“There is no other place on the planet that has the Appleseed lure like in north central Ohio,” said Bill Jones of the Greentown Preservation Association, Inc.
John Chapman, better known as Johnny Appleseed, is considered one of the original pioneers of Richland County.
Bill and Tom Wappner, owners of Wappner Funeral Directors, Jones, and Amy Rohmiller of the Ohio Historical Society came together Thursday for the dedication of the Ohio historical marker recognizing Appleseed’s town lot.
During the program, held at the Life Celebration Reception Center, Jones gave a brief history of Appleseed and his accomplishments in the area.
“He was one of nine or so folks that came to the area,” Jones said. “You can call this neck of the woods the Johnny Appleseed epicenter or ground zero.”
Although Appleseed was born in Massachusetts and died in Fort Wayne, Indiana, he spent a good portion of his life in not only the Mansfield area but in the Loudonville/Perrysville and Mount Vernon areas as well, Jones said.
“He spent a lot of time in this neck of the woods,” he said.
Rohmiller said the historical marker, located on South Diamond Street on the Wappner Funeral Directors property, is the ninth historical marker in Richland County.
The actual lot of property – town lot 265 – where the historical marker sits is the actual lot of property that Appleseed purchased in 1818 for $120 from Henry Wilcoxen. The actual transaction of the land purchase was recorded August 6, 1818, in the book of Richland County deeds, Volume I, page 523.
Appleseed then sold the lot of land to Jesse Edgington on October 30, 1818 for $100.
Edgington, according to family tradition, Jones said, was a Revolutionary War veteran and was at the Gnadenhutten massacre and served as an American spy during the War of 1812.
During the actual unveiling of the historical marker, Wappner and Jones beamed as Jones read the inscription.
“We hope that as people walk or drive by, they will stop and look at the marker,” Jones said.
The Ohio Historical Society oversees the program to place historical markers around the state, Rohmiller said.
Wappner Funeral Directors and the Greentown Preservation Association submitted the application for the historical marker and helped raise money to pay for it, Rohmiller said.
“These markers help Ohioans share and preserve history,” she said.
“He was one of nine or so folks that came to the area,” Jones said. “You can call this neck of the woods the Johnny Appleseed epicenter or ground zero.”
