On August 12, 1890 Colonel William H. Jackson deeded an oak tree to itself plus 8 feet around its trunk. The 400 year old oak tree stood until a storm in 1942 toppled it, after which it was replaced the Junior Ladies Garden Club of Athens with a second white oak in 1946 grown from acorns gathered at the site. Today you can visit the only self possessing tree in Georgia in the historic neighborhood bordering the University of Georgia, and the best way to get there is by electric bike!
How you get there: The closest free parking spot is at the local REI and its associated strip mall located about here: 33.947001, -83.409733. Lots of free parking to drop your bike and explore the UGA campus, this tree, and downtown Athens from.
Time for the ride: The ride from REI to the tree is 4.17 miles in a lollipop, with minimal hills. It passes a really awesome bike shop called Georgia Cycle Sport if you need any bike supplies while riding (and REI has a bike shop inside it as well).
Best season to do this ride: Summer – the tree is cooler looking and UGA is out of session.
Route to Ride
Perfectly straight forward – literally. You leave the REI parking area, go straight ahead on Baxter Street, and just keep rolling till you get to South Finley Street, at which point you turn left, and ride down to the junction with Dearing Street where the tree resides inside a small concrete enclosure, with its plaque commemorating the dearly departed Colonel that bequeathed the leafy minion its own place for eternity.
Just beyond the tree is a section of cobblestone road, and the surrounding neighborhood is full of cool houses, some of which clearly belong to college professors (they drip money and eccentricity). So once you’ve had your fill of the tree, check out the neighborhood before rolling back to REI. You’re also on the edge of downtown Athens and UGA if you’re up for more exploration.
In sum: Having worked in academia for a decade, going to a college campus is deeply nostalgic for me, even one I never attended (and was a serious rival of one I did). College campuses are places where dreams are made, little wells of stress, yes, and perseverance, yes, but most of all hope. Visiting one always reminds me of the world I wanted to help create, which definitely includes such impossible things as a tree that gets the right to own itself.
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