09: George Weikert Farm Tree

This 1934 then-and-now comparison, taken in the wintertime, shows Witness Tree 09, a black walnut, standing proudly in front of the main house of the George Weikert Farm, facing United States Avenue. The New Jersey Brigade monument can be seen on the ridge a couple of hundred yards behind the house. Historic photo courtesy of NPS, GNMP, Museum Collection, Gett #41135, 23S-0726.

How to Find Witness Tree 09

The George Weikert Farm can be found at the corner of United States Avenue and Sedgwick Avenue. Witness Tree 09, a black walnut, stands in front of the main house, on the United States Avenue side of the house.

What the Tree Witnessed

Brigadier General William Barksdale’s brigade of Mississippians were having a field day mauling federal units on the evening of July 2, 1863. One of Barksdale’s regiments, the 21st MS, was now working its way east along the farm lane that is now United States Avenue. Having captured several Union cannon at the Trostle Farm, they next successfully captured the four guns of Lt. Malbone Watson’s Battery I (5th U.S. Artillery). But it was the end of the line for the exhausted 21st Mississippi, as the 39th New York infantry, led by Maj. Hugo Hildebrandt, recaptured the battery for the Army of the Potomac.

The George Weikert Farm also served as a hospital for Union troops after the battle. Scores of men died both inside and outside the various buildings. Many were buried in the yard surrounding Witness Tree 09. It is hoped that all of the bodies were eventually recovered and removed to the National Cemetery, but it is possible (as can be said of any location on the battlefield where quick burials took place) that some bodies remain on the grounds.

Yours truly (left) with Ranger Tom Holbrook (right), 2023.

The Ranger Thomas Holbrook Witness Tree

Witness Tree 09 Statistics

Tree Species: black walnut
Circumference 2024: 111”
Diameter: 35.5”
Estimated age: 185-190 years
Estimated diameter in 1863: 4-5”

This tree is named, not for a soldier of the Civil War, but rather for Gettysburg National Military Park Ranger Thomas Holbrook, who lived in the Weikert house for almost three decades – longer than anyone has ever lived at this farmstead since it was first built in the early 19th century. In addition to his regular ranger duties at GNMP, Tom had been in charge of the park’s Living History Program for more than two decades, and also presented the popular If These Things Could Talk talk every year as part of the park’s winter lecture series, all before his retirement in 2025.

The tree’s name is meant to memorialize not just Tom, but all of the park rangers who have dedicated their lives to preserving the history at this greatest of National Military parks.

Then-and-Now Comparisons

This is the earliest known photograph of Witness Tree 09, which dominates the yard of the George Weikert House. The 1896 photo, taken by an otherwise unknown man, and apparent surgeon, named Van Devere.  Label “A” identifies the old pipe-fencing used to mark off the boundaries between the park and private property. Historic photo courtesy of the Boardman Photographic Collection.

Here is another mid-1930s photograph of the Weikert Farm and Witness Tree 09. Historic photo courtesy of NPS, GNMP, Museum Collection, Gett #41135, 23S-0727.

Other photos

If you look carefully between the lowest branch on Witness Tree 09 and the main trunk, you will see a support wire connecting the two. Who put the wire there, or when, is unknown.