![]() ![]() It taught the myth of the cherry tree to millions of American students. First published in 1836, McGuffey's Readers remained in print for nearly a hundred years and sold over 120 million copies. McGuffey was a Presbyterian minister and a college professor who wrote about teaching morals and religion to children. ![]() In the 1830s, William Holmes McGuffey turned Weems' tale into a children's story to be included in his textbooks. Even Abraham Lincoln recalled reading the book as a child. 4Īs a result of his success, Weems is now considered one of the fathers of popular history. 3 There is almost no surviving historical evidence about Washington's relationship with his father, and Weems’ claims have never been verified. Washington's achievements as a General and President were familiar to people in the early nineteenth century, but little was known about his relationship with his father, who died when Washington was only eleven years old. The cherry tree myth and other stories told readers that Washington's public greatness was due to his private virtues. He rightly guessed that if he wrote a popular history book about Washington it would sell.Ī Federalist admirer of order and self-discipline, Weems also wanted to present Washington as the perfect role model, especially for young Americans. Weems had several motives when he wrote The Life of Washington. However, the cherry tree myth did not appear until the book's fifth edition in 1806. It became an instant bestseller due to its approachable style. Weems's biography, The Life of Washington, was first published in 1800. "Washington you know is gone! Millions are gaping to read something about him.My plan! I give his history, sufficiently minute…I then go on to show that his unparalleled rise and elevation were due to his Great Virtues." 2 Weems explained to a publisher in January 1800: After Washington’s death in 1799, people were anxious to learn about the first President. This iconic story about the value of honesty was invented by one of Washington’s first biographers, a traveling minister and bookseller named Mason Locke Weems. Young George bravely said, “I cannot tell a lie…I did cut it with my hatchet.” Washington’s father embraced him and declared that his son’s honesty was worth more than a thousand trees. When his father discovered what George had done, he became angry. In the original story, when Washington was six years old, he received a hatchet as a gift and damaged his father’s cherry tree with it. The cherry tree myth is one of the oldest and best-known legends about George Washington. ![]()
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