John Martin cone cedar tree, Bangor, 1866
Contributed by Maine Historical Society and Maine State Museum
Description
John Martin (1823-1904), a Bangor accountant and shopkeeper who was interested in landscaping, architecture, fashion, business practices and most other subjects of his day, drew this illustration of a cone cedar tree he transplanted to his yard on October 25, 1866.
The illustration is on page 5 of Martin's "Scrap Book No. 3," one of five volumes he wrote and illustrated reflecting on his life and experiences and commenting on contemporary events. In his description of the tree, he referred to a drawing on page 490 of his "Journal" where he wrote about a "magnificeient blackheart cherry tree."
Martin cut down the cherry on October 22, 1866, and went in search of a replacement. Finding nothing, he decided to search for a cone cedar. When he found one on someone's pasture, he had the 15-year-old, 12-foot-tall tree dug up and planted it in his yard.
He saved it from a gale, but later a cow came into his yard and damaged the tree.
He wrote under the illustration, "My cone cedar tree transplanted Oct 25 1866."
View additional information about this item on the Maine Memory Network.