Members of the Bristol County Chapter of the Massachusetts Society of Genealogists took a walk to the Council Oak in Dighton following a presentation by Eric Schultz on King Philip’s War. The Oak was a place where the leadership of Indigenous tribes gathered in the 17th century prior to the War to discuss strategy. Click here for a 10-minute video of the walk on June 17, 2023.

(Above) The walk began at the Dighton Community Church on Elm Street and proceeded through the fields behind the Church where the Council Oak is found. While the fields are privately owned, the road to the Oak is accessible by the public.

(Above) The remains of what was once a magnificent oak tree that stood in the center of the field now consists of only a trunk after the tree was struck by lightning more than twenty years ago. Pat Gailes (center) and Robin LeCroix (right) talk about the history of the Oak as a meeting place for Indigenous tribes in the 17th century.

A plaque notes that here “King Philip met with his braves. This tree marks the center of ‘The Old Field’. Near here was the the largest Indian settlement in Dighton.”