Johnny Tremain - Characters

Characters

The novel features both fictional and historical characters.

Johnny Tremain -The story's protagonist. He is 14 years old and is apprenticed to silversmith Ephraim Lapham. His hand was badly injured by an accident, therefore he could no longer work in the silversmith business.

Rab Silsbee - Johnny's friend and role model. Rab is two years older than Johnny. He introduces Johnny to the politics of Boston. He treats Cilla kindly, but it is not made clear whether his feelings for her are romantic or platonic. He takes part in the Battle of Lexington and dies at the end of the story.

Priscilla Lapham - "Cilla" is slightly younger than Johnny. Over time Cilla and Johnny develop genuine love for each other. Cilla was engaged to marry Mr. Tweedie, but the engagement was called off.

Isannah Lapham - "Izzy." The youngest daughter of Mrs. Lapham. Isannah is a beautiful but sickly girl and must be cared for at all times. Once-sweet Isannah is eventually selfish and vain, and beloved by Cilla. Isannah’s golden-haired, brown-eyed, beauty attracts a great deal of attention, most significantly from Lavinia Lyte. Lavinia takes Isannah into her care and introduces her to high society, separating her from her family and their working-class way of life.

Ephraim Lapham - A Boston silversmith, and Johnny's master at the beginning of the novel. Mr. Lapham is pious and kind, but old, frail, and no longer the master smith of his youth but he unfortunately dies towards the middle/end of the book.

Mr. Tweedie - A 40-year-old from Baltimore, Maryland who becomes Mr. Lapham’s business partner after Johnny’s accident. Tweedie is a "queer" man, unliked by many. Johnny calls him a "Scallywag."

Mrs. Lapham, later Mrs. Tweedie - Ephraim Lapham's daughter-in-law. Mrs. Lapham is a dedicated, hardworking mother and a no-nonsense taskmaster to the apprentices. She works as the housekeeper in Mr. Lapham’s house and shop. Near the book's end, she marries Mr. Tweedie to keep the silversmith shop in the Lapham family.

Dorcas Lapham - Mrs. Lapham’s second daughter. Although Dorcas longs to be elegant and sophisticated, she falls in love with the poverty-stricken Frizel, Jr., and elopes to avoid marrying Mr. Tweedie.

Madge Lapham - Mrs. Lapham’s oldest daughter. Like Mrs. Lapham, Madge is tough and capable. She falls in love and elopes with Sergeant Gale, a British soldier. Madge, like Dorcas, was engaged to marry Mr. Tweedie. She eloped with Sergeant Gale to avoid marrying Tweedie.

Dove - An apprentice in the Lapham shop and rival of Johnny. Later in the book Dove takes a job caring for British officers' horses during Boston's occupation. Dove both envies and looks up to Johnny. Attempts to steal tea During the Boston Tea Party.

Dusty Miller - Mr. Lapham’s youngest apprentice. Before Johnny's accident, Dusty idolized him. After Johnny leaves the silversmith shop, Dusty runs away to sea.

Mr. Lorne - Rab’s uncle and master. Mr. Lorne owns the print shop that publishes the Boston Observer, a rebellious Whig (Patriot) newspaper.

Mrs. Jennifer Lorne - Mr. Lorne’s wife and Rab's aunt. Mrs. Lorne sees through Johnny’s arrogant exterior to treat him as a lonely boy. She becomes like a second mother to him.

Jonathan Lyte - A wealthy Boston merchant and Johnny's great-uncle. Crooked and cruel, Lyte tries to make a profit by making friends on both sides of the colonial struggle, the Loyalists and the Patriots but as tensions mount in Boston, Lyte is exposed as a Tory (Loyalist). On the eve of war, Lyte and his family depart for London.

Lavinia Lyte - Jonathan Lyte’s beautiful daughter. Lavinia is the most desirable socialite in Boston. Enchanted by Isannah’s ethereal beauty, Lavinia Lyte takes the child away from her family to live amidst the wealth of the Lyte household as a sort of pet. She is also Johnny's cousin, which she reveals at the end of the book.

Mrs. Bessie - The Lytes' cook and Cilla’s only friend in the Lyte household. Mrs. Bessie is an ardent Whig and a confidante of Samuel Adams, but she nonetheless remains loyal to her Tory employers. When the Lytes leave Boston, Bessie and Cilla look after their house.

Vinny Lyte Tremain - Johnny's mother, and wife to Charles Tremain. She dies before the novel begins.

Charles Tremain - Johnny’s father. Charles Tremain, known in Boston as Charles Latour, was a French soldier and military surgeon taken as a British prisoner during the French and Indian War. While he was held as a prisoner in Boston he met and wooed Johnny’s mother. After they married, Johnny’s parents traveled to France, where Charles died of cholera.

Lydia - The African washerwoman at the Afric Queen, a tavern where many British officers sleep. Lydia is a rebel sympathizer who, because of her connection to the British soldiers, gathers information for the rebel forces.

Sewall - A poor relative of the Lytes who works as a clerk in Jonathan Lyte’s office. Sewall is kind and brave; he runs off to join the Minute Men and becomes the owner of the Afric Queen after the war.

Lt. Pumpkin - A British soldier stationed in Boston. Pumpkin's dream is to own a piece of land and homestead a farm. Because he is poor, he can only achieve his dream in America. Johnny helps him desert from the army, but Pumpkin is captured and executed by a firing squad.

Sergeant Gale - A British Non Commissioned Officer who marries Madge Lapham, Mrs. Lapham's eldest daughter. He is noted to be short but tough.

Lieutenant Stranger - A friendly but often arrogant British officer stationed in Boston. He develops a strained friendship with Johnny.

General Gage - The British General in Boston.