried and moved to Longmeadow, Massachusetts. Maybe his ten half brothers and sisters created such a workload and chaotic home life that the wilds of the frontier seemed tame by comparison.

Some of John’s background can be documented. Thanks to the research of Florence Wheeler, we know he was born on 26 September 1774 in Leominster, Massachusetts, the second child of Nathaniel and Elizabeth Chapman. We also know that Nathaniel served in The Revolutionary War, and Elizabeth wrote a surviving letter shortly before her own death in 1776.

There are deeds, ledger entries, and court documents that prove John Chapman worked throughout Pennsylvania, Ohio, Michigan, (West) Virginia, and Indiana. There are also reminisces that have John in New York, Missouri, Nebraska, and Kentucky. Added together, John seems more ethereal than real. If only there was some documented moment from John’s life with witnesses that could put color into his saintly cheeks.

But there was. To save residents holed up in a blockhouse from Indian attack in August 1812, John Chapman made

a 30-mile trip from Mansfield to Mount Vernon. Witnesses make the journey practically a documentary. Except once again contradictions reign, and the ornate quality of the language attributed to John

during this emergency belies its authenticity. These quotations are as close as anyone can come to a primary source, but their accuracy depends on the articulate clarity of the excited speaker and the infallible ear of the frightened listener remembered years later. Adding to this doubt, accounts vary as to whether John rode a horse or ran all the way barefoot.

The soldiers who returned to Mansfield eliminated the Indian danger, but they also murdered several local individuals from Greentown, an Indian village that had long been friendly with the Mansfield community. This kind of situation should help me to separate the man from myth. John/Johnny had saved the town, but his efforts caused the death of innocent people, who reportedly were his friends. So, what was his response? Was he torn with guilt for what had happened to his Indian brothers, or content that his hard ride/run had saved the lives of his neighbors? What does John say? What do his neighbors say he said? Unfortunately, nothing was recorded. The most documented time of John’s life reveals nothing of his innermost thoughts, motives, or emotions.

Now you know why it is impossible to understand John completely. If I want to accurately portray this man, I’ve got to know something about what shaped his soul and how he interpreted experiences. Was this the event that caused him to become a member of the Church of New Jerusalem and a follower of Emanuel Swedenborg? Did he ever live in an Indian community, or was his respect for the native people only from casual encounters? Was his language as florid as witnesses suggest, or did he speak in the vernacular of the frontier?

As stated in Robert C. Harris’s Johnny Appleseed Source Book (1956), early Swedenborgians admired John as both a preacher and a horticulturist. The first record of the nickname, John Appleseed,


is in a letter from 1822. Then in 1846, Henry Howe published Historical Collections of Ohio with a story that included John and his saucepan hat. All these stories sound more like friendly neighborhood gossip than documented fact. True or not, they were told and retold by and for local folks.

In November 1871, Harper’s New Monthly Magazine published an article by W. D. Haley called: “Johnny Appleseed: A Pioneer Hero.” This article is laced with anecdotes, moral insights, hearsay history, and obvious errors, but it opened a floodgate of John/Johnny stories. Suddenly, every Midwest town had a memory to share. Johnny Appleseed, the legend, was born.

Of course, there had been exaggerated stories before, but this article gave them an air of legitimacy. Since memory is a very precarious historical source and many of these post-1871 stories are based upon an event or experience at least 25 years old, it is impossible to know if they are accurate reminiscences, well-meaning embellishments, or simply fun-motivated fabrications.

Remember, too, many of these storytellers were simply repeating what a family member or acquaintance had told them, often changing details each time in the telling. Too often other eccentrics were confused with the original. How else do you explain such a range of attitudes and descriptions about the same man?

The Haley article claimed Johnny came to Indiana in 1838, but John Dawson wrote in response that John arrived before 1830. I cannot be certain of the exact date anymore than I can tell you the state of his health when he arrived. If details are what make a character flesh and blood, then my John Chapman must always remain a shadow.

All sources state his clothing was simple, but beyond that, there is little agreement. Haley claims he wore a coffee sack coat, but S. C. Coffinbury flatly denies it. Haley tells of Johnny being barefoot even in winter; William McDaniel has him wearing one shoe in order to punish the other naughty foot; and still others talk about John wearing one shoe and one boot. And what about the famous saucepan hat? Howe mentions it; Haley repeats it; and Dawson confirms it. Yet, the best known biographer, Robert Price in Johnny Appleseed: Man and Myth, vehemently denies it. Therefore, I have references to quote if I wear the pot or ignore it completely. How is that for having your apple cobbler and eating it too?

John’s business was to guess where future immigrants would settle, plant seeds in the area, and then sell the seedlings to the new arrivals a few years later. The Midwest pioneers were able to buy land for next to nothing, but to establish “permanency,” they had to develop the land and pay taxes within five years. The average apple tree produces fruit in five years and produces a decent harvest in eight. The apple itself was a nourishing staple that—if kept in a cool place—would not spoil. In the form of apple brandy, applejack, or apple chips (dried apple slices), the fruit could be sold for cash. John’s seedlings gave the new arrivals a two to three year head start and made permanent settlement more likely.

