Acorns come in all shapes and sizes. LEFT: Pictured is “The World’s Largest Acorn” sculpture located in Oak Hill, Ohio. The sculpture appears to be modeled after the acorn that comes from the native White Oak tree that populates the area. (Telegram Photo by Jeremiah Shaver.) RIGHT: Pictured is “The World’s Largest Acorn” gazebo in Silver Spring, Maryland. The gazebo appears to be modeled after the acorn that comes from the Southern Red Oak tree found in Maryland. (Photo Courtesy of Google Maps.)
Back in June, the Oak Hill Chamber of Commerce officials unveiled what they dubbed as “The World’s Largest Acorn” in the Village of Oak Hill. The giant metal sculpture of art can be found in Central Memorial Park in Oak Hill.
However, since that time, a battle for the title has arisen.
The Silver Spring Historical Society located in Silver Spring, Maryland made a post on Wednesday, Aug. 6, on social media claiming that its roughly 175-year-old, acorn-shaped gazebo, located in Acorn Urban Park at 8060 Newell St., Silver Spring, MD, is actually “The World’s Largest Acorn.” The group has gone as far as measuring and comparing its iconic and historically designated landmark.
The MoCoShow, which covers news in Montgomery County, MD, where the acorn gazebo is located, published an article on Aug. 9 that detailed the Historical Society’s endeavor of measuring their acorn. The McCoShow reports that “Built in 1850 by Silver Spring founder Francis Preston Blair, the structure measures 14.058 feet in diameter and 17 feet ¾ inches in height.”
As previously reported by The Telegram, Oak Hill’s art sculpture stands at a height of 15 feet and five and a half inches with a diameter of 11 feet and 3 inches. If the measurements by the folks in Maryland are correct, the Silver Spring acorn exceeds Oak Hill’s by over two feet in diameter and more than two feet in height.
This battle all began after a member of the Silver Spring Historical Society came across an online article from the June 17, 2025, edition of The Columbus Navigator. The headline in the newspaper read, “Oak Hill Just Unveiled The World’s Largest Acorn, And It’s Absolutely Nuts.” The Historical Society members in Silver Spring stated that obviously Oak Hill and The Columbus Navigator didn’t know about Silver Spring’s acorn.
The Oak Hill Chamber of Commerce addressed the “claim” not only on social media but also during its monthly meeting, which was held on Monday, Aug. 11.
“The Oak Hill Chamber of Commerce was well aware of this acorn structure in Maryland when we constructed the World’s Largest Acorn,” said Oak Hill Chamber President Kurtis Strickland. “First of all, the acorn in Maryland is a gazebo, supported by four wooden posts… Oak Hill’s acorn is a piece of art on a pedestal.”
Strickland added, “While the Maryland acorn may be wider than Oak Hill’s acorn [according to their unofficial measurement, not ours], width is not the only determining factor. When you look just at the actual acorns, minus the posts or pedestals, Oak Hill’s acorn is taller, has more volume, weighs [1.4 tons] more and is obviously The World’s Largest Acorn.”
He further explained that they weren’t really competing against Maryland’s acorn in the first place because it’s really a different type of structure. Oak Hill’s acorn is a piece of art, while Maryland’s is a structure featuring an acorn-shaped roof.
“We love our acorn and feel that the color and orientation represents an acorn hanging from an oak tree in Oak Hill,” stated Strickland. “I think when it comes to these World’s Largest things, you know… I don’t think most have had the Guinness Book of World Records there to do all the official measurements because it’s really expensive.”
Strickland added, “It’s kind of fun to go back and forth nicely with the folks in Maryland as it gets Oak Hill talked about. But we still think ours is the largest.”
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