Happy 2012!

“Look at every path closely and deliberately, then ask ourselves this crucial question: Does this path have a heart? If it does, then the path is good. If it doesn’t, it is of no use.”

— Carlos Castaneda

Etienne de Bore Oak, New Orleans, LA, 2009

Dear friends,

Looking ahead across the expanse of 2012, I’ve been reflecting on my almost three decade-long photo journey with live oak trees. It began years ago following the advice of friend and photographer Morley Baer when he suggested to “Pick something you love, then photograph it, over and over and over. In time, he said, if I’m lucky, the depth of my feelings will begin to show through in my images.

For almost three decades this advice has guided my work. It’s been a fascinating journey, full of adventure, wonder, and meetings with remarkable people and trees, and there are still miles yet to go and many oaks yet to meet.

Pick something you love…
Why is choosing artistic subject matter or any course of action that you love important to the outcome? There are scores of pages written on the subject already. “Follow your bliss…do what you love and the money will follow…” the message is much the same. When love is your motivation, creative energy flows more readily. Love opens doors, and somehow, though I’m not absolutely sure, love seems to be our inner compass that points us in the direction of our life’s purpose.  When you follow the things that you love, your creations and actions cannot help but be more personal, more true to who you are. In time, your work will be entirely your own, because the energy used to shape it contains the colors and shades of your own life and feelings.

 

Another thing, and this is no small thing: when we choose something we love and follow it, we begin a relationship that grows richer and deepens with time. This one thing can, and will, take our creative journey into places unimaginable. Pick something you love…the path with heart…and follow it. You’ll not be sorry you did.

New creative directions
Many of you are familiar with my detailed, black-and-white prints of Southern and Western oaks. Though in recent years, I’ve been developing new colored processes using oil paints and pastels merged with scans of aged papers to stretch the emotional range of expression. The image above is an example.

You can view more new work in the “New Work Portfolio” on my website. Many of these new images also have historic details posted about the specific tree or alley for those of you who find this information entertaining (just roll over the word “details” under the photo). I’ll be adding additional images and information to this New Work portfolio regularly throughout the year.

Preserving historic trees in your area – a guide
In East Baton Rouge Parish, Louisiana, an ordinance passed in 1996 created the “Tree Registry of Ancient, Historic and Unique Trees.” This forward-thinking ordinance is part of the Parish’s master plan for landscape development, and provides the kind of protection that could serve as an example of conservation across the country. The ordinance ensures protection not just to live oaks, but to all trees “which, by virtue of their size, age, historic significance, or other uniqueness, can be recognized as being the most noteworthy representatives of their kind in East Baton Rouge Parish.”

For more information about how to apply for a city ordinance in your city, parish or county to protect any species of tree, the Louisiana State University School of Landscape Architecture has created a model “Guide to Writing a City Tree Ordinance” for Louisiana, available online at http://greenlaws.lsu.edu/sitemanager.htm  It’s likely to prove helpful for other states as well.

New book in the works
My other photographic plans for 2012 include work on a retrospective book containing my personal favorite images made during the past 25 years. I’ll be working with friend and book designer Cloyce Wall on this exciting project. Look for updates on this and other projects in the future.

Thanks again, and have a blessed and green 2012!  – WG

Afton Villa Oak, Afton Villa Gardens

This is another lesser-known old oak and one of my personal favorites. It grows on the grounds of Afton Villa Gardens, in St. Francisville, Louisiana. It is in the 23’ to 24’ circumference range, and was reportedly planted between 1820 and 1839 by Bartholomew Barrow, the first member of the Barrow family to purchase and settle this land.

The oak is registered with the Live Oak Society and has a distinctive shape, size and bushy texture formed by the thick resurrection fern growing profusely on its limbs. It’s located in front of the Afton Villa ruins near the end of the ½ mile long alley of oaks leading from Louisiana state Highway 61 to the gardens.

