Hello creekers. I wanted to share a few turnings that I'm bringing to the Monticello Museum Shop tomorrow. These are from a tree taken down in late 2008. The tree may or may not have been planted by Thomas Jefferson himself. A total of 92 rings were visible in the cross section before the tree was hollow in the center. Jefferson mentions in his diary the planting of a "laurodendron", which was later changed to liriodendron. Since the home was not owned by the Jefferson family for most of the 19th century, before the Thomas Jefferson Foundation took possession of the property sometime in the 1900's. To put it in perspective, the tree was roughly 7.5 feet in diameter. The void in the center was well over 5 feet. That's right--the tree was only about a foot thick at the base, which was why it was taken down. It had been worked on for nearly 100 years by arborists, who placed heavy 1" thick steel cables in hopes of directing it away from Monticello itself should it fall in a storm or high wind. I was fortunate enough to be chosen to turn some pieces for the museum shop itself. Here are a few I'm taking there.
More pics to follow
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