01-09-2017, 10:18 PM
The Pioneer Cabin Tree, also known as The Tunnel Tree, was a giant sequoia in Calaveras Big Trees State Park, California, United States. It was considered one of the US's most famous trees,[4] and drew thousands of visitors annually.[5] It was estimated to have been over 1,000 years old,[4] and measured 33 feet (10 m) in diameter; its exact age and height are not known.[A][7][8] It fell during a storm on January 8, 2017.[2][4]
![[Image: 300px-CalaverasTreeTunnel1.jpg]](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/f/f4/CalaverasTreeTunnel1.jpg/300px-CalaverasTreeTunnel1.jpg)
In the 1880s, a tunnel in the trunk of the Pioneer Cabin Tree was hollowed out by a private land owner at the request of James Sperry, founder of the Murphys Hotel, so that tourists could pass through it.[9][10][11][8][12] The tree was chosen in part because it bore a large forest fire scar. The Pioneer Cabin Tree emulated the tunnel carved into Yosemite's Wawona Tree, and was intended to compete with it for tourists.[13][14][15]
Since the 1880s, visitors were encouraged to etch their names into the tree.[2] At first only pedestrians were allowed to pass through the tree.[6] Later, for many years, automobiles drove through it as part of the "Big Trees Trail".[6] It was one of several drive-through trees on the California coast.[B] Subsequently, only hikers were allowed to pass through the tree's tunnel as part of the North Grove Loop hiking trail.[2][17]
The Pioneer Cabin Tree fell during a rain storm and flooding on January 8, 2017.[2][6] The storm was the strongest to hit the area in over a decade.[4] The flooding, combined with the shallow root system of giant sequoias, likely caused it to fall.[2] A park volunteer reported that the tree had been weakening, becoming brittle and leaning to one side for several years, with only a single branch remaining alive.[2] It had been weakened by the severe damage caused by the tunnel carved through its trunk.[13][14] The tree shattered on impact with the ground.[2][6]
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pioneer_Cabin_Tree
(I have had Presidential pets, last animals of their species, and "Big Tex", a giant anthropomorphic statue greeting people to the Texas State Fair on the Obituaries column... so why not an iconic tree)?
In the 1880s, a tunnel in the trunk of the Pioneer Cabin Tree was hollowed out by a private land owner at the request of James Sperry, founder of the Murphys Hotel, so that tourists could pass through it.[9][10][11][8][12] The tree was chosen in part because it bore a large forest fire scar. The Pioneer Cabin Tree emulated the tunnel carved into Yosemite's Wawona Tree, and was intended to compete with it for tourists.[13][14][15]
Since the 1880s, visitors were encouraged to etch their names into the tree.[2] At first only pedestrians were allowed to pass through the tree.[6] Later, for many years, automobiles drove through it as part of the "Big Trees Trail".[6] It was one of several drive-through trees on the California coast.[B] Subsequently, only hikers were allowed to pass through the tree's tunnel as part of the North Grove Loop hiking trail.[2][17]
The Pioneer Cabin Tree fell during a rain storm and flooding on January 8, 2017.[2][6] The storm was the strongest to hit the area in over a decade.[4] The flooding, combined with the shallow root system of giant sequoias, likely caused it to fall.[2] A park volunteer reported that the tree had been weakening, becoming brittle and leaning to one side for several years, with only a single branch remaining alive.[2] It had been weakened by the severe damage caused by the tunnel carved through its trunk.[13][14] The tree shattered on impact with the ground.[2][6]
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pioneer_Cabin_Tree
(I have had Presidential pets, last animals of their species, and "Big Tex", a giant anthropomorphic statue greeting people to the Texas State Fair on the Obituaries column... so why not an iconic tree)?
The ideal subject of totalitarian rule is not the convinced Nazi or the dedicated Communist but instead the people for whom the distinction between fact and fiction, true and false, no longer exists -- Hannah Arendt.