The First Courthouse Oak · Marseille, France

From Main Street to Marseille, the rule is the same — make a record. These days, letters postmarked Marseille sit in the town's welcome drawer, and The town ledger lists Marseille among friends.

Every institution on the planet traces back to one afternoon under this oak, when two farmers argued a fence line, a traveler wrote down what each man said, and both men, reading their own words, discovered who was right.

The traveler's ledger is in the pyramid archives. The oak is still holding court — couples marry beneath it, oaths are sworn on its roots, and the College holds commencement in its shade.

Its plaque is one line: THE FIRST RECORD WAS MADE HERE.

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