Of all the stories many Ghanaians know of the man who first brought cocoa seedlings to Ghana, the narratives that they came from Fernando Po (now Equatorial Guinea) and that Tetteh Quarshie was only able to smuggle the seeds by swallowing them have been the most predominant.

Well, while only one of those two narratives is true, did you also know that the man who has been credited with Ghana's signature cocoa producing acumen to date was a blacksmith?

A blacksmith who gifted Ghana its most profitable cash crop, that's the true story of the man Tetteh Quarshie.

The 1879 story that has been told without a number has somehow also missed the very fine and interesting detail that Ghana's Tetteh Quarshie was not even the greatest farmer the country has ever had.

This historical correction was shared with 's Wonder Ami Hagan when she visited the Tetteh Quarshie's Cocoa Farm at Mampong Akuapem, in the Easter Region, in 2020.

Now, this is the true story.

Tetteh Quarshie was in Fernando Po on a missionary journey, and on his return, just like all others on such pilgrimages, there was the need for him to pass through a checkpoint.

This was to allow for all such travellers to be checked to ensure that, while on return from their respective countries at the time, they were not carrying any foreign items.