Three Mile Oak

Last updated
Three Mile Oak
Three Mile Oak Tree-New.png
1967 Replacement Oak at Three Mile Oak Tree Marker
Coordinates 38°59′10″N76°32′49″W / 38.986°N 76.547°W / 38.986; -76.547 Coordinates: 38°59′10″N76°32′49″W / 38.986°N 76.547°W / 38.986; -76.547
USA Maryland location map.svg
Red pog.svg
Location of Three Mile Oak in Maryland

Three Mile Oak got its name because it was three miles from the Maryland State House. Prominent visitors were met at the tree, on the outskirts of Annapolis, and escorted into the city.

Contents

History

The Three Mile Oak was last a tree stump from the 18th century. Presumably a white oak, about six feet in diameter, and originally located three miles from Annapolis in Parole, Anne Arundel County. The tree was struck by lightning, became hollow, was killed by fire, and finally blew down on May 22, 1909. At the site where the tree stood, a delegation is reported to have met George Washington en route to Annapolis (then the U.S. capital) to resign his commission on December 19, 1783. [1] Washington resigned as commander-in-chief on December 23. [2]

Plaque at the original tree site

While on display outdoors for many years, the Three Mile Oak was exhibited with a plaque erected in 1967 by the Four Rivers Garden Club, Rotary of Annapolis, explaining its significance. The plaque states: [3]

Under this tree passed General George Washington December 19, 1783 on his way to Annapolis to resign his Commission as Commander-In-Chief of the Continental Armies, and it is thought that General Smallwood accompanied by General Gates and distinguished citizens of Annapolis met General Washington at this spot.

General Lafayette passed here December 17, 1824 to visit the friends of revolutionary days.

Original plaque Three-Mile-Oak-Original-Marker.png
Original plaque

The plaque and tree trunk originally sat at the corner of West Street and Route 178 (Generals Highway).

Three Mile Oak stump with rebar through concrete block Three Mile Oak With Concrete Block.jpg
Three Mile Oak stump with rebar through concrete block

The concrete block that held the twisted stump of the tree is still located at that spot, just outside the parking lot of Toys R Us, diagonally from the Applebee's at the Annapolis Mall. The twisted rebars rising out of the concrete block protected the rotting trunk of the tree.

Concrete block that held stump of Three Mile Oak Original Block for Three Mile Oak.JPG
Concrete block that held stump of Three Mile Oak

Moving the plaque

The plaque was moved in 1967 down the road, approximately 500 feet, across from the Red Lobster and the former Famous Dave's Restaurants (now Uncle Julio's). Local citizens feared that it would be destroyed by traffic if left unprotected at the corner of West Street and Defense Highway. A new oak tree was planted close to the relocated plaque. [4] A new plaque was placed over the dismounted and moved original plaque. It reads:

This oak tree planted in 1967 perpetuates the memory of the original Three Mile Oak which stood nearby as explained in the marker below.
Additional plaque for Three Mile Oak Three Mile Oak 1976.png
Additional plaque for Three Mile Oak

See also

Related Research Articles

Annapolis, Maryland Capital city of Maryland, U.S.

Annapolis is the capital city of the U.S. state of Maryland as well as the county seat of, and only incorporated city in, Anne Arundel County. Situated on the Chesapeake Bay at the mouth of the Severn River, 25 miles (40 km) south of Baltimore and about 30 miles (50 km) east of Washington, D.C., Annapolis forms part of the Baltimore–Washington metropolitan area. The 2020 census recorded its population as 40,812, an increase of 6.3% since 2010.

Interstate 97 Short Interstate in Maryland

Interstate 97 (I-97) is a part of the Interstate Highway System that runs entirely within Anne Arundel County, Maryland. The Interstate runs 17.62 miles (28.36 km) from U.S. Route 50 (US 50) and US 301 in Parole near Annapolis north to I-695 and I-895 in Brooklyn Park near Baltimore. The Interstate is the primary highway between Baltimore and Annapolis. I‑97 connects Annapolis with Baltimore–Washington International Airport and links the northern Anne Arundel County communities of Crownsville, Millersville, Severna Park, Glen Burnie, and Ferndale. It is the second shortest primary Interstate Highway after I-87 in North Carolina.

Wye Oak Largest known white oak in the United States

The Wye Oak was the largest white oak tree in the United States and the State Tree of Maryland from 1941 until its demise in 2002. Wye Oak State Park preserves the site where the revered tree stood for more than 400 years in the town of Wye Mills, Talbot County, Maryland.

