Big Apple
Although the history of "Big Apple " was once thought a mystery, a clearer picture of the term's history has emerged due to the work of amateur etymologist Barry Popik, and Gerald Cohen of Missouri University of Science and Technology. A number of false theories had previously existed, including a claim that the term derived from a woman named Eve who ran a brothel in the city. This was subsequently exposed as a hoax.
Baldwin (apple)
According to S. A. Beach's "Apples of New York", the Baldwin originated soon after 1740 as a chance seedling on the farm of Mr. John Ball of Wilmington, Massachusetts, and for about 40 years thereafter its cultivation was confined to that immediate neighborhood. The farm later came into the possession of a Mr. Butters, who gave the name "Woodpecker" to the apple because the tree was frequented by woodpeckers. Deacon Samuel Thompson, a surveyor of Woburn, Massachusetts, brought it to the attention of Col. Loammi Baldwin, who propagated it and more widely introduced it in eastern Massachusetts. From Col. Baldwin's interest in the variety it came to be called the Baldwin.