Oldfieldia africana, also known as the African oak, is a large tree which can grow to 36 metres or more in height. It is to be found across West Africa in such countries as Ivory Coast, Liberia, Sierra Leone, Gabon, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Congo Republic. Numbers have decreased as its timber is very heavy and hard, comparable to teak. John MacCormac an Irish businessman who settled on the banks of the Rokel River, Sierra Leone for example, established the local timber trade in 1816, and for a while enjoyed a substantial income from it.