James L. Cummins

The Friendship Oak by James L. Cummins

There are many historical, fascinating things to see and read about in the state of Mississippi. There are those that are well-known such as the Elvis Presley Birthplace and Museum, Beauvoir, St. Mary Basilica, Eudora Welty House and Garden, and the Natchez Trace Parkway. But there is a maybe less known, but just as interesting historical landmark known as the Friendship Oak, which is an impressive, 537-year-old southern live oak (Quercus virginiana) located on the University of South Mississippi’s Gulf Park Campus in Long Beach, Mississippi.               

Dating back to 1487, and officially named Friendship Oak, this tree is considered to be the oldest living tree in Mississippi. Over that time, the Friendship Oak has survived several severe hurricanes, including Hurricane Camille and Hurricane Katrina.               

The Friendship Oak is located on the front lawn of the university’s campus and is identified by several informative markers, such as the one that speaks of the massive size of the tree. The average length of Friendship Oak’s remarkable downward sweeping limbs is 60 to 66 feet from the trunk which has an unbelievable circumference of nearly 20 feet!               

Another of the signs explains the meaning behind the Friendship Oak’s name, suggesting that the name came about because those who enter the shade of its branches will remain friends for all their lives. Yet another sign reveals what the oldest tree in Mississippi would say about her life if she could talk: I was a sapling when Columbus sailed into the Caribbean and was fully grown by Napoleon’s reign. I am now over five centuries old. I have sheltered Indians, pirates, and college students. I am called Friendship Oak. Those who enter my shadow are supposed to remain friends through all their lifetime no matter where fate may take them in after years. There is not an alumna of Gulf Park College who does not possess, tucked away somewhere among her keepsakes and treasure, a twig, a leaf, or an acorn that came out of my heart. The stairs and platform allow me to invite visitors into my branches without disturbing my leafage. Welcome friends.               

While Friendship Oak is known as the oldest tree in the state, the State of Mississippi has many forests where you can view oak trees and other trees and native plants. Some such viewing places include Sky Lake Wildlife Management Area, The Petrified Forest, The Forests of Mississippi’s Piney Woods, and The Homochitto National Forest. You can also drive down one of Mississippi’s Tunnel of Trees such as the one found on a country road, just off Interstate 20 between Edwards and Bolton, Mississippi, or the Oak Alley Plantation, famous for its quarter-mile tunnel of twenty-eight 200- to 250-year-old oak trees.               

Between the historical significance, the welcoming atmosphere, and the majestic beauty, Friendship Oak is definitely worth a visit if you ever find yourself in Long Beach, Mississippi. 

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