Bacas Oak, near Edgard, LA

This little known, but magnificent oak is located on Songy Court, on the west bank of the Mississippi River, behind the historic Bacas House which was built around 1840–1850. The property has been in the Bacas family since 1895 when Alcide Bacas purchased it from Willis Becnel. It’s likely that the oak was already mature when the Bacas house was built. The property is today part of the small community of Wallace, just downriver from Edgard, Louisiana.

The oak is approximately 25’ in circumference with a ropy twisting trunk and a huge crown that is nearly 200 feet wide. It has the classic upside-down bowl shape with long drooping limbs that reach to the ground, distinct to a live oak that grows away from competing trees.

This area along the west bank of the Mississippi River is part of the the first German settlements along the Mississppi River, called the German Coast.  Wikipedia has a good description of the history of this area.

The Bacas Oak lost a major limb in late 2009, or early 2010. This image was made during the summer of 2010. I had searched for this tree for several years. Having only rough directions to go by, I was unable to locate it because it’s drooping limbs completely hid it’s trunk. From River Road it appeared to be a grove of oaks instead of a single tree. It was only after the tree lost a major limb, revealing almost a third of its interior limbs, was I able to locate and photograph it. This view is from the south side of the tree, the opposite side from where the limb was lost.

Andrew Oak, Oak Alley Plantation

Andrew oak, afternoon light, Oak Alley Plantation

The Andrew oak is one of the most distinctively shaped trees in the 350-plus year-old alley of oaks at Oak Alley Plantation. It is the #6 tree in the east row counting from the plantation home’s front porch. Its trunk has several large burls that create odd profiles when viewed from different angles. Its girth is approximately 28’ 5”.

The oak is named after Andrew Stewart, who with his wife Josephine were the last individuals to own the plantation and who undertook its adaptive restoration in 1925. Before Jospehine’s death, 26 years after Andrew, Mrs. Stewart established the Oak Alley Foundation to preserve and protect the plantation home and its alley of historic oaks. The Foundation still manages the care of the alley, the plantation home and the property on which they’re located. Zeb Mayhew, grandnephew of the Stewarts, is administrative director of Oak Alley.

Andrew oak, study #11

The plantation, located 3-4 miles upriver from Vacherie, Louisiana, was originally named Bon Sejour by Jackqu Telesphore Roman’s wife. Roman was the French planter who built the home on land that was purchased from his brother-in-law and neighbor, Valcour Aime, who at the time was one of the wealthiest men in the South.

The trees at Oak Alley are probably the most photographed group of oaks in the world.

Josephine Oak, Oak Alley Plantation

The Josephine oak, named after Mrs. Josephine Stewart, is the largest in the alley of 28 oaks at Oak Alley Plantation in Vacherie, LA.  This immense tree is approximately 31’ in circumference, more than 70’ tall, and with a crown spread of approximately 150’.

It is in the west row of 14 trees in the historic alley. Oddly, most people assume the oaks at Oak Alley were planted at the same time that the plantation home was built between 1836–1839. However, it’s estimated that the trees pre-date the plantation home by as much as 100 years, making this the oldest alley of oaks in Louisiana and the U.S., possibly older than 350 years of age.

All of the trees in the alley at Oak Alley are registered members of the Live Oak Society.

McDonogh Oak, City Park, New Orleans

 

McDonogh Oak, City Park, New Orleans

The McDonogh Oak is the largest and oldest oak in New Orleans’ City Park. Along with the Anseman Oak and Suicide Oak, it is part of an ancient oak forest that was hundreds of years old in 1718 when brothers Iberville and Bienville first scouted this area for a portage of bayous connecting the Gulf of Mexico, Lake Pontchartrain and the Mississippi River. This natural system of waterways was a deciding factor for the brothers choice of this location to create the settlement that became New Orleans.

