Cherokee-Choctaw Grove, MTSF    Robert Leverett    May 06, 2004 08:05 PDT  Sky: .... Incidentally, last Sunday several of us were in the Cherokee-Choctaw Grove in MTSF taking measurements of the named (or to be named) trees. We chose your tree as the one next to Jani's. You're going to love your tree. Bob Cherokee-Choctaw Grove, MTSF    Sky Davis    May 06, 2004 08:58 PDT  Wait a minute...a tree for me? Next to Momma's? WOW I am speechless...Is it pretty? Sky Sky's Tree   Robert Leverett   May 06, 2004 10:04 PDT  Sky:    Yes, absolutely, a tree for you next to Mom's. What does it look like? It is a beauty. It is 9.1 feet in circumference, 146.3 feet tall, and arrow straight. Phyllis's tree is also nearby, but smaller. Then there are 4 pines in almost a row that are the warrior pines. Charles's and Carlos's trees are in this cluster. So is the one we'll dedicated to your Oklahoma Cherokee friend in the fall. We will surround Jani's tree with her protectors.    So far, we have the following named, or to be named, trees in the Cherokee-Choctaw Grove.    Tree         Circ      Height Jani             10.6       150.8 Ski                9.1       146.3 Charles Yow    8.8       150.5   (warrior) Carlos Ashe     8.2       145.4   (warrior) Chugie            7.7       147.2   (warrior) Phyllis             7.5       142.9    Leaner                       142.1 Katuah           7.7       142.8   (warrior) Attakulakula    9.8       144.2 Junaluska      12.5       153.0   (Double)     These trees will all be part of one of the research sites to afford them extra protection. Bob Dedication Of Jani Grove   Robert Leverett   May 11, 2004 06:16 PDT  ENTS:    On Saturday, from 10:00-11:00AM we will dedicate the Jani Grove at MTSF. Region 5 Director of Parks and Recreation Robert Mellace will make it official for the State. The grove of pines being dedicated to my dear departed wife Jani is part of the larger Cherokee-Choctaw area of white pines that includes three 150-footers and many 140-footers. There will likely be between 30 and 40 people attend. All are welcome.    Dedication of "Jani's Grove" carries much symbolism. Jani, the past President of Friends of Mohawk Trail State and Director of the American Indian Movement for Massachusetts, was Choctaw and Cherokee and we had her lineage in mind when we identified the Cherokee-Choctaw area in MTSF. The Jani Pine was the first tree ENTS named for a woman. Lots of firsts. However, the selection of an area to be named for the Cherokee and Choctaw turns out to carry added symbolic meaning. Massachusetts had a special supportive relationship toward the Cherokee and Choctaw nations in the 1830s. Hopefully in the fall we can have a special program to commemorate the support that Massachusetts gave to the Cherokee and Choctaw during the removal of those peoples to Oklahoma under the Andrew Jackson presidency. Sky Davis is currently doing research on the depth of the association between Massachusetts and the support of the Cherokee, Creek, Choctaw, Chickasaw, and Seminole during the 1830s and will fill us in on the details.    Friends will also be renewing its special research permit granted by DCR to inventory and map OG on state lands in Massachusetts. So DCR will continue to extract pounds of flesh out of Gary Beluzo and me. Well now, in my case, extracting flesh me might be a good thing, especially if it comes from the old mid-section. Hey, it's nice to have the state looking out for my health. Bob Robert T. Leverett Cofounder, Eastern Native Tree Society Indian Pines   Robert Leverett   May 13, 2004 09:27 PDT  ENTS:    Dedicating Jani's Grove on Saturday will represent a quantum leap in the State's official awareness of the cultural role of Mohawk's pines. Building this awareness has taken years to get off the ground, but the pace of cultural awareness will now likely speed up for a variety of reasons that has to do with the convergence of like-minded individuals.    At present we have named the following areas of pines in Mohawk:     Headquarters Hill Pines     Pocumtuck Pines     Indian Springs Pines     Trees of Peace     Cherokee-Choctaw Pines     Algonquin Pines     Encampment Pines (includes the ENTS Grove)     Elders Grove     Shunpike Pines     Trout Brook Pines    Last Friday we were asked for a map by the area Management Forester of the named areas. I have created a crude one that after refinements, I'll send to Ed for posting on the site. Bob        Home