Common Name: Oak, Shumard
Latin Name: Quercus shumardii
Address: In front of Jefferson-Madison Regional Library, Market St at 3rd St
GPS Coordinates: 38.031419,-78.479933
You can’t miss this handsome Landmark tree, on one of the busiest corners of downtown. During summers, it occasionally shades musical performances under the library’s classical portico. Banners announcing community events are often tied to its branches and strung across Market Street.
Visitors remark about the numerous ground bees seen under the oak in spring. They are important early pollinators and should be left alone.
Formerly a federal courthouse and post office, this building became the library’s central branch in 1981. When it was photographed in 1937, there were no trees on the site. The unusual variety of Oak must have been planted soon thereafter.
A member of the Red Oak group, the Shumard Oak is native to the Atlantic coastal plain and Mississippi River Valley. It is adaptable to varied landscapes, and with its upward branching pattern, it makes an ideal street tree.