Emancipation Oak & The Old Schoolhouse
The large sprawling Live Oak tree is 98 ft. in diameter, with branches which extend upward as well as laterally, as if offering refuge. In 1861, Mrs. Mary Smith Peake, taught children of former slaves under the tree. In 1863, the Virginia Peninsula's black community gathered under this Live Oak tree to hear the first Southern reading of President Abraham Lincoln's Emancipation Proclamation.
The Emancipation Oak is designated as one of the 10 Great Trees of the World by the National Geographic Society and is part of the National Historic Landmark district of Hampton University.
Not much is known about the small red building which sits near the Emancipation Oak. The building is affectionately nicknamed "The Old Schoolhouse."