The white oak, which grew in the form of an archway and had been featured on the TV show “RIpley’s Believe it or Not” was found in pieces on July 18 on Regional Water Authority land where it had stood for 175 to 200 years. The last time the Door Tree was seen intact was mid-May, Hamden municipal historian David Johnson told police, according to the affidavit. The tree was in exceptionally good health and likely would have lived many more years, authorities said.