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The Pioneer Cabin Tree, also known as The Tunnel Tree, was a
giant sequoia ''Sequoiadendron giganteum'' (also known as the giant sequoia, giant redwood, Sierra redwood or Wellingtonia) is a species of coniferous tree, classified in the family Cupressaceae in the subfamily Sequoioideae. Giant sequoia specimens are the la ...
in
Calaveras Big Trees State Park Calaveras Big Trees State Park is a state park of California, United States, preserving two groves of Sequoiadendron giganteum, giant sequoia trees. Located 4 miles (6.4 km) northeast of Arnold, California in the middle elevations of the S ...
,
California California () is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States that lies on the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. It borders Oregon to the north, Nevada and Arizona to the east, and shares Mexico–United States border, an ...
. It was considered one of the U.S.'s most famous trees, and drew thousands of visitors annually. It was estimated to have been more than 1,000 years old, and measured in diameter; its exact age and height were not known. The tree was topped before 1859. It fell and shattered during a storm on January 8, 2017.


History

The Pioneer Cabin Tree got its name from its distinctively hollow trunk, partially burnt by
lightning strike A lightning strike or lightning bolt is a lightning event in which an electric discharge takes place between the atmosphere and the ground. Most originate in a cumulonimbus cloud and terminate on the ground, called cloud-to-ground (CG) lightning ...
s and
forest fire A wildfire, forest fire, or a bushfire is an unplanned and uncontrolled fire in an area of combustible vegetation. Depending on the type of vegetation present, a wildfire may be more specifically identified as a bushfire ( in Australia), dese ...
. It had small compartments as in a
log cabin A log cabin is a small log house, especially a minimally finished or less architecturally sophisticated structure. Log cabins have an ancient history in Europe, and in America are often associated with first-generation home building by settl ...
, with the tree's burnt core as a chimney, and a small opening as a backdoor. In 1857 it was noted that the "top half" of the tree was broken off at about 150 feet, and that the tree was hollow. In the early 1880s, a tunnel was cut through the compartments by a private land owner at the request of James Sperry, founder of the Murphys Hotel, so that tourists could pass through it. The tree was chosen in part because of the large forest fire scar. The Pioneer Cabin Tree emulated the tunnel carved into Yosemite's
Wawona Tree The Wawona Tree, also known as the Wawona Tunnel Tree, was a famous giant sequoia that stood in Mariposa Grove, Yosemite National Park, California, United States, until February 1969. It had a height of and was in diameter at the base. The ...
, and was intended to compete with it for tourists. Since the 1880s and for more than 50 years, visitor
graffiti Graffiti (singular ''graffiti'', or ''graffito'' only in graffiti archeology) is writing or drawings made on a wall or other surface, usually without permission and within public view. Graffiti ranges from simple written "monikers" to elabor ...
was encouraged, but this practice was prohibited in the 1930s. At first only pedestrians were allowed to pass through the tree. Later, for many years, automobiles drove through it as part of the "Big Trees Trail". It was one of several drive-through trees in California. Subsequently, only hikers were allowed to pass through the tree's tunnel as part of the North Grove Loop hiking trail.


Fall

The Pioneer Cabin Tree fell during a rain storm and flooding on January 8, 2017. It was the strongest storm to hit the area in over a decade. The flooding, combined with the shallow root system of giant sequoias, likely caused it to fall. 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. It had been weakened by the severe damage caused by the tunnel carved through its trunk. The tree shattered on impact with the ground due to the brittle wood of mature sequoias. After the fall of the tree the park trail closed for a cleanup operation. Some sections of the tree remained intact, but the park's preservation policy prevented them from being cut up, for example to determine the tree's exact age. At least one observer suggested that the tree fell victim to the profit motive and greed, not just a storm, as it was one of several trees that were mutilated to promote tourism. California State Parks supervising ranger Tony Tealdi said in the modern day the hollowing out of a tree would not have been permitted.


