'Feels Like A Death In The Family': Salem Community Mourns Loss Of 600-Year-Old Oak Tree
SALEM, N.J. (CBS) -- A piece of history toppled over onto its side. But this is not just any tree.
With a trunk 35 feet in circumference, it was New Jersey's largest oak tree. At about 600 years old, it was possibly the state's oldest.
But her size and age pale to compare to the Salem Oak's historical and spiritual significance.
"This is like the Notre Dame of Salem County," one man said.
In the 1670s, when the Quakers settled what was known as West Jersey, they signed a peace treaty under the tree with the native Lenni-Lenape Native Americans. More than three centuries later, it's still sacred to the faithful, providing shade to their meetings and burial grounds.
"We did everything we can do to keep it going because it's such a symbol for so many people," Mary Waddington, with the Salem Religious Society of Friends, said.
But despite the Quakers' efforts to preserve the tree, around 6:15 p.m. Thursday, the mighty tree came down, giving customers and staff at the Salem Oak Diner across the street, a scare.
"All of a sudden, you could feel the whole diner thump and everyone started screaming, 'My God, the oak fell down," witness Cathy Lanard said.
The tree's name and influence are everywhere in Salem. Ron and Diane Wohlrab, whose ancestor Samuel Nicholson gifted the tree and its land to his fellow Quakers in the 1600s, enjoyed a Salem Oak Burger Friday and said goodbye.
"So the tree belonged to his family 400 years ago, so it feels like a death in the family," Diane said.
It appears the weight of the branches and rotting inside the trunk simply meant it was the oak's time to finally take a rest.
"I don't feel sad, there's a time for everything, and for everything, there is a season," Waddington said.
The Salem Oak's season is completely over. There are remnants of the tree throughout South Jersey. A lot of people have collected acorns over the years and have planted their own remnants of the Salem Oak in their own yards.
