The main road through Longmeadow was busy. People traveling to and from Connecticut and New York brought news.
In 1783 Johnny learned that the Revolutionary War was officially over. The colonies had finally gotten what they wanted—independence. Now all land from the colonies to the Mississippi River belonged to the colonists, except for Florida, which Spain owned.
When Johnny was about twelve, the new United States organized the Northwest Territory so that government land could be sold to settlers in smaller pieces.
The territory was bordered by the Mississippi River, the Ohio River, and the Great Lakes. (It later became the states of Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Ohio, Wisconsin, and part of Minnesota.)
A group of land developers formed the Ohio Company and bought 1.5 million acres of Ohio land. In 1788 they sent forty-eight pioneers to begin the town of Marietta, Ohio. This became the first permanent pioneer settlement in the Northwest Territory.
Over the next few years, Johnny watched settlers pass through town. They were moving west in search of a better life.
Farmland, lumber, and food weren’t as plentiful in the area as they had once been. In Johnny Appleseed’s time, farmers didn’t fertilize land. When their soil lost its richness after many seasons of growing crops, they looked for fresh farmland. Back then, people didn’t conserve forestland or protect animal populations either. As nearby forests were logged and animals hunted, people had to go farther from home in search of lumber and food.
They left on wagons, horseback, and foot to establish farms. At that time, when pioneers said they were “going west,” they were heading for what is now Ohio or Indiana. Today, these states are called the “Midwest.”
Johnny knew settlers would want fruit when they got to the west. Apples had many uses, and lots of people grew them. But settlers wouldn’t have room in their wagons for bags of apple seeds or seedlings. That gave him an idea.
Cider mills located in many towns mashed the juice out of leftover apples. A drink called apple cider was made from the juice. The cores of the apples were thrown away. Johnny thought this was a waste.
After all, apple cores had apple seeds. And he could have the cider mills’ seeds for free! Maybe he could take them westward and start an apple-tree-growing business.
INSIDE A COVERED WAGON
IF YOU COULD TAKE ONLY A FEW OF YOUR THINGS ON A TRIP, WHAT WOULD YOU TAKE? WHAT WOULD YOU LEAVE BEHIND? PIONEERS MOVING WEST HAD TO MAKE HARD CHOICES.
THEY SOLD THEIR HOMES BEFORE MOVING WEST. IF THEY HAD CHICKENS, PIGS, OR OTHER LIVESTOCK, THEY USUALLY SOLD THOSE, TOO. CHILDREN OFTEN HAD TO LEAVE BELOVED PETS OR TOYS BEHIND.
THE FLOOR OF A COVERED WAGON WAS ABOUT FOUR FEET WIDE AND SIX TO TEN FEET LONG. THAT’S ABOUT THE SIZE OF A DOUBLE BED! WAGONS WERE USED FOR SLEEPING, RIDING, AND STORAGE.
APPLES IN PIONEER TIMES
THE THREE MAIN FOODS PIONEERS ATE WERE MEAT, CORN, AND APPLES. THEY HARVESTED APPLES EVERY FALL AND ATE MANY OF THEM RIGHT AWAY. SOME, THEY BAKED INTO PIES OR BOILED TO MAKE APPLE BUTTER.
OTHERS, THEY CRUSHED TO MAKE APPLE CIDER. BEFORE THEY HAD RUNNING WATER, COLONISTS DRANK A LOT OF THAT. WITHIN A FEW MONTHS AFTER THE HARVEST, LEFTOVER APPLES STARTED TO ROT. THIS WAS A PROBLEM. PIONEERS DIDN’T WANT TO GO WITHOUT FRUIT ALL WINTER.
FRESHLY CUT APPLES TURN BROWN QUICKLY. THAT’S BECAUSE CHEMICALS IN AN APPLE REACT WITH OXYGEN IN THE AIR. THIS CHEMICAL REACTION IS CALLED “OXIDATION.” OXIDATION IS ALSO WHAT CAUSES IRON OBJECTS TO RUST.
ONCE ITS JUICE IS REMOVED, AN APPLE WON’T ROT. ONE WAY PIONEERS DRIED APPLE SLICES WAS BY PLACING THEM IN A SMALL ROOM CALLED A “DRYHOUSE.” A WOOD FIRE DRIED THE APPLES, WHICH LAY ON SHELVES MADE OF SCREENS.
ANOTHER WAY WAS BY SETTING APPLE SLICES ON OUTDOOR TABLES TO DRY IN THE SUN. WASPS AND BEES HELPED SUCK THE JUICE OUT OF THEM!
PIONEERS TIED THEIR DRIED APPLES TOGETHER ON STRINGS AND HUNG THEM FROM THE KITCHEN CEILING UNTIL NEEDED FOR COOKING.
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