Click on photo for more information.Tulare County’s Charter Oak AKA Election Tree
by Laurie Schwaller
A short, pleasant drive east of Visalia takes you to Tulare County’s beginning, in the shade of magnificent oak trees, just north of the Kaweah River and a half mile from Woodsville, the tiny “permanent” Euro-American settlement (and thus official seat) of this new county the State legislature created in April, 1852. Beneath this fabled Charter Oak (or one nearby), residents met in July, 1852, to vote in Tulare County’s first election, to organize the county. Then, In 1853, upstart Visalia was elected the county seat instead. Woodsville died. The oaks abide.
October, 2025
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From Visalia, take Hwy 198 east to Road 182 north. At the junction with Ave. 304, go left (west) onto Ave. 304, then right (north) onto Rd. 180.
At the intersection with Charter Oak Dr., go left (west) on Charter Oak for about .3 miles, watching for the two markers and the great historic tree.
There, you’ll be standing where Tulare County got started, over 170 years ago — just a moment ago in time when you consider that the Yaudanchi Yokuts people and their forebears have called this area home for at least 7,000 years, and likely several thousand years before that — but how things have changed since 1872!
Nearby Treaures: Cutler Park (biking, dog walking (on 6′ leash, scoop poop), photography, picnicking, playground equipment, walking, restrooms, river access); Kaweah Oaks Preserve (birding, botanizing, hiking, photography, picnicking, special events, wildflower and wildlife viewing, restrooms); Hogwallow Preserve (birding, photography, vernal pools [seasonal], no facilities).