City Park was once part of the Jean Louis Allard Plantation, originally established in the 1770′s, and later purchased in 1845 by shipping magnate and philanthropist John McDonogh. Upon his death in 1850, McDonogh donated the land to the City of New Orleans and in 1854 a lage section was designated as a city park. According to park records, in 1958, the National Park and Recreation Convention met in New Orleans and hosted a breakfast for 1,028 convention attendees under the massive canopy of the McDonogh Oak’s limbs.

In 1981, the ancient oak lost a major branch causing severe damage. Extensive tree surgery was done and posts were added to help support the remaining main limbs.  The McDonogh Oak’s circumference is more than 25 ft., and its crown spread is more than 150 ft.

Etienne de Boré Oak (Tree of Life)

Audubon Park – New Orleans, Louisiana

Etienne de Boré oak - Audubon Park, New Orleans

In New Orleans, and especially the neighborhoods surrounding Audubon Park, this oak has been dubbed “The Tree of Life.” Its registered name with the Live Oak Society is the Etienne de Boré oak. The land on which Audubon Park is located was at one time part of de Boré’s extensive sugarcane plantation.

Registration & Measurements

At just under 35 feet in circumference today, this oak was number 13 on Dr. Edwin Lewis Stephens’list of 43 original inductee trees into the Live Oak Societyand is also in the top 100 oldest surviving oaks on the Society’s member list.  Its girth when it was registered (as #21) was 23 feet, 1 inch. The oak is located in Audubon Park on the down-river side of the Audubon Zoo, right over the fence from the giraffe habitat. It’s an enormous tree with a broad gnarly base of roots and a crown of limbs more than 160 feet wide.

The Live Oak Society estimates that any oak with a girth of 17 feet in circumference (measured at 4 feet off the ground) is probably 100 years of age or older. This is a rough system of estimation developed by the Society’s founder, Dr. Stephens, which is fairly accurate, though soil, rain and other habitat conditions can affect a tree’s long-term growth.  A live oak with a girth of more than 30 feet could possibly be 500 years of age or more.  The age of many of the Society’s oldest and largest trees are only rough guesses, and there’s been much heated discussion among amateur arborists and other tree-folk over this issue.

Etienne de Boré oak and friends - Audubon Park - photo by William Guion

History

Jean Etienne de Boréis significant in history as the first French planter in Louisiana to successfully granulate sugarcane into sugar, making sugarcane the main crop over indigo and tobacco in antebellum Louisiana. He originally cultivated indigo (a highly valued crop and popular dye); but after several years of drought and insect damage, de Boré decide to gamble the last of his and his wife’s personal funds on growing sugarcane. In 1795, with the help of two Spaniard exiles from bloody rebellions in Santo Domingo, he succeeded in producing the first granulated sugar in the Louisiana colony. De Boré was also the first mayor of New Orleans, appointed to the position by Governor William C.C. Claiborne in 1803, the same year Louisiana was transferred from Spain to France.  He resigned in 1804, after New Orleans became an American colony through the Louisiana Purchase.

Etienne de Boré bears witnesses to one of many weddings performed below.

Audubon Park is home to several other member trees of the Live Oak Society. The George and Martha Washington oaks were among the original 43 inductee oaks in the Society along with the de Boré oak. George has passed on but Martha is still alive, in the rhino habitat of the Zoo. There are three other unnamed oaks spread across the Park’s grounds that are elder Society members.

St. John Cathedral Oak (Cathedral Oak)

Lafayette, Louisiana

St. John Cathedral Oak - Lafayette, LA - William Guion (2007)

The St. John Cathedral Oak is located in Lafayette, Louisiana on the grounds of the Cathedral of St. John the Evangelist.  It is currently the second Vice President and a founding member of the Live Oak Society, an organization whose members are all live oaks, with the exception of one human (currently Ms. Coleen Perilloux Landry), who serves as “Chairman” and maintains the roster of past, present, and future tree members, as they are registered.

