Court Keeps Drivers Going ‘Round The Old Oak Tree

A 300-year-old oak tree threatened by a road-widening project will remain standing in the middle of a busy intersection here after the Georgia Supreme Court granted it a temporary reprieve Thursday.

The high court ordered a delay in cutting down the tree to give justices time to rule on an appeal by tree supporters, whose efforts to save the tree were rejected by a lower court judge.

“I’m pleasantly surprised,” said attorney W.T. Gamble III, who is representing tree supporters.

“We believe the folks who live in southwest Georgia who have red clay running through their blood are the people who ought to decide,” he said. “And they’ve overwhelmingly said, ‘We want the tree.”’

Known as the “Friendship Oak,” the 50-foot high tree is recognized as a state landmark.