Maryland Route 450 Highway in Maryland

Maryland Route 450 is a state highway in the U.S. state of Maryland. The state highway runs 30.19 miles (48.59 km) from U.S. Route 1 Alternate in Bladensburg east to US 50, US 301, and MD 2 near Arnold. MD 450 forms a local complement to US 50 from near Washington through Annapolis. In Prince George's County, the highway is a four- to six-lane divided highway that serves Bladensburg, Landover Hills, New Carrollton, Lanham, and Bowie. In Anne Arundel County, MD 450 connects Crofton with Parole and Annapolis with the portion of the county east of the Severn River. The highway serves as one of the main streets of Annapolis, including the state capital's historic core, and is the primary vehicular access to the U.S. Naval Academy.

Maryland Route 648 Highway in Maryland

Maryland Route 648 is a collection of state highways in the U.S. state of Maryland. These nine highways are current or former sections of the Baltimore–Annapolis Boulevard between Annapolis and Baltimore via Glen Burnie. There are five signed mainline segments of MD 648 through Arnold, Severna Park, Pasadena, Glen Burnie, Ferndale, and Pumphrey in northern Anne Arundel County; Baltimore Highlands in southern Baltimore County; and the independent city of Baltimore. MD 648 mainly serves local traffic along its meandering route, with long-distance traffic intended to use the parallel and straighter MD 2 south of Glen Burnie and freeway-grade Interstate 97 (I-97), I-695, and MD 295 between Glen Burnie and Baltimore.

Liberty Tree

The Liberty Tree (1646–1775) was a famous elm tree that stood in Boston, Massachusetts near Boston Common, in the years before the American Revolution. In 1765, colonists in Boston staged the first act of defiance against the British government at the tree. The tree became a rallying point for the growing resistance to the rule of Britain over the American colonies, and the ground surrounding it became known as Liberty Hall. The Liberty Tree was felled in August 1775 by Loyalists led by Nathaniel Coffin Jr. or by Job Williams.

Maryland Route 32 State highway in Maryland, US

Maryland Route 32 (MD 32) is a state highway in the U.S. state of Maryland. The road runs 51.79 miles (83.35 km) from Interstate 97 (I-97) and MD 3 in Millersville west and north to Washington Road in Westminster. The east–west portion of MD 32 is the Patuxent Freeway, a four- to six-lane freeway between I-97 and MD 108 in Clarksville. The freeway passes through Odenton and Fort Meade, the site of Fort George G. Meade and the National Security Agency (NSA), in western Anne Arundel County and along the southern part of Columbia in Howard County. Via I-97, MD 32 connects those communities with U.S. Route 50 (US 50)/US 301 in Annapolis. The state highway also intersects the four primary highways connecting Baltimore and Washington: the Baltimore–Washington Parkway, US 1, I-95, and US 29. MD 32's north–south section, Sykesville Road, connects Clarksville and Westminster by way of Sykesville and Eldersburg in southern Carroll County.

Boundary marker Physical marker that identifies a land boundary

A boundary marker, border marker, boundary stone, or border stone is a robust physical marker that identifies the start of a land boundary or the change in a boundary, especially a change in direction of a boundary. There are several other types of named border markers, known as boundary trees, pillars, monuments, obelisks, and corners. Border markers can also be markers through which a border line runs in a straight line to determine that border. They can also be the markers from which a border marker has been fixed.

Maryland Route 665 Highway in Maryland

Maryland Route 665 is a state highway in the U.S. state of Maryland. Known as Aris T. Allen Boulevard, the state highway runs 2.68 miles (4.31 km) from U.S. Route 50 /US 301 in Parole east to Bywater Road and Forest Drive in Annapolis. MD 665 is a four-lane divided highway that connects US 50/US 301 and Interstate 97 (I-97) with MD 2 and the southern part of Annapolis and adjacent unincorporated communities on the Annapolis Neck in central Anne Arundel County. MD 665 was assigned to Forest Drive from MD 2 east to Bay Ridge Avenue circa 1950. The highway was relocated at its intersections with MD 387 and Bay Ridge Road in the 1960s. The Forest Drive iteration of MD 665 was removed from the state highway system in the late 1980s immediately before construction began on modern MD 665, which opened in 1992.

Maryland Route 178 State highway in Anne Arundel County, Maryland, U.S. known as Generals Highway

Maryland Route 178 is a state highway in the U.S. state of Maryland. Known as Generals Highway, the highway runs 8.06 miles (12.97 km) from MD 450 in Parole north to Veterans Highway near Millersville. MD 178 connects Annapolis with Crownsville in central Anne Arundel County. The highway is indirectly named for George Washington, who traveled the highway in 1783 on his way to Annapolis to resign his commission in the Continental Army at the conclusion of the American Revolutionary War. MD 178 was planned as early as 1910 as part of a western route between Baltimore and Annapolis. However, most of the highway south of MD 3 was not built until the early 1930s. The portion south of MD 3 served as a primary segment in the western corridor connecting Baltimore–Annapolis, until the construction of Interstate 97 (I-97) in the late 1980s.

