Historical Untruths, Three

It’s a common American Parable: Founding father George Washington got a hatchet as a gift when he was 6 years old and, eager to test out his new tool, he hacked up his father’s cherry tree.

The story goes that when Washington’s father discovered the damage, Washington responded, “I can’t tell a lie, Pa; you know I can’t tell a lie. I did cut it with my hatchet.”

His father then delivered a tidy moral: “Glad am I, George, that you killed my tree; for you have paid me for it a thousand fold. Such an act of heroism in my son, is more worth than a thousand trees.”

If that dialogue feels a little too scripted, it’s because it was completely made up after Washington had already died. Ironically, this fable about honesty was fabricated by biographer and pastor Mason Locke Weems.  Responding to public demand for more stories about Washington’s life, Weems embellished his book, The Life of Washington, with many enduring myths, including the ever-popular cherry tree anecdote.

Perhaps what cements this particular story in the Washington mythos more than others is its popularity as a standalone moral tale for children. Minister William Holmes McGuffy simplified the story and included it in his McGuffy’s Readers  series, which were used in schools for around a century.

The anecdote endures today through political cartoons, commentary, and, of course, countless additional children’s books.

And onward we go, clearing these stories of history up!