2Trrcs of Krabintj, i-Hass. No. 2. 
THE CAPT. GEORGE BATCH ELDER SASSAFRAS. 
Sassafras. Sassafras Officinale^ Nees. 
We have in this tree something to be proud of especially from the naturalist’s point 
of view. While neighboring towns may boast of elms, oaks, and various other trees as 
large or larger than any within our borders, so far as can be ascertained no other sassa¬ 
fras tree in the state equals in size the Batchelder Sassafras. 
It is located in a pasture at the southwest corner of Main and Frltnklin Sts., and 
about six rods south of the Main Street schoolhouse. 
When Joseph L. Pratt (b. 1S14) was a boy, he used to drive cows to a pasture on 
what is now Franklin Street, and frequently on his way back would stop to dig up the 
roots of the big sassafras. 
In the year 1844 the school-house near by was built, and Mr. Alden Batchelder 
(b. 1836) and others were transferred to it. The boys soon discovered that the outer 
bark of the tree could be easily fashioned by their pocket knives into various attractive 
designs, and the demands made on the old trunk threatened the life of the tree, some¬ 
one even going so far as to cut into the roots with a hatchet. Capt. George Batch- 
elder (b. 1798 d. 186S) who lived on the north-east corner of Main and Franklin Sts., 
and owned the tree, took the matter in hand, and, visiting the school, took the name of 
every boy who had removed bark, and succeeded in stopping the depredations. Mr. 
Alden Batchelder remembers the top as being larger then than at present. 
One spring about the year i 864 when Mr. Howard W. Batchelder (h. 1856) attended 
school here, the boys removed the bark again, even standing on the ledge which is just 
north of the trunk, and removing all within reach. Again it was feared the tree would 
die, and once more Capt. Geo. Batchelder came to the rescue. 
But notwithstanding these hard pulls the tree still stands, a vigorous, old tree, 
although it doubtless has seen its best days. The measurements in August, 1SS7, were 
as follows:— 
Circumference. Height. Spread. 
At ground, io ft. 3 in. Top of foliage, 58 ft. 30 ft. 
4 ft. from ground, 8 ft. I in. “ “ dead branch, 61 ft. 
Our photograph, taken in September from a point south-west of the tree, shows the 
ledge on which the boys stood while getting bark. The topmost branch which is dead 
is not shown very distinctly. The schoolhouse is situated beyond the intervening knoll, 
the roof only being visible. Mr. Howard W. Batchelder is the present owner of the 
tree. 
The sassafras in this latitude is usually a shrub or small tree, seldom attaining 30 
feet in height. It is found from Canada to Texas, attaining its greatest size in Arkansas 
and the Indian Territory. The yellow blossoms appear in clusters in spring before the 
leaves. The fruit consists of a small blue drupe. The reddish wood is light, soft and 
brittle, very durable in contact with the soil, and is used for light skiffs, fence post and 
rails, and cooperage. The whole tree is pervaded with a pleasant aroma, it being strong- 
est in the bark of the root from which the oil of sassafras is obtained for flavoring. In 
the South the mucilaginous leaves and young branches form the material for making 
“gumbo filet” a powder which is used in the preparation of “gumbo” soup. 
