The Story of the Treaty Oak Tree

To celebrate Arbor Day, we’re going to share a story about one of the most famous trees in Texas, the Treaty Oak in Austin. This is a 500 year old tree in the center of the city. Folklore holds this as the spot that Stephen F. Austin, leader of the colony that eventually became Texas, signed the first treaty with the Native Americans that lived there. The American Forestry Association put the Treaty Oak into its Hall of Fame as the most perfect specimen of a North American tree. Suffice to say, this is a pretty important tree both locally and nationally.

In 1989, Paul Cullen poisoned the Treaty Oak, using enough of the herbicide Velpar to kill 100 trees. He thought the tree represented his love for his ex-girlfriend, and he would no longer love his ex-girlfriend if the tree were no longer alive. Arborists thought that the tree was doomed. Former Presidential Candidate Ross Perot wrote a blank check to fund efforts to save the tree. His money was put to good use by the arborists. They did everything they could to save the tree. DuPont, the manufacturer of Velpar, said that they never needed to reverse the effects and didn’t know how, but offered their assistance and a reward for finding the poisoner. A piece of the tree was cut off and planted next to it, in hopes that if the Treaty Oak died, there would still be something to remember it by. Eventually, with a lot of sugar to counteract the Velpar and a lot of pruning, the tree survived. Both the main tree and the baby tree are thriving today. Paul Cullen was sentenced to nine years in jail and passed away in 2001.

The Treaty Oak isn’t a cedar tree, but it’s still a great tree worth celebrating this Arbor Day. It’s a symbol of our Texan heritage and strength. Just like we wrote about Lewisville Lake, it shows how people and nature can combine to create something great. But mostly, we just wanted to share an interesting story about a tree.

More info:
Wikipedia
Criminal podcast episode 36: Perfect Specimen

Thanks to Matthew Rutledge on Flickr for the photo.

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