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Tuesday, 03 November, 2009

Owned By A Tree
(with comments)

Here's a tree that owns itself.

The Tree That Owns Itself is a white oak tree, widely assumed to have legal ownership of itself and of all land within eight feet (2.4 m) of its base. The tree is located at the corner of Finley and Dearing Streets in Athens, Georgia, USA.

The original tree fell in 1942; a new tree was grown from one of its acorns and planted in the same location. The current tree is sometimes referred to as the Son of The Tree That Owns Itself.

According to legend, it was the idea of Colonel William Henry Jackson.

Jackson supposedly cherished childhood memories of the tree and, desiring to protect it, deeded to the tree ownership of itself and the surrounding land. By various accounts this transaction took place between 1820 and 1832. According to the newspaper article, the deed read:

I, W. H. Jackson, of the county of Clarke, of the one part, and the oak tree . . . of the county of Clarke, of the other part: Witnesseth, That the said W. H. Jackson for and in consideration of the great affection which he bears said tree, and his great desire to see it protected has conveyed, and by these presents do convey unto the said oak tree entire possession of itself and of all land within eight feet of it on all sides.

Where does a tree get the money to pay the property taxes?


Permalink | Posted in General |
  1. By . Comment posted 03-Nov-2009 @02:24pm:

    a new tree was grown from one of its acorns and planted in the same location.

    Must be some form of primogeniture. Imagine if the property had to be split between all the acorns the original tree ever produced.
  2. By wally the duck. Comment posted 03-Nov-2009 @02:25pm:
    Where does a tree get the money to pay the property taxes?

    Maybe it has a non-Profit exemption.
  3. By . Comment posted 03-Nov-2009 @02:40pm:
    wally is on to something. The tree is a pagan tree (self?) worshipper and qualifies as a religious institution. No property taxes!
  4. By Don Coyote. Comment posted 03-Nov-2009 @03:05pm:
    Eight feet was a bit on the cheap side. He should've allowed for the area covered by the tree's dripline (extent of foliage cover) and root radius. That's probably more like a sixteen or twenty foot radius. You can't grow a tree in a bucket and then pave all around it. The tree above appears to have dirt road on two or three sides. Compaction of the soil by vehicle traffic isn't good for its roots, either.

    Stop me if I've told this story before, meg, but it reminds me of a Chinese client who asked me to plant a young white spruce (Picea glauca) in a three foot wide bed when I was building gardens for a living. I said, "This wants to be a 100 foot tree when it grows up." "Ah. We'll prune it."
  5. By . Comment posted 03-Nov-2009 @03:06pm:
    I have seen the tree. Whoo-eee, ain't I special?

    Athens, Georgia's claims to fame:

    Home of UGA, where my daughter earned her PhD
    The tree that owns itself
    Terrapin Brewery (with the banjo-playing turtle on the label)
    Birthplace of the B-52s and REM
  6. By Dick Kusleika. Comment posted 03-Nov-2009 @03:16pm:
    Individuals 65 Years of Age and Older May Claim an exemption from state tax on their home and 10 acres of land surrounding the home
    Individuals 65 years of age or over may claim an exemption from all state ad valorem taxes on their home and up to 10 acres of land surrounding the home. Ad valorem tax for state purposes will be due on the assessed value of land that exceeds the 10 acre limitation. (O.C.G.A. ยง 48-5-48.3)
  7. By MrFred. Comment posted 03-Nov-2009 @04:25pm:
    Geez, everyone knows money grows on trees.
  8. By Blue. Comment posted 03-Nov-2009 @05:02pm:
    The tree charges the state for the public benefit of viewing it. This neatly covers the property tax.
  9. By Chris Weagel. Comment posted 03-Nov-2009 @09:46pm:
    The elves are just renting.
  10. By . Comment posted 04-Nov-2009 @01:31pm:
    I am going to plant some Quaking Aspen. I would like to buy mature one's though. So I don't have to argue with the local critters. Not sure if they are indigenous but have seen them in the valley.
  11. By Oxhead. Comment posted 04-Nov-2009 @02:27pm:
    The ironic thing is, Col. William Henry Jackson probably owned slaves.
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