Dr. Edwin Lewis Stephens, first President of Southwestern Louisiana Institute (now the University of Louisiana at Lafayette) proposed in a 1934 article titled, “I Saw in Louisiana a Live Oak Growing” [1] that a society of the largest and oldest live oaks (Quercus virginiana) in Louisiana be formed to identify and protect them for future generations to enjoy.  It was Dr. Stephens’ vision that the association’s members would be trees whose size and age made them a unique cultural and natural resource worth recognition and preservation.

St. John Cathedral Oak – 2nd Vice President, Live Oak Society – W. Guion 2007

Registration & Measurements:  Dr. Stephens’ article listed 43 live oaks he identified for charter membership, in order of their size (girth or circumference measured at 4 feet from the ground), beginning with the largest, the Locke Breaux Oak (now deceased), at 35 feet in girth.  The large oak on the grounds of the Cathedral of St. John the Evangelist was well-known to Dr. Stephens, and he listed it as the 33rd largest tree of his acquaintance:

“Thirty-three, Cathedral oak, Lafayette, 19 feet (measured for State Superintendent Francis G. Blair, of Illinois, who published some account of it in his annual Arbor and Bird Days book for 1929).”[1]

The Cathedral Oak is commonly known today as the St. John Cathedral Oak.  It is #65 in the Live Oak Society records, with a girth of 19 feet at registration.  A second measurement of 26 feet, 7 inches was entered in the records in 2002 and was used to determine the oak’s place among the Live Oak Society’s list of “Top 100″ trees from 2003.  Additional measurements have been recorded in recent years, as the interest in documenting and measuring large trees, and live oaks in particular, has increased.  The cathedral’s website reports a measurement made on May 30, 2008, by Jim Foret, a local arborist and teacher at the University of Louisiana, Lafayette:

“The near five-century-old tree measures 9 feet in diameter, with a circumference of 28 feet 8 inches; it stands approximately 126 high with a spread of 210 feet across.”

St. John Cathedral Oak - November 2007 - Photo by William Guion

By any account, it is a massive and sprawling tree, with an unusual twisting and ropy trunk. It is also difficult to photograph and retain a sense of its size and shape because of the long, low branches that jut sharply from the trunk at several angles.

Age & History:  The measurements of older live oaks, as well as other trees species, are of interest to arborists, scientists and conservationists, as they study rates and conditions of growth. Most methods of age estimation rely on various formulas that translate the tree’s girth or diameter into years to avoid using more invasive techniques such as coring that may cause the trees harm.

The Live Oak Society’s initial criteria for membership was based on an oak having a girth of at least 17 feet, which Dr. Stephen’s estimated would place the tree’s age at approximately 100+ years.  Dr. Stephens recognized however, that varying habitats produced different growth rates and tree sizes:

“Therefore we may infer that close-grown live oaks may be several hundred years old, and still much smaller in girth than these we have listed.  So, there should be a by-law for this Live Oak Association, admitting members of smaller girth than 17 feet, when sufficient evidence appears for the age of not less than a hundred years.”[1]

The Live Oak Society in more recent years has added a “junior league,” allowing for the registration of live oaks of lesser girth and age. This has resulted in a significant increase in the Society’s membership, which now includes more than 6200 live oaks in 14 states.  The title of “centarian” is still reserved to those trees known to be at least 100 years old.  It is interesting to note that in 1934, at 19 feet, the St. John Cathedral Oak would have been estimated to be approximately 150 years old, using Dr. Stephens’ method of age estimation.

