Red
05-22-2002, 07:38 PM
The News & Advance, Lynchburg, VA
by Gerard Shields
The Baltimore Sun
BALTIMORE - Imagine a tree so mighty that the federal government built its interstate highway system around it. Now more than 300 years old, the 68-foot-high Arbutus Oak sits amid a ribbon of highways - southbound Interstate 95 and the outer loop of the Baltimore Beltway.
For the past 30 years, folks from Arbutus, a tiny blue-collar town in southwest Baltimore County, have made their way to the grassy knoll, where the giant white oak sits next to an off ramp. to pull weeds and clip branches. "It's something that they thought was nice enough to keep, so much so that they built I-95 and (Interstate) 695 around it," said C.J. Bokman of the Arbutus Community Association, which has adopted the tree. When something has been around that long, you want to keep in."
The fires community group to take care of the oak was the Arbutus Lions Club, which came upon a sick tree facing its last days in 1972. Weeds and small trees had grown in the underbrush, threatening to choke the tree. The club brought in and expert form the U.S. Forestry Service, who deemed the oak "salvageable"with a little care. That same year, the Lions Club dubbed the tree "The Arbutus Oak," hoping it would become a symbol of the town.
Arbutus' ties to the oak are "definitely emotional, because the tree is a living thing," said Nancy Herwig, executive director of the mid-Atlantic chapter of the International Society of Arboriculture. "In urban areas, having a tree last that long is very strange," she said.
In the late 17th century, about when the oak began growing, roads were for the use of horses, American Indians combed the landscape and settlements in the New World were ruled by and English king. George Washington wouldn't be born for more than 30 years.
By 1832, the oak stood on the property of Emanuel Wade, whose family owned the 85-acre property.
In 1954, the federal government bought the land to build the interstates, but officials decided to ensure the oak would remain. "The roads were realigned," said David Buck, a spokesman for the State Highway Administration. "The ramps were shifted so that it could be protected." Federal officials calculated that the oak, with a trunk 12 feet in diameter, was more than 283 years old in 1976, when it was named a Maryland state Bicentennial Tree.
While excavating land around the oak for the interstates, workers found Indian artifacts, prompting townspeople to wonder whether Indians had used the tree and its majestic 85-foot canopy as a meeting place.
"It's probably the oldest tree in the area," said George Kendrick, who has lived in town for 60 years. "And it's still imposing when you see it."
The Lions Club erected a plaque on the site and someone placed Emanuel Wad's tombstone inside the waist-high, wrought-iron protective railing that the club members built around the tree.
The Lions Club cared for the tree through the mid-1980's.
The Arbutus Community Association took on the mantle in 1996, after club member Joe Freson rode by the area. "I saw it with my son, and I said, 'Man, we've got an oak tree,' " Freson said. "What got my attention is its perfect shape. It is the epitome of an oak tree."
Club members enlisted the help of state Delegate James E. Malone Jr. He was able to persuade the State Highway Administration to help paint the fence around the tree and to clear brush. "It really needed a lot of work," Malone said. "People got together, and we pulled the shrubs and painted the fence."
Malone said a lot of work is necessary to keep the oak alive. "It's awesome, it's very, very awesome," Malone said of the tree. "For the government to move and interstate for it, you know it's awesome."
by Gerard Shields
The Baltimore Sun
BALTIMORE - Imagine a tree so mighty that the federal government built its interstate highway system around it. Now more than 300 years old, the 68-foot-high Arbutus Oak sits amid a ribbon of highways - southbound Interstate 95 and the outer loop of the Baltimore Beltway.
For the past 30 years, folks from Arbutus, a tiny blue-collar town in southwest Baltimore County, have made their way to the grassy knoll, where the giant white oak sits next to an off ramp. to pull weeds and clip branches. "It's something that they thought was nice enough to keep, so much so that they built I-95 and (Interstate) 695 around it," said C.J. Bokman of the Arbutus Community Association, which has adopted the tree. When something has been around that long, you want to keep in."
The fires community group to take care of the oak was the Arbutus Lions Club, which came upon a sick tree facing its last days in 1972. Weeds and small trees had grown in the underbrush, threatening to choke the tree. The club brought in and expert form the U.S. Forestry Service, who deemed the oak "salvageable"with a little care. That same year, the Lions Club dubbed the tree "The Arbutus Oak," hoping it would become a symbol of the town.
Arbutus' ties to the oak are "definitely emotional, because the tree is a living thing," said Nancy Herwig, executive director of the mid-Atlantic chapter of the International Society of Arboriculture. "In urban areas, having a tree last that long is very strange," she said.
In the late 17th century, about when the oak began growing, roads were for the use of horses, American Indians combed the landscape and settlements in the New World were ruled by and English king. George Washington wouldn't be born for more than 30 years.
By 1832, the oak stood on the property of Emanuel Wade, whose family owned the 85-acre property.
In 1954, the federal government bought the land to build the interstates, but officials decided to ensure the oak would remain. "The roads were realigned," said David Buck, a spokesman for the State Highway Administration. "The ramps were shifted so that it could be protected." Federal officials calculated that the oak, with a trunk 12 feet in diameter, was more than 283 years old in 1976, when it was named a Maryland state Bicentennial Tree.
While excavating land around the oak for the interstates, workers found Indian artifacts, prompting townspeople to wonder whether Indians had used the tree and its majestic 85-foot canopy as a meeting place.
"It's probably the oldest tree in the area," said George Kendrick, who has lived in town for 60 years. "And it's still imposing when you see it."
The Lions Club erected a plaque on the site and someone placed Emanuel Wad's tombstone inside the waist-high, wrought-iron protective railing that the club members built around the tree.
The Lions Club cared for the tree through the mid-1980's.
The Arbutus Community Association took on the mantle in 1996, after club member Joe Freson rode by the area. "I saw it with my son, and I said, 'Man, we've got an oak tree,' " Freson said. "What got my attention is its perfect shape. It is the epitome of an oak tree."
Club members enlisted the help of state Delegate James E. Malone Jr. He was able to persuade the State Highway Administration to help paint the fence around the tree and to clear brush. "It really needed a lot of work," Malone said. "People got together, and we pulled the shrubs and painted the fence."
Malone said a lot of work is necessary to keep the oak alive. "It's awesome, it's very, very awesome," Malone said of the tree. "For the government to move and interstate for it, you know it's awesome."