There's A Tree In The Road

There's A Tree In The Road FARM HOME Miscellaneous 31-2-21 Giving directions to Exira, Iowa, is easy. Just tell people to go to the tree "in" the road and turn north. That tree stands in a gravel crossroads, six miles south of Exira. Maxine Christensen, a local writer, has more than a passing interest in the tree. It was her great, great uncle who planted it in 1880. She has written about it in local history books and newspaper articles. "Humphrey Parker and his brother, John, my great, grandfather, were measuring land in the area," she recounts. "Humphrey was crippled in one foot, so he cut a cottonwood sprout at a nearby creek to use for a cane. "When they got to the corner of one of the sections, they didn't have anything to mark it with," she explains. "He sharpened the sprout and shoved it into the ground." The cottonwood sprout leafed out and has been growing there ever since. Initially, it was just inside the neighboring fence line. Some years later, the roads were moved, leaving the tree in the middle of a crossroads. Rather than cut the already large tree down, locals chose to drive around it. As far as anyone knows, no serious accident has ever taken place at that spot. When the State of Iowa wanted to remove it a while back, a local man went to bat for the old tree, which measures well over 15 ft. in circumference. Tradition won out over regulations, and a plaque was placed on the tree stating that it could not be removed until proven dangerous. Today folks still drive around it and stop to have their picture taken in front of it, reports Christensen. Contact: FARM SHOW Followup, Maxine Christensen, 311 South Carthage, Exira, Iowa 50076 (ph 712 268-5504).

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