The existence of this ancient oak in 1821 and its prominent size is believed to have been a primary reason for the selection of the site on which the first Cathedral of St. John the Evangelist was built:

“Many speculate that our first pastor (Michel Bernard Barriere) selected the specific plot of land for the church parish due to the grand oak tree, which would have been 275 years old at that time (1821).”[2]

The information above illustrates how difficult it can be to arrive at accurate age estimates for many older oaks. If the Cathedral oak was 275 years old in 1821, then it would have been almost 400 years in 1934 instead of the 150-year estimate that Dr. Stephens’ girth measurement of 19 feet might suggest. The average oak’s growth rate is estimated to be most rapid during the first 75 to 100 years, slower during the next 75 to 100, and then even slower after that point. The girth growth logically would slow as the tree matures and its system extends to support multiple branches (some that be nearly as large as the trunk itself) and wide canopy spreads. The difference in girth noted between 1934 and 2002 in the Cathedral oak could also be a result of the variations in girth that can occur when one measures 6 inches higher or lower up or down the tree’s trunk. Many older oaks have massive limbs or root balls within this 4 to 4.5 foot range that add significantly to its girth. The Live Oak Society President, the Seven Sisters Oak is estimated to be around 1200 years of age. The Angel Oak near Charleston, South Carolina is estimated to be nearly 1500 years old.

St. John Cathderal Oak at sundown, view of enclosure - W. Guion (2007)

Future Generations: Dr. Stephens made provision for future generations of live oaks to be grown from the hardy stock of the Live Oak Society’s registered tree. The Society’s original by-laws stated that “annual dues” of 25 acorns be collected from each oak member. These were to be planted on the Southwestern Institute farm (near Lafayette).  Although the practice has since been discontinued, many of the acorns planted as a result of his efforts are now mature oaks today, many growing on the grounds of the University of Louisiana at Lafayette.

The St. John Cathedral Oak, and two other venerable members of the Live Oak Society have also donated their acorns to national reforestation efforts, as noted by Ethelyn Orso, in her informative book, Louisiana Live Oak Lore:

“Acorns from famous and historic Louisiana live oaks were collected in 1990 to be used in a reforestation program sponsored by the American Forestry Association.  Trees chosen for the project included the Seven Sisters Oak, the Oak Alley Plantation trees, and the St. John Cathedral Oak.  The acorns were planted and the resulting seedlings were transported to other states to create America’s Historic Forests.  Each new forest will be at least 1,000 acres and will include more than 500,000 trees. Such a project could also be undertaken in parts of Louisiana where great stands of live oaks once stood.”[3]

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[1] Dr. Edwin Lewis Stephens, President, Southwestern Louisiana Institute, “I Saw in Louisiana a Live Oak Growing”, Louisiana Conservation Review Vol. IV, No. 2 (April 1934), 16-23.

[2] http://www.saintjohncathedral.org/Our_Church.html

[3] Ethelyn G. Orso,  Louisiana Live Oak Lore (Lafayette, Louisiana: The Center for Louisiana Studies, University of Southwestern Louisiana, 1992), 20.

Academy of the Sacred Heart (Sacré-Coeur) oak alley

Grand Coteau, Louisiana

Sacre'-Coeur oak alley, Grand Coteau - November 2007 - photo by C.L. Nelson

One of the first stops at the beginning of the “100 Oaks Project“, when I set out to relocate and document the founding member trees and the 100 largest oaks registered with the Live Oak Society, was a return to a favorite photographic location:  a serenely beautiful grove and alley of live oaks whose moss-draped canopies arch above the path between the Academy of the Sacred Heart and the former St. Charles College, a Jesuit school for young men (now St. Ignatius School).

History:  The alley of live oaks was reportedly planted around 1840 by Father Nicholas Point, the founder and first Jesuit rector of St. Charles College, to shade his daily route to the chapel at the Academy to celebrate mass:

The Jesuit priests served as chaplains for the cloistered nuns and the Academy students, and the trees were planted to protect them from the intense summer sun as they rode back and forth between the two schools. Today, the college is used as a Jesuit seminary and spirituality center [1].

