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| Tree, Ashley Ave., Charleston, S.C. |
Edit: I won't pass by with such a careless smile next time. Comments steered me to the possibility that this was the tree that Denmark Vesey was hung from. The Post & Courier had this to say:
Today, the patch of green in the middle of Ashley Avenue at Fishburne Street is hardly noticed by drivers and pedestrians. Few are familiar with the story of the "Hanging Tree," the place where Denmark Vesey likely was executed in 1822 for his role in an interrupted slave revolt. The tree, a symbol of violence and oppression, refers to the politics of fear, a certain "way of life" in the South that demanded a uniquely American response. That response culminated with the civil rights movement of the 1950s and 1960s with Martin Luther King Jr.'s eloquent appeals for justice.This link has a picture of an earlier tree in 1939. Thanks for the input folks. I learn something every day.
17 comments:
It's actually called "The Hanging Tree." It's the original site of a tree where they used to hang African American slaves. I'm not sure what happened to the original tree, but this one was planted in its place in honor of it. Since it's of historical significance the city divided the street around it. If you go to the city library there is a folder of information about the history of the tree.
Oh! And the big legend is that Denmark Vesey and his gang were hanged there.
And here I thought George Washington tied his horse there. If the previous is true, I'm surprised it still stands.
Okay then, I will stop smiling so cheerily and be more respectful. I did not know this story.
Check this link for some of the recent history and photo:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/hdescopeland/2546631284/
About 14 years ago a co-worker asked me if I had heard of it because she knew I was into local history. I told her no. Back then the internet really didn't have any information so I went down to the library on Calhoun to investigate. Like I mentioned before, the S.C. History Room has a great folder of newspaper clippings on the tree and its history. I suppose it's one of those things that people don't advertise because of the negative history, but perhaps should to people are aware.
When I went through Charleston tour guide training we were told that the exact location of the tree was actually unknown, and likely farther up the Peninsula. Since this specific tree has only been there for 20some years, I'd say it's innocent and should still be smiled upon. :)
and by "the tree" I mean to say the "hanging tree".
I still like the fact that the tree was saved and the road routed around it. If it was the Hanging Tree it would have been easy to wipe it out. After they spared it I suppose they figured they might as well replace the tree since they had the space for it. It is an interesting bit of history.
Thanks Catherine. You are correct. This tree would be a sweet replacement. Nice to have a tour guide's input!
Denmark Vesey and his co-conspirators, 32 of them, were hanged in Blake's Lands on 2, July, 1822. The original tree that stood in this spot figures into the story by way of a ghost story. It's said that a little girl over heard her father speaking with one of the conspirators regarding Vesey's plot for insurrection. Fearing for her father's life, she informed their master of what she'd heard and that he must help her to save her father.
The master subsequently rounded up the conspirators, her father among them, and hung them in this tree. The story goes, that the little slave girl returned, climbed the tree and hanged herself beside her father. It was rumored for years until the 1970's, when original tree was cut down for impeding traffic, that lights were often seen moving and playing among the branches. The girl and her father - reunited.
Denmark Vesey and his co-conspirators, 32 of them, were hanged in Blake's Lands on 2, July, 1822. The original tree that stood in this spot figures into the story by way of a ghost story. It's said that a little girl over heard her father speaking with one of the conspirators regarding Vesey's plot for insurrection. Fearing for her father's life, she informed their master of what she'd heard and that he must help her to save her father.
The master subsequently rounded up the conspirators, her father among them, and hung them in this tree. The story goes, that the little slave girl returned, climbed the tree and hanged herself beside her father. It was rumored for years until the 1970's, when original tree was cut down for impeding traffic, that lights were often seen moving and playing among the branches. The girl and her father - reunited.
Thanks for the input.
You guys are putting a nice spin on it, but the tree was spared as the city grew up around it as a warning to "uppity negroes." The original tree died in the 70s and it was replaced with this one; the reasoning is unclear, but I suspect whites wanted it to commemorate "our Southern heritage," while blacks wanted it as a memorial to the abuse of their ancestors all the way up the 60s.
The tree, as I recall it since the early 60's is always impervious to all of it s labels. It is,just, part of our natural ecology. Yet, it is a reminder of our history, both the good and bad. It always reminded us natives as I was told of the pirates that were hanged. Learning now, of its other victims by the hands of mankind, it is a memorial to all of us to never forget the wrongs of man to man. Just as the walls of Auschwitz should never be torn down, so , too, must this tree outlive us all and teach us of what happened and never to repeat these wrongs.
That is the 'Hanging Tree'. The original was blown down by Hurrican Hugo in 1989. But the soil is extremely rich, because often time when a Black men was hung, his body weight with cause his head to decapitate, and their blood have enriched the soil.
Yeah, there's lots of spin going on here. Black people were murdered here, but hey, good that there's a pretty, innocent tree here! I'm a white person who grew up half in the South, and I'm always astonished by white people loving monuments or trees that signifying murder, and horror for an entire race. Anything to make themselves feel like they were right. But being wrong isn't all bad. If you can acknowledge it. That's maturity at work.
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