World Art Utopia

Legerwood Carved Memorial Trees

A tree trunk carved with a chainsaw into a memorial for a World War I soldier in Legerwood, Tasmania.
Artwork FileTasmania, Australia

Legerwood Carved Memorial Trees

SeenDec 2023

Eddie Freeman · Legerwood, Dorset, Tasmania

Carvings by Eddie Freeman. Photo: jacobharrisau / Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 2.0), taken 25 December 2023, as published on Street Art Utopia (Still Getting Visitors (10 Photos), 31 October 2026).

On 15 October 1918 the people of Ringarooma Road, soon renamed Legerwood, planted memorial trees for local soldiers killed in the First World War. When a 2001 report found the trees were no longer safe, the community had chainsaw carver Eddie Freeman turn the stumps into likenesses of the soldiers instead. Source Source Source Checked

Seen Dec 2023 — The newest dated photograph we found was taken on 25 December 2023 and shows one of the carvings. Discover Tasmania still lists the carved trees as a place to visit. Source Source Checked

💡 4 things to know

  1. Planted by the familiesAs the names of the fallen were called out at the 1918 ceremony, a relative came forward to hold each tree until it was planted. Source Source Checked
  2. Seven soldiers, two pinesThe Australian War Memorial counts seven local men who died; Monument Australia records nine trees, with a Weymouth pine at each end of the avenue for Gallipoli and the ANZACs. Source Source Checked
  3. Carved instead of cut downAfter a 2001 report found the trees unsafe, the Legerwood Hall and Reserves Committee had Eddie Freeman of Ross carve the stumps, starting in 2004. Source Source Source Checked
  4. Plaques on Anzac DayPlaques were unveiled at a ceremony on Anzac Day 2006, according to the Australian War Memorial’s Places of Pride. Source Reported

📍 Where it is

The carvings stand along Ringarooma Road / Main Street in Legerwood, in the Dorset area of Tasmania, on the railway reserve where the trees were planted in 1918. Discover Tasmania counts 25 carved figures; Monument Australia lists nine original trees. Coordinates are the camera location of the 2023 Commons photograph. Source Source Source Checked

Open in Maps

🗓️ Sightings

  1. 191815 Oct

    Memorial trees planted

  2. 2004

    Eddie Freeman begins carving

  3. 2006

    Plaques unveiled on Anzac Day

  4. 201821 Oct

    Places of Pride tells the story

  5. 202325 Dec

    Carving photographed

Green stamps mark dated photographs; amber stamps mark records or reports; red stamps mark loss. Publication dates are not camera dates.

🗞️ In the sources

Places of Pride, Australian War Memorial21 October 2018

“The community, led by the Legerwood Hall and Reserves Committee, successfully rallied behind a plan to preserve the memory of the men by using the trees as canvases for sculptures.”

Read the source →

✅ The facts

Artist
Eddie Freeman, chainsaw carver from Ross Source Source Source Checked
Planted
15 October 1918, at Ringarooma Road (renamed Legerwood in December 1918) Source Source Checked
Trees
Nine trees: seven for local soldiers who died, plus a Weymouth pine at each end for Gallipoli and the ANZACs Source Source Source Checked
Unsafe report
2001 Source Source Checked
Carving began
2004 Source Source Checked
Plaques
Unveiled on Anzac Day 2006 Source Reported
Commissioned by
Legerwood Hall and Reserves Committee Source Source Source Checked

🔗 Related

All sources & image credits

Last checked: 1 November 2026. How we verify art