Apple Story of Thanedhar

Thanedhar is merely a 3-4 hour drive away from Shimla via Narkanda. Throughout this drive you can see apple trees and if you are driving in the right season you would see a lot of apples on these trees, which may be green or red depending on their stage. Thanedhar is famous for being the birthplace of these apples. About a century ago a young American by the name Samuel Evans Stokes arrived in India to serve the leprosy patients. He landed in Kotgarh to rest and got so enchanted by the beauty of Himalayan villages that he decided to stay here. He even got married to a local girl and got converted into a Hindu, changing his name to Satyanand Stokes. A temple, on the hill behind his home, called Paramjyoti Temple stands witness to his life. He brought the saplings of a delicious red apple from America and planted them here. Apples took to Thanedhar just like Stokes and both became a part of this town forever. Few more saplings and few more varieties arrived and became a hit with the local population. Over a period of time, Stokes family bought a lot of land and grew apple orchards. Others got inspired and started planting apple trees instead of potatoes and plums that ruled the hills before. Today, this region is a big supplier of apples to state, country and abroad. Apples are a prime reason for the prosperity of this apple country.