Father Point’s dedicated service to the Jesuit order continued well beyond his time at St. Charles College.  His subsequent work with the Flathead and Coeur d’Alene Indians, as well as his artistic abilities and contributions, are recognized and documented in the North Dakota Council on the Arts Online Artist Archive in an article contributed by Ken Rogers[2]:

A gifted amateur artist, Point’s pen and ink and pencil drawings are strong; his paintings are reminiscent of George Catlin’s work, spiced with the addition of Christian fervor.

In the spring of 1847, after spending six years with the Flathead and Coeur d’Alene Indians, Point traveled by barge on the Missouri River from near its confluence with the Marias River to Fort Union in present-day North Dakota, and down river aboard the steamer Martha to St. Louis.

Collections of his drawings include scenes at Fort Union, Fort Berthold and the Missouri River near what’s now Bismarck-Mandan.

Registration & Measurements

Sacre'-Coeur live oaks - November 2007 - photo by William Guion

Three of the trees in the grove and alley across the road from the Academy of the Sacred Heart were substantial in size (clearly over 16 feet in circumference) and warranted a measurement:

The circumference of the two largest live oaks measured was:

Oak # 1:  23 feet, 5 inches

Oak #2:  18 feet, 6 inches

A third live oak, which I made several images of, was also more than 18 feet in circumference. Located near the side of the road, the well-formed tree provided cool shade and a pastoral backdrop for the wedding party being photographed beneath its branches.  While waiting for their photo session to conclude, I explored other compositions, re-photographing the oak alley and individual trees within the grove, which I have photographed on several visits over a period of 25 years for my personal portfolio and a variety of publications.

Some of the resident trees at Sacred Heart are registered with the Live Oak Society, whose records are maintained by the only non-tree member, its current chairman and “registrar,” Coleen Perilloux Landry.  In the society’s records dating from 1934 – 2009, the largest trees recorded in Grand Coteau are:

#52 – “Coteau” – circumference  20 feet, 3 inches when registered; sponsor Mother Mary J. Lynch

#3381 – “O.O.O.” –circumference 16 feet, 4 inches when registered; sponsor Ruth Oliver Alba

#4164 – “Duchesne Oak” – circumference 21 feet, 3 inches when registered; sponsor Academy of the Sacred Heart

#6114 – “Ivy” – circumference 18 feet, 6 inches when registered; sponsors John & Nicole McDaniel

Cyndi’s Travel and Nature Notes

St. Charles Borromeo Church - Grand Coteau, LA photo by C.L. Nelson

While Bill photographed in the grove, I was drawn to the steeple of the historic  St. Charles Borromeo Church, which towers above the trees, appearing to pierce the sky.  The church architecture and art [3] reflect the serene beauty of the natural setting, planted by human hands but sculpted by nature over time.  The alley and grove were quiet, shady and cool in the fading light of a late afternoon in November; and the low angle of the sun’s rays and depth of color in the green grass were ideal conditions for Bill’s large format black-and-white compositions.  An occasional comment from a busy squirrel, the rustle of leaves in a light breeze, and conversations between the birds were the only exceptions to the quietude until a lively, curious Boston Terrier ran up to Bill, visited for a bit and then darted off. The small black-and-white dog found Bill again at the next photo stop (greeting him like an old friend); and we met his owners, who paused as they jogged by to introduce us to Woodrow.  Woodrow’s visit has a permanent place in the “tree travel diary,” as we now refer to the large oak Bill was photographing at the time  as “Woodrow’s oak.“

Woodrow's oak - Academy of the Sacred Heart - photo by William Guion

The front of the Academy was beautifully lit at that time of day, so we took a few photos of the landscaped gardens and statue, before heading to Lafayette to visit the St. John Cathedral Oak, 2nd Vice President of the Live Oak Society (and one of the “Top 100 Oaks” on the Society’s 2003 list).

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[1] http://www.cajuntravel.com/towns/grand_coteau.cfm

[2] http://www.nd.gov/arts/online_artist_archive/images-pdfs/P/Point_NicolasFr.htm

Originally published under the title “Sacred Heart in the Big Sky” in Lewis and Clark: Art of the Upper Missouri. (Ken Rogers, Tim Fought, editors. Jim Bridges, publisher. Bismarck: The Bismarck Tribune, 2000.)

