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nafex - Re: [NAFEX] Introduction of apples to North America

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  • From: John Henderson <jhenderson@ithaca.edu>
  • To: nafex@lists.ibiblio.org
  • Subject: Re: [NAFEX] Introduction of apples to North America
  • Date: Mon, 12 Nov 2007 12:45:00 -0500

One of the first apples introduced or developed in North America was the Rambo. Actually two of the first apples introduced or developed in North America are two different apples with Rambo in their name. Both are described in William Coxe's 1817 "A View of the Cultivation of Fruit Trees." One, the Rambo, is credited to Peter Gunnarsson Rambo, a New Sweden colonist who arrived in what is now Delaware in 1640. It is a highly flavored early winter apple. The other, the Summer Rambo, originated in France and is the one described by many as the "first apple of the season."

Both the varieties and the name origins appear to have no connection, but because of the similarity, there is often confusion concerning them. Whether Peter Gunnarsson Rambo brought scion wood or seed with him on his voyage of 1639/40 is not clear, and the best evidence of the early colonist's connection with the variety is found in William Coxe's note in his book that indicates that the Rambo took its name from the "families by whom it was brought into notice." Some of the synonyms for the apple, however, help confirm its origins. "Delaware" is the most obvious, but another name for it was "Bread and Cheese." That name struck me as particularly odd until I learned that there is a Bread and Cheese Island approximately 5 miles southwest of Wilmington, or Fort Christina, as it was known when Peter Gunnarsson Rambo arrived there.

Coxe called the Summer Rambo by its French name, Rambour d'Ete. That is still the name for it in France. It is said to have originated in the village of Rambure, in Picardy, France in the 16th century, but I don't know any detail of its coming to North America.

Peter Gunnarsson Rambo only adapted the surname Rambo after arriving in the New World. I have wondered very speculatively if he might not have taken his name from the apple variety that he may proudly have developed (or introduced). The best I can do is to determine that there was enough trade between Sweden and France that Gunnarsson could have been familiar with some varieties of French apples -- and there are several European varieties with Rambour in their name -- before leaving Gothenburg. The Rambo apple is not particularly hardy, so I don't know how well it would have thrived in Sweden. If the Ramboäpplena Project, sponsored by the American Swedish Historical Museum and is supported by several Swedish organizations, is successful in "reintroducing" the apple to Sweden, we may find out.

John Henderson
Sage Hen Farm
Lodi, NY





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