Ancient oak tree cut down at town cemetery

Underground electric line to go through roots

Friday, May 9, 2008

Penn Line, hired by the Southern Maryland Electric Cooperative, cut down the tree in stages last week and into Monday near St. Paul’s United Methodist Church to make way for an underground electric line.

While no one has officially counted the rings at the exposed tree trunk, it is estimated the tree was 250 to 300 years old, said Tom Russell, environmental affairs and property rights manager for SMECO.

The tree had already seen its better years and was starting to die. During the lashing from Tropical Storm Ernesto on Sept. 1, 2005, a massive branch fell from the tree, blocking traffic on Route 5 near the main entrance of St. Mary’s Hospital.

It also blocked visibility for the congregation coming out of St. Paul’s.

It was SMECO that reluctantly took the tree down. ‘‘We did everything we could not to be in that position because of the size of the tree,” Russell said.

But a new feeder line is coming online between the electrical substation at Maypole Road and up Route 5 to Leonardtown. The roots of the tree were blocking the path. ‘‘The root system of that tree is massive,” Russell said.

The church had already done an underground sonar study of the cemetery so when SMECO installs the line, ‘‘We’ll be aware of any unmarked remains,” he said.

The 1-acre property for the cemetery was deeded over to the church on May 20, 1828.

‘‘They were amazing,” said Leonardtown Administrator Laschelle Miller, of those who took down the tree.

Large chunks of the tree were cut from the top and laid down by rope between the road and the graves. The closest headstone to the trunk was that of Art Enns, who died in 1929, which was 12 feet away.

‘‘The most interesting thing was the scramble for firewood,” Russell said. Firewood dealers came in to take the remains of the tree.

The huge stump is still there, with a firm grip into the ground. It is not known yet who will be responsible for its removal. ‘‘It’s so big you can’t just grind it and leave it,” Russell said.

The trunk, almost pentagon-shaped, measures 7 feet, 4 inches across by 7 feet, 2 inches across.

But with the tree gone, the root system should die off and shouldn’t be a problem when SMECO bores through.

Verizon telephone lines still run above ground via poles, but SMECO won’t be piggybacking on them.