[3] http://www.st-charles-borromeo.org/ (history and photos of the church’s interior and artwork)

Seven Sisters Oak (Doby’s Seven Sisters)

Lewisburg, Louisiana

Seven Sisters Oak, President, Live Oak Society. Hand-painted photo - W. Guion

The Seven Sisters Oak resides in Lewisburg, LA (near Mandeville) at 200 Fountain Street, in the yard of Milton and Ellie Seiler (private property).  The historic and beautiful live oak is the second President of the Live Oak Society, a unique organization whose members are all trees, with the exception of the Secretary (current “Chairman”, Coleen Perilloux Landry), who registers live oaks that are submitted for new membership and maintains the now 75-year-old roster.  The Seven Sisters Oak was elected in 1968 and is the current President of the Society.

Registration & Measurements:  Originally registered as Doby’s Seven Sisters (#200), the live oak’s first sponsors were the Doby family, who then owned the property.  The name was changed and the tree re-registered as the Seven Sisters Oak (#697).  When the live oak was first registered (as Doby’s Seven Sisters), the girth was recorded as 36 feet, 1 inch.  It is an enormous tree, measuring approximately 55 feet high, with a limb spread of more than 130 feet.   Its circumference was 37 feet, 6 inches, when measured in 1986; and on the “Society’s Top 100″ list in 2003, the girth of the Seven Sisters Oak was recorded as 38 feet.  The magnificent tree is a worthy successor to the Locke Breaux Oak, the first President of the Live Oak Society, deceased 1966-68 due to air and groundwater pollution.

Seven Sisters Oak - November 2007 (photo by Cynthia Nelson)

Titles:  For years, the eligibility of the Seven Sisters Oak as a Live Oak Society member and principal officer was disputed because it was believed to be several separate trees growing together.  In 1976, after inspection by federal foresters, the tree was proved to have a single root system; and its status as President was accepted without further contest, by virtue of its girth (the greatest measurement of all live oaks then registered with the Society). The confirmation of the single trunk system also granted the Seven Sisters Oak the undisputed title of National Champion Live Oak in the American Forestry Association’s National Register of Big Trees.

History:  The origin of the name, Seven Sisters, is lost in the obscurity of time and memory.  One current story is that the name describes seven main trunks that comprise the single tree.  Yet, the oak actually has more than seven trunks that split from its immense base in two clusters.  Another speculation is that the name is a translation of an older Choctaw Indian name that’s now forgotten.  The Choctaws were residents of this area for many years before white men arrived and a tree of this size would possibly have been well known and named by them.

Many Choctaws of the Lewisburg/Mandeville area were converted to Christianity by Father Adrein-Emmanuel Rouquette who preached the Christian gospel to the Indians under the limbs of live oaks, quite probably under this tree.  Father Rouquette was a French Creole from New Orleans, educated in Kentucky and Paris, France.  He so loved the woods near his childhood home along Bayou St. John in New Orleans that after completing his formal education, he returned not to New Orleans, but to the north shore of Lake Pontchartrain and the company of the trees.  There, preaching under the oaks, he felt more plainly God’s touch on the land and saw more clearly the light of His gospel reflected in the eyes and hearts of his congregation.

Seven Sisters Oak, Lewisburg / Mandeville, LA

Sept. 2010 update:  Ms. Coleen Perilloux Landry says the Live Oak Society records reflect that “The Seven Sisters Oak was given its name because the owner at the time was one of seven sisters. It was  Mrs. Doby who gave the oak its name.  When it was named President of the Live Oak Society, the governor of Louisiana was present. The Marine Band played and a ballet troupe danced around its roots. Wooden doubloons with the tree’s name were given to everyone present.”