The Ashland union. [volume] (Ashland, Ashland County, Ohio) 1854-1868, 1856-09-03
THE OLD CHARTER OAK.

e much pathos the circumstances of th
D fall of the " Old Charter Oak" of tha
city, SO noted in history and in song
During the storm of Thursday last, a
/ quarter before one o'clock, this oil
oak tree, emhalmed in tie affections O
thousar2s of atriotic hearts, yielded
from ti,s derey or time, TO the long re
sisted leigkso. The storm king, and fell
like ons ofSHomer's mighty heroes slain
with Understanding noise. The fol
lowing description and history of tn
famous old oak, is from the Hartford
Times :-F
This noble old tree stood upon the
beautiful grounds of Hon. Isaac w. Stu
art, late the Willis estate, in the south
ern part Of the city. About three years
ago, some boys built fire in the hollow
of this tree, which burned out the punk
and though it was feared that this would
kill it, such was not the fact. Fresh
sprouts sprung out the next spring, and
Mr.. Stuart took great pains to preserve
this valued relic of the original forests o1
New England, but more especially inter.
esting as the tree in which the old Brit.
ish Charter of Connecticut was sccreted
and preserved. At this time the hollow
in the trunk of the old oak was so large
that fire company of twenty-seven full
grown men stood up in it together.
Mr. Stuart.had a stout door made to
shut up the enterance, and he also placed
tin caps upon the stumps of broken
limbs, and for the past three or four
years fresh sprouts have grown upon
most of its limbs, though other lin BIS
were deeayiag, At the time of its fall
young aaa fresh acorns were growing on
every part of it. Thousands of people
are visiting the tree and bringing away
such sprigs aud parts Of limbs as MIR.
Stuart permits
Waterman Butler says he stood at
the head Of the street at the time of the
crash The wind had been blowing fresh
ly from the Northwest for an hour or
more lie FIRST heard loud crack, and
saw The -azx3 OAK swaying in the breeze !:
cracking noise followed, then the crash
all within the space of half minute
and the famous monarch of the forest,
whose history is SO intimately entwiued
in that of Connecticut, was prostrate up
on the earth ! Oae thousand years ago,
when it was in the prime of life--when
its years were half numbered, its far
reaching branches had sported in fiercer
storms, and more swift-winged wind
But now, since full two thousand years
have smiled and waned upon its youth,
it's prime and its decline, it had become
grey and decrepit. but was still tenaci-
Gus of life; it still clung to the lovely
spot which gave it birth, by its far reach
ing roots, running long way up into
the beautiful hill side, aud downward to
the dark cut below. Firmly, aye, proud
ly, the Oak stood, seemingly conscious
that nature had marked out for its own
accommodation, one of tie most enchaut-
ing retreats in the state, and that desti-
ny had accorded to it a noble and ever
lasting histoli, page in the story of Con-
necticut--one of the patriotic and origi-
nal thirteen states of the Union.
Proudly it had stood, and when tot
tering with age, and reduced to mere
shell of a few inches, by the steady in
roads of time itself, still clung with fond
ness to the loved spot on which it had
witnessed the decay and downfall of
many of its associates-the path and the
bloody wars of the red man, and the red
mems decay-the birth and death of
generations of the white man, whose axe
had cut away its towering comrades of
the olden time. But whilst preserving
a fair exterior, it was inwardly wasting
away, and was obliged to yield and fall
in storm far less severe than many
thousands that had proceeded it.
Before Gov. Wyllys came to Ameri-
pare place for his residence AS he
was cutting. away the trees upon the hill
side of the beautiful Wyllys place.
deputation of Indians came to him, and
requested that he would spare this old
hollow tree. They declared that it had
been the "guide of their ancestors for
centuries" It was spared, to fall this
day, having finally yielded to the pro-
cess of natural decay.
The tree measured 33 feet in circum-
ference at the bottom; and it has bro
ken off SO as to leave 8 feet of the stump
on one side and 6 feet on the other-the
stump measuring 81 feet in circumfer-
enoe at its top. -
The charter of King Charles the Sd,
for the colony of Connecticut, arrived
in Hartford in 1862, probably in the
month Of September, though the precise
time is not known. On the 9th of Oc-
tober it was publicly read to the assem-
bled friemen of Connecticut, and was de-
elared 10 /" belong to them and their sue
cessors," and the people evinced their
gratitude by appointing committee to
take cnarge of it, under the solemnities
of an .atb, and to preserve this palladi-
um ofthe rights of the people. 1t con-
'ained many liberal provisions, as may