John Chapman was a nonviolent vegetarian—the truth behind the exaggerations that have Johnny talking to animals. Haley writes, for example, that John often ate his dinners cold so the flames wouldn’t hurt a neighborly mosquito. If I cut away some of the embellishments, the man seems religious and earthy, respectful of all people and the land. Both Price, Harris, and more recently Howard Means provide references that show John liked children and told funny stories before he preached. (Could that be the “fact” behind the saucepan hat?) I can show you his signature on a Jay County, Indiana, land deed, but I can’t tell you if he was pleased with the arrangements, joked with local officials as he signed, or how this particular endeavor turned out. I can only say: he was an eccentric, laughed at and with in almost equal measure.


When I wrote the script, I felt I had a lot of apple peelings but little core. Since it was impossible to know the “real” man, I decided I would recreate my John/Johnny by letting him tell tall tales based on the broadest details from his life. This humor would be balanced with a section based on John’s historic 1812 ride—and its consequences. The audience would see Johnny the storyteller and John the zealot preacher together, my art and history as one.

The toughest question for me is how to treat John’s religious faith. John carried and distributed books written by scientist and mystic Emanuel Swedenborg, often announcing he had “Good News right fresh from heaven.” Several witnesses quote this beginning, but no one recorded the sermon that followed. Hoping not to compromise his Swedenborgian faith or my audience’s, I have John discuss his religious views in generic terms and basic Swedenborg concepts, enough to be historically accurate but not to actually preach. To add some dramatic tension, I have John both thrilled to see people and anxious to get away.

I dress him in simple clothing: pants from an 1840s pattern, a period shirt, burlap vest, and an ugly woolen hat. I decided against the pot because: 1) it would be impossible to keep on during my performance, 2) most Chapman descendants deny it, 3) an 1850 drawing by an Oberlin acquaintance does not have it, and 4) a pot on the head would be uncomfortable, unclean and no protection in bad weather. In a nutshell, a pot on the head would be a pain in the neck.

Is my version the definitive word? Of course not. The scarcity of facts allows for multiple interpretations. But there are limits. The 1948 Disney cartoon is cute and cuddly, but definitely not history.

John/Johnny deserves our respect not for any one thing he did or did not do, but because of his basic humanity to all people for a lifetime. In his time, there were many excellent reasons to choose violence over peace and profit over selflessness. John gives us all hope that generosity matters, a smile cures, and our efforts might endure.

John’s basic character (grizzly on the outside, a teddy bear on the inside) will be the constant in my presentation, however much Johnny continues to evolve. That is what I owe John Chapman and also what I owe the audience, whether it agrees with me or not. John’s task, then, will mirror my own. We will try to provide insights with humor, without having to put the world into apple pie order.


The apple: a sliCe oF liFe(FaCTs and FiCTion)• Carbonized remains of apples have been found in prehistoric

lake dwellings in Switzerland. There is evidence that apples were sliced and sun dried during the Stone Age in Europe.

• From the early written records in China, Egypt, and Babylon, we know the art of budding and grafting apples was known twenty centuries ago.

• A Roman, Cato, wrote in the third century BC of seven apple varieties.• There is no proof that the apple was the “forbidden fruit” in the Garden of Eden, but a fresh-picked

apple is an irresistible temptation for just about everyone.• The first colonists in America found native crab apples. The blossoms are pretty but the fruit is

poor. The Massachusetts Bay Colony sent for seeds and cuttings from England. The Spanish missionaries took planting stock with them into the southwest. George Washington and Thomas Jefferson were apple growers.

• The first commercial apple tree nursery was established in Flushing, Long Island in 1730.• The quality of our apples has improved. Most of the varieties which delighted our ancestors would

be thrown out today.• There is some truth to the saying “An apple a day keeps the doctor away.” In several university

studies, subjects who ate an apple every day had fewer colds than those who did not. In other tests, people who ate apples had fewer headaches and stress-related problems.

• Although you should never stop brushing your teeth, the fiber in the apple acts like a toothbrush. Studies show that those who eat apples instead of other sugar sweets suffer less tooth decay.

• An apple is 12% pure fruit sugar which gives you quick energy. The average size apple has 80 calories. That makes the apple the perfect snack. It fills you up not out.

• Apples are a good source of Vitamins A, C, and B complex. They also help offset the acid forming foods you eat and may have a reducing influence on cholesterol.

• Baby apples are green. The color camouflages them with the leaves and protects them from enemies. Tannic acid makes the young fruit bitter and pectin makes it hard to bite. In other words, the tree protects the fruit until the seed is matured.

• From bloom to harvest is approximately 130-145 days. Apple trees will not bear fruit in warm climates. The tree needs a cold winter for the flowers to bloom. Most trees need five to ten years to produce a large harvest.

• Each apple variety has a slightly different flavor and texture. Each variety is judged in the following categories: fresh eating, salads, pies and sauce, and baked. You, of course, are the final judge.

