The Tree Beside the Well

A Limited Collection of 100 Handcrafted Vessels

On an old homestead outside Cochran, Georgia, a massive Catawba worm tree stood beside an open brick well.

The weathered farmhouse, the well, and the tree were reminders of an earlier time in rural Bleckley County. Together, they had watched over the surrounding farmland as seasons passed and the world around them changed.

The tree had grown large and full of character. Its heavy limbs reached in every direction, while vines and undergrowth had become intertwined with its trunk. Standing beside the old well, it felt less like a single tree and more like part of the homestead itself.

When we first saw it, we knew its story deserved to be preserved.

Rooted in Southern Tradition

Known throughout the South as a Catawba worm tree, the catalpa holds memories for generations of fishermen and rural families. Its leaves provide food for the prized Catawba worms traditionally gathered and used as fishing bait.

For many Southerners, the name recalls summer fishing trips, country roads, family land, and traditions passed from one generation to the next.

This particular tree had become something even more—a living landmark beside a forgotten well and an aging Georgia farmhouse.

Discovering What Was Inside

Once the tree was harvested, its true character began to reveal itself.

The enormous trunk was carefully transported and milled into sections. With every cut, the saw exposed grain that had been hidden for decades: sweeping lines, rich natural color, knots, hollows, and markings created over a lifetime of growth.

Some sections displayed dramatic dark heartwood surrounded by a lighter outer edge. Others carried natural voids and irregular shapes formed by weather, age, and time.

These features were not imperfections to be removed. They were the details that made the wood worth preserving.

Every ring marked another season beside the well. Every knot and hollow held part of the tree’s history.

Handcrafted, One Vessel at a Time

From carefully selected sections of the tree, the candle vessels began to take shape.

Each piece was hollowed and shaped by hand while preserving as much of the wood’s natural character as possible. Some vessels retain their original bark. Others reveal the soft color and flowing grain beneath it. Their organic forms, natural edges, and individual markings ensure that no two will ever be identical.

These are not factory-made containers designed to look alike. Each vessel is a distinct piece of the original tree, shaped by nature and finished by hand.

Limited to 100 Vessels

Only 100 candle vessels will ever be handcrafted from this tree.

Each vessel has been individually numbered as part of this limited collection, connecting it directly to the Catawba tree and the old Bleckley County homestead where it once grew.

Once all 100 vessels have been completed, there can never be another collection exactly like it. The grain, bark, knots, natural edges, and markings belong to this tree alone.

Owning one means preserving one of only 100 pieces created from a tree that stood beside an old open well in Cochran, Georgia—a tree whose worms provided bait for countless fishing trips and, in turn, helped provide meals for the homesteaders who lived there.

From Tree to Home

At W² Wood Co., we believe the natural character and history of wood should be carried forward.

This Catawba tree may no longer stand beside the well, but its story has not ended. It continues through the hands of Jeremy and Flint Williams, who harvested and milled the tree, through the craftsmanship they put into shaping each individual vessel, and now through your home, where a piece of its story will be kept for years to come.

The candle may eventually burn away, but the refillable wooden vessel was made to remain—a functional piece of Georgia craftsmanship and a lasting connection to the land from which it came.

The Tree Beside the Well

Limited to 100 individually numbered vessels.

From Tree to Home.