Charter Oak at Wadsworth Atheneum

The Charter Oak was an exceptionally large oak tree growing in Hartford from around the 12th or 13th century until it fell during a storm in 1856.  Connecticut colonists hid Connecticut's Royal Charter of 1662 within the tree's hollow to thwart its confiscation by Sir Edmund Andros.  

After the Charter Oak fell, pieces of it were gathered and turned into a variety of pieces.  This chair at Wadsworth Atheneum is said to be constructed from the Charter Oak.  A painting of the Charter Oak is visible behind the chair.  The painting's frame is also said to be from pieces of the fallen tree.

The gunmaker Samuel Colt was a wealthy Hartford businessman when the Charter Oak fell.  He had a bassinet crafted from the Charter Oak.  (See the colts atop the supports?)  It is said that Colt's three children swung in this bassinet when they were babies.