The Bedford Oak

At the corner of The Hook Road and the old Bedford Road (now Cantitoe Street) stands a majestic and venerable white oak tree, Quercus Alba. It is estimated to be over 500 years old, its girth is 19 feet 9 inches, and the spread of its branches is 120 feet from tip to tip. From, the days when Bedford was Indian Territory, through the Revolutionary War, to the present, this noble tree has seen much history. It has long been a living monument, a cherished symbol to the community. And since 1947, when Harold Whitman deeded the ground on which the tree stands to the Town of Bedford, in memory of his wife, Georgia Squires Whitman, the tree has truly been The Bedford Oak.

In 1977, thirty acres of land bordering the great tree were sold to a developer. An aroused citizenry quickly raised the funds to buy two acres to protect the tree and give it breathing space. The land, along with the money remaining in the fund, was conveyed to The Historical Society. Now the Bedford Oak has its own trust fund. The Historical Society is pledged to take care of it and the surrounding land -- a sacred trust indeed.

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