Maryland State Archives, Guide to Special Collections

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Collection Name		Collection #
Author		Date
Description

Microfilm Number

Series Number

Wye Oak Collection

MSA SC 5480
Dates	1495-2007
Medium	wood, photographs
Restrictions	Restricted: Wye Oak fragments do not circulate without prior permission from the Director of Special Collections. Photographs are not restricted.
Storage	Contact the Department of Special Collections for location.
Description
Pieces of the Wye Oak. The tree, a white oak, was located at Wye Mills in Talbot County on the Eastern Shore. Estimated to be nearly 500 years old, the Wye Oak was the largest white oak tree on record, both in Maryland and the nation until it was felled during a powerful thunderstorm on June 6, 2002. It measured 31 feet, 10 inches, in circumference, stood 96 feet tall, and had an average crown spread of 119 feet. Among its impressive characteristics were massive buttresses or "knees" at the base which helped support this huge tree. Before it was toppled, the Wye Oak was one of only two trees surviving as a National Champion since inception of the National Big Tree Register in 1945. Seedlings from its acorns have been grown by the State Forest Service and other programs have been tried to preserve the Tree's genetic makeup. In April 2002, an infant white oak, cloned from the original Wye Oak.

Collection Inventory

Series 1: Pieces of the Wye Oak
Series 2: Photographs
Series 3: Exhibit Materials

Microfilm Inventory

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