Maryland Route 408

Maryland Route 408 is a state highway in the U.S. state of Maryland. Known as Mount Zion-Marlboro Road, the highway runs 5.62 miles (9.04 km) from MD 4 at Waysons Corner east to MD 2 and MD 422 in Lothian. MD 408 is the old alignment of MD 4 in southern Anne Arundel County. The highway was constructed in the late 1910s and became the easternmost part of MD 4 in 1927. The highway received its present designation in the mid-1960s when MD 4 was rerouted south into Calvert County. MD 408's western end was relocated when MD 4 was upgraded to a freeway through Waysons Corner in the early 1990s. MD 408 was also applied to the old sections of MD 4 between Andrews Air Force Base and Upper Marlboro in Prince George's County. The number was assigned after the MD 4 freeway was completed in the mid-1960s. The Prince George's County portions of MD 408 were transferred to county maintenance in the late 1970s except the section through Upper Marlboro, which became MD 725.

Maryland Jockey Club American sporting organization

The Maryland Jockey Club is a sporting organization dedicated to horse racing, founded in Annapolis in 1743. The Jockey Club was founded more than 30 years before the start of the Revolutionary War and is chartered as the oldest sporting organization in North America. After 267 years it remains the corporate name of the company that operates Pimlico Race Course in Baltimore, Maryland which opened in 1870, Laurel Park Racecourse in Laurel, Maryland which opened in 1911 and Bowie Race Track in Bowie, Maryland which opened as race course in 1914 and ceased operations as a track in 1985. The track now serves as a training center for Thoroughbred racehorses.

Maryland Route 436

Maryland Route 436 is a state highway in the U.S. state of Maryland. Known as Ridgely Avenue, the highway runs 1.14 miles (1.83 km) from Maryland Route 435 in Annapolis north to the end of state maintenance in Parole. MD 436 was constructed along part of MD 435 in the late 1920s. MD 436 was moved to its present course in two steps in the mid-1950s and mid-1970s.

Mingo Creek Presbyterian Church and Churchyard Historic church in Pennsylvania, United States

Mingo Creek Presbyterian Church and Churchyard is a church and historic location in Washington County, Pennsylvania. It is located at the junction of Pennsylvania Route 88 and Mingo Church Road in Union Township, Washington County, Pennsylvania, near Courtney, Pennsylvania. It is a member of the Washington Presbytery.

<i>General George Washington Resigning His Commission</i> 1822–1824 painting by John Trumbull

General George Washington Resigning His Commission is a large-scale oil painting by American artist John Trumbull of General George Washington resigning his commission as commander-in-chief of the Continental Army on December 23, 1783 to the Congress of the Confederation, then meeting in the Maryland State House at Annapolis, Maryland. The painting was commissioned in 1817, started in 1822, finished in 1824, and is now on view in the United States Capitol rotunda in Washington, D.C., along with three other large-scale paintings by Trumbull about the American Revolutionary War.

George Washingtons resignation as commander-in-chief Event on December 23, 1783

George Washington's resignation as commander-in-chief marked the end of Washington's military service in the American Revolutionary War and his return to civilian life at Mount Vernon. His voluntary action has been described as "one of the nation's great acts of statesmanship" and helped establish the precedent of civilian control of the military. After the Treaty of Paris ending the war had been signed on September 3, 1783, and after the last British troops left New York City on November 25, Washington resigned his commission as commander-in-chief of the Continental Army to the Congress of the Confederation, then meeting in the Maryland State House at Annapolis, Maryland, on December 23 of the same year. This followed his farewell to the Continental Army, November 2 at Rockingham near Princeton, New Jersey, and his farewell to his officers, December 4 at Fraunces Tavern in New York City. Washington's resignation was depicted by John Trumbull in 1824 with the life-size painting, General George Washington Resigning His Commission, now on view in the United States Capitol rotunda.

Arbutus Oak

The Arbutus Oak was a large white oak tree in Arbutus, Maryland, situated in the southwest corner of the I-695/I-95 interchange approximately four miles southwest of Baltimore. Suffering from internal decay that caused its trunk to become unstable, it split and half and fell in 2019, at which time it was thought to be 329 years old.

References

  1. "Three Mile Oak Collection MSA SC 5998". Maryland State Archives. Retrieved September 15, 2012.
  2. "General George Washington Resigning His Commission". Architect of the Capitol.
  3. "Three Mile Oak" (PDF). Maryland Historical Trust. October 13, 2014.
  4. Laura McMarlin (March 8, 2012). "BLOG: Three Mile Oak Tree in Parole". Annapolis Patch. Retrieved September 14, 2012.