DUANE
Duane's take
The way the marker tells it, here's the story of the Fleming Oak. Now listen close, because this one's got layers. In 1854, a young boy named Martin V.
Fleming was camped here in this grove with his father. Could've been any ordinary night under a Texas sky — but it wasn't. Hostile Indians rode through that grove, and young Martin, quick-thinking as they come, hid himself behind this very oak tree.
That tree kept him out of sight, kept him breathing, kept him in the story. He survived. The oak stood.
Years rolled on. Martin V. Fleming grew up, and somewhere along the way folks started calling him Uncle Mart.
Now, Uncle Mart remembered that tree. You don't forget the thing that saved your life when you were just a boy. So when paving contractors showed up — contractors with plans and equipment and a job to do — and started to cut that oak down, Uncle Mart had something to say about it.
He said it with his gun. The contractors stopped. The oak stood.
Some trees just have a way of surviving, and some men just have a way of making sure they do.
What the marker says
Camped here in 1854 with his father, young Martin V. Fleming hid behind this tree and saved himself when hostile Indians rode through the grove. Years later paving contractors started to cut the oak, but were stopped by "Uncle Mart" with his gun. (1965)