General Grant tree

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General Grant tree, Kings Canyon National Park
General Grant tree, Kings Canyon National Park

The General tree is the largest Giant Sequoia in the Grant Grove section of Kings Canyon National Park. It was named in 1867 after Ulysses S. Grant, Union Army general and the 18th President of the United States (1869-1877).

President Calvin Coolidge proclaimed it the "Nation's Christmas Tree" in 1926. On March 29, 1956, President Dwight D. Eisenhower declared the tree a "National Shrine", a memorial to those who died in war. It is the only living object to be so declared.[1]

Decorations for the Nation's Christmas Tree
Decorations for the Nation's Christmas Tree

The tree is the third-largest tree in the world, after the General Sherman and George Washington according to the list of the National Park Service, which does not take the latter tree's fire and storm damage into account.

The General Grant tree stands 81.1 m, and its diameter is the second-largest of all Giant Sequoias at 8.85 m with the Boole tree slightly stouter at 8.98 m.[2] Its circumference at the base including broad root buttresses, is 32.8 m (108 ft).[3]

Once thought to be well over 2,000 years old, recent estimates point to a much younger age closer to 1,650 years.[4]

[edit] See also

[edit] References

  1. ^ National Park Service. Sequoia and Kings Canyon National Parks Information Page. Retrieved on 2007-03-06.
  2. ^ Sequoiadendron giganteum (Lindley) J.Buchholz. The Gymnosperm Database. Retrieved on 2007-03-06.
  3. ^ General Grant Tree. planetware.com. Retrieved on 2007-03-06.
  4. ^ U.S. Geological Survey (06 Dec 2000). "World's Largest Tree is Younger Than Once Thought". Press release. Retrieved on 2007-03-06.

[edit] External links

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