Derry – The crowd shouted "timber" yesterday as workers began taking down an old maple tree that sat at the Robert Frost Farm when the famed poet lived there.

It was a symbolic gesture, since the maple was not felled like any typical tree. Workers took their time cutting off its branches before spending hours removing the tree carefully to avoid damaging the wood, which will be distributed to artisans and crafters. Wood chips will be given to power plants.

Once the cutting was done, a stump was all that remained of the tree, and the farm's landscape looked markedly different. The tree had been visible to Route 28 commuters and was a favorite photo-op spot for visitors.

The rotting tree was removed after a ceremony, attended by nearly 100 people, during which several speakers read Frost poems. Laura Burnham, chairwoman of the farm's board of trustees, said the ceremony and enthusiastic crowd brightened an otherwise mournful occasion.

"Sometimes, everything just comes together perfectly," she said. "It was the best thing that could happen to a sad day."

Organizers began planning to remove the tree early this year, after Burnham noticed that a large section of it had fallen off. She contacted experts and learned that the whole tree would have to be taken down for safety reasons; the tree was close enough to Frost's former home that it might have caused the structure damage if it fell on its own.

Farm trustee Charlie Dent said he's been surprised by the response he's received from artisans and crafters interested in having pieces of the tree. Even though the tree is gone, he said, it's being kept alive in other ways.

"I was struck by how much Frost means to these folks," he said.

A replacement tree will be planted come springtime, and organizers plan to hold an event to showcase and auction off items made from the tree a year from now. If he were alive, Frost probably would be OK with the tree being taken down and might say it's no big deal, said local poet Robert Crawford.

"Then he would've gone back and written a poem about it," Crawford said.

The Frost Farm, which will soon close for the season, has had a busy year. Visitors have come from 45 states and 20 foreign countries, said farm manager Bill Gleed. While working at the farm, Gleed said he spent a lot of time underneath the tree.

"We're going to miss this tree quite a bit," he said.

Frost lived at the now state-owned farm from 1900 to 1911. He spent his time in Derry farming, teaching English at Pinkerton Academy and crafting a poetic voice that would later make him famous. He moved to England after selling the farm, but returned to New England before he died in 1963.

Also during the ceremony, Bill Frost, a fourth cousin of the poet, gave Burnham a small wooden bowl made from the last tree taken down on the farm. New Hampshire Union Leader and Sunday News columnist John Clayton and Leslie O'Donnell from the Nutfield News also spoke.

The New Hampshire Timberland Owners Association, Top Notch Tree Service of Strafford and Foreco LLC of Rumney volunteered their efforts to remove the tree. T-Bones Great American Eatery provided catering.