• The pioneers loved apples because they can be used in a number of ways and stored longer than most other fruits. Apple brandy was the easiest and most profitable way to ship apple products.

• The leading varieties in the Midwest are: Jonathan, Rome, Delicious, Stayman, and Golden Delicious.

• Since seeds do not necessarily reproduce the same characteristics as their parent tree, budding and grafting are essential to good orchard management.

• The Red Delicious is the heaviest grown variety. It was discovered in 1872 by Jesse Hiatt in Peru, Iowa.

This information was furnished by the National Apple Institute, Chandlers’ Farm of Stilesville, Indiana, and Hank.


pre-perFormanCe QuesTions

1. Look up John Chapman in the encyclopedia or on the internet. Arrange the facts under what you believe is true, what might be true, and what probably is not true.

2. Discuss the difference between real life and theatre.

3. The tall tale is a uniquely American form of humor. What makes a tall tale a tall tale? Give other examples in American literature.

4. How were times different in 1844? What did children do for fun? What manners do you think children did then that they don’t do now? What chores do you have today? How many more do you think you would have had back then?

5. Why was the apple so important to the pioneers?

6. The official title of the play is “Not ‘Johnny’ If You Please.” Why would John Chapman not want to be called ‘Johnny’?

7. Why do you think John Chapman wore a mush pot for a hat? What evidence can you think of that might prove the delightful story false?

8. Early settlers could obtain land cheaply if they paid their taxes within five years. What apple products could be sold for a profit so the settlers could pay their taxes and claim “permanency” (term of the time)? Why does that make John’s work so important?

9. Why would John Chapman normally go barefoot? Why would there be so many stories about his bare feet, his mismatched shoes, and even that he sometimes wore a boot with a shoe?

aCTiviTies

1. Have any of the students been to an apple farm? Have them describe their experience.

2. Have students name different foods/drinks that are made from or contain apples? Do they know how the food/drink is made? Have students find different recipes with apples in them. Have an apple day, where students bring in different foods/drinks made with apples.

3. Have an apple tasting. Bring in a variety of apples and have student taste them and compare the different flavors and textures.a. Prior to the tasting: brainstorm words that

can be used to describe applesb. After the tasting (writing exercise):

students describe which apple variety they liked best or compare the varieties

4. Create a map of John Chapman’s travels. What else is in the areas John Chapman has lived? Have fun and decorate the map.

5. Create and decorate a timeline of John Chapman’s life include historical events. Possible historical events to add:a. U.S. Revolutionary Warb. When did Ohio, Indiana, and Kentucky

become states? Other states?c. When were Cincinnati, Covington, Newport

or your hometown settled?d. Writing of the Constitution and

amendmentse. Which U.S. Presidents were elected during

John’s life?f. Northwest Ordinanceg. Louisiana Purchaseh. Eli Whitney’s Cotton Gini. Fugitive Slave Lawj. Indian Removal Actk. Trail of Tearsl. Lewis and Clark’s journeym. Baltimore & Ohio Railroad


reCommended readingsMeans, Howard. JOHNNY APPLESEED: The Man, the Myth, the American Story. Simon &

Schuster, 2011. This book fills in some of the holes Price missed, but if you read between the lines, you will see, John is still a mystery.

Pollan, Michael. The Botany of Desire. Random House, New York, 2001. This book has a chapter on Chapman that claims that John’s biggest contribution to pioneer life was providing the tools to make applejack, a liquor that could be sold to pay Ohio state taxes. Needless to say, other historians are furious that all John’s efforts have been reduced to cheap alcohol. The debate continues even as I write.

Price, Robert. JOHNNY APPLESEED Man & Myth. 1954; reprinted by Urbana University Press, 2001. For more than fifty years, this was the best source book on John and Johnny.

Urbana University (Urbana, Ohio) has the best collection of Johnny Appleseed books, articles, artifacts, etc., in the country. Their Johnny Appleseed Museum reopened in the spring of 2011. It is a great source for anyone interested in knowing more about John Chapman.

For younger readers:There are many books for children about John Chapman/Johnny Appleseed. Most of them paint an image of Johnny that reinforces the popular myth (or, if old enough, helped create the myth). In general, century-old anecdotes pass as historical references and “message” takes priority over impossible-to-know facts. Still, there are many books that are fun to read, though their historical references are suspect. Hopefully, there is room in our cultural closet for both the myth and the history. The danger is when we equate the two.

Greene, Carol. John Chapman—The Man Who was Johnny Appleseed. A Children’s Press/Rookie Biography, 1991.

Kellogg, Steven. JOHNNY APPLESEED: A Tall Tale, Harper Collins, 1988. The drawings alone make this book worthwhile. I enjoyed how the author took historical anecdotes and rewrote them to fit his story’s needs.

Swain, Gwenyth. Johnny Appleseed. Carolrhoda Books, Inc., Minneapolis, 2001. This is for young children. Since I was asked to be a consultant, I have to give the book a plug.

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