Lynchburg found in surprising places

In the same week, our daughter and I stumbled upon Lynchburg in books we were reading. Emily found a story about a tree at E.C. Glass in a book titled “Remarkable Trees of Virginia” by Nancy Ross Hugo and Jeff Kirwan. I discovered a passage about Lynch’s Ferry in “A Place Called Freedom” written by Ken Follett.

Southern Red Oak, Lynchburg

“This is a tree that no one — and everyone — sees,” Hugo and Kirwan begin their article. “From a distance, it seems to be just one of many nice oaks on the (E.C. Glass) school grounds,” the article continues. But “the closer you get to the tree, the bigger you realize it is. At almost 19 feet in girth and over 100 feet tall, it is about three times as large as other nearby southern red oaks, and it has such a beautiful, well-branched shape that it is often used as a symbol of Lynchburg literature.” Look for the tree to the left as you enter E.C. Glass from Memorial Avenue.

Lynchburg can thank the Greater Lynchburg Tree Stewards led by Marge Denham for the recognition this magnificent tree has received. This organization has earned an array of international and national awards as they have preserved and publicized the beauty of Greater Lynchburg.

Lynch’s Ferry

Ken Follett was born in Wales in 1949, and four of his books have reached the No. 1 spot on the New York Times bestseller list. All of his books except “A Place Called Freedom” take place in Europe, Asia or Africa. So, I was unprepared for his characters to arrive in the United States and eventually reach Lynch’s Ferry as they escaped from evildoers.

“On the morning of the fourth day they breasted a rise and saw, in the valley below, a wide broad river with a series of midstream islands. On the far bank was a cluster of wooden buildings. A broad flat-bottomed ferry boat was tied up at a jetty.

“Mack reigned in. ‘My guess is that this is the James River, and that settlement is a place called Lynch’s Ferry.’

“On the morning of the next day, Jay Jamisson walked his horse down the hill to the James River and looked across the water to the settlement called Lynch’s Ferry. Jay was exhausted, aching and dispirited. However, he had high hopes of getting some information here at Lynch’s Ferry. They reached the bank and shouted across the fast-moving river. A figure emerged from a building and got into a boat. A rope was stretched from one bank to the other, and the ferry was attached to the rope in an ingenious way so that the pressure of the river’s flow drove the boat across the river. When it reached the near bank, Jay and his companions led their horses aboard. The ferryman adjusted the ropes and the boat began to move back across. The man had the dark clothes and sober manner of a Quaker.”

You can visit the site of Lynch’s Ferry near Amazement Square and Rotary Centennial Riverfront Skatepark.