Shawshank Redemption

One of my favorite movies had one of it's memorable landmarks destroyed on Friday.

The tree outside Ohio's Malabar Farm State Park in north-central Ohio that played a key role in the the 1994 film The Shawshank Redemption appears damaged by high winds. The tree was hit Friday, July 29, 2011 by straight-line winds that split it down its rotted middle and took out one side.

The tree near the state park is popular with tourists and is part of the local convention and visitors bureau’s “Shawshank Trail” that also includes the former reformatory that closed in 1990 and is now a museum. The trail leads travelers to 12 sites where the movie was filmed.



Tree Before Strike




Tree After Strike

 Trail travelers can look to the left just past the state park entrance and see the site where Freeman’s character walked along a hayfield and removed stones from a rock wall where the money was buried. The movie was nominated for seven Academy Awards, including best actor for Freeman and best picture.