The Salem Oak
112 West Broadway, Salem, NJ
Hours – 24 hours a day, view from the street
8 stories tall. A remarkable 22 feet around at chest height. Perhaps as much as 600 years old. Legend says that John Fenwick (founder of Salem) signed a treaty with the local Lenape chief under its branches. Many of the earliest notable men and woman of Salem are buried beneath its branches in the Friends Cemetery. It’s the Salem Oak.
The kids had never seen this majestic white oak tree, so we stopped by so that they could check it out.
Kite Flyer looks so excited.
While the tree has some wires up to support its massive bulk (one branch that fell down a few years back weighed three tons), the tree is doing pretty darn well for a tree that’s already two to three times as old as normal white oaks can live.
The diner across the street, conveniently named the Salem Oak Diner, is supposed to be excellent. Former President Jimmy Carter once stopped by. He had to wait in line with everyone else. And he did.
Just thought you’d like to know … this tree fell earlier this evening 🙁 So said to see it lying on the ground. No storm, no wind, and it wasn’t uprooted. It just gave away at the base. I saw a FB post not long after it fell. I only live a couple mins away so I went to see it. So many people were there to see this.
Oh no!