Drive-through and other noted trees

This was one of several trees that were hollowed out for the amusement of tourists. The two
giant sequoia ''Sequoiadendron giganteum'' (also known as the giant sequoia, giant redwood, Sierra redwood or Wellingtonia) is a species of coniferous tree, classified in the family Cupressaceae in the subfamily Sequoioideae. Giant sequoia specimens are the la ...
drive-through trees have both fallen: *
Wawona Tree The Wawona Tree, also known as the Wawona Tunnel Tree, was a famous giant sequoia that stood in Mariposa Grove, Yosemite National Park, California, United States, until February 1969. It had a height of and was in diameter at the base. The ...
, in
Mariposa Grove Mariposa Grove is a sequoia grove located near Wawona, California, United States, in the southernmost part of Yosemite National Park. It is the largest grove of giant sequoias in the park, with several hundred mature specimens. Two of its trees ...
,
Yosemite National Park Yosemite National Park ( ) is a List of national parks of the United States, national park of the United States in California. It is bordered on the southeast by Sierra National Forest and on the northwest by Stanislaus National Forest. The p ...
, fell in 1969. *Pioneer Cabin Tree, in Calaveras Big Trees State Park, fell in 2017. Two walk-through giant sequoia tunnel trees still stand: *California tunnel tree in
Mariposa Grove Mariposa Grove is a sequoia grove located near Wawona, California, United States, in the southernmost part of Yosemite National Park. It is the largest grove of giant sequoias in the park, with several hundred mature specimens. Two of its trees ...
,
Yosemite National Park Yosemite National Park ( ) is a List of national parks of the United States, national park of the United States in California. It is bordered on the southeast by Sierra National Forest and on the northwest by Stanislaus National Forest. The p ...
*A dead tunnel tree in
Tuolumne Grove Tuolumne Grove is a giant sequoia grove located near Crane Flat in Yosemite National Park, at the southeastern edge of the Tuolumne River watershed. It is about west of Yosemite Village on Tioga Pass Road. The grove contains many conifers, ...
,
Yosemite National Park Yosemite National Park ( ) is a List of national parks of the United States, national park of the United States in California. It is bordered on the southeast by Sierra National Forest and on the northwest by Stanislaus National Forest. The p ...
Two others have edifices carved within: *
Hercules Tree The Hercules Tree in the Mountain Home Grove of California is a living giant sequoia tree that has a room carved into the center of it. It is also known as the "Room Tree". History A wealthy rancher from Lindsay, California, named Jesse Hoskins ( ...
in Mountain Home State Forest has a room carved into it, and it is still alive. * Tharp's Log in
Sequoia National Park Sequoia National Park is a List of national parks of the United States, national park of the United States in the southern Sierra Nevada (U.S.), Sierra Nevada east of Visalia, California. The park was established on September 25, 1890, and toda ...
Giant Forest The Giant Forest, famed for its giant sequoia trees, is within the United States' Sequoia National Park. This montane forest, situated at over above mean sea level in the western Sierra Nevada of California, covers an area of . The Giant Fore ...
, a fire-hollowed fallen giant, was utilized as part of a cattleman's cabin. Tunnel Log is a fallen giant sequoia tree in
Sequoia National Park Sequoia National Park is a List of national parks of the United States, national park of the United States in the southern Sierra Nevada (U.S.), Sierra Nevada east of Visalia, California. The park was established on September 25, 1890, and toda ...
. The tree, which measured 275 feet (84 m) tall and 21 feet (6.4 m) in diameter, fell across a park road in 1937 due to natural causes. The following year, a crew cut an 8-foot (2.4 m) tall, 17-foot (5.2 m) wide tunnel through the trunk, making the road passable again. There are three
coast redwood ''Sequoia sempervirens'' ()''Sunset Western Garden Book,'' 1995: 606–607 is the sole living species of the genus '' Sequoia'' in the cypress family Cupressaceae (formerly treated in Taxodiaceae). Common names include coast redwood, coast ...
trees that can be driven through near
US 101 U.S. Route 101, or U.S. Highway 101 (US 101), is a major north–south highway that traverses the states of California, Oregon, and Washington on the West Coast of the United States. It is part of the United States Numbered Highway Syst ...
in
northern California Northern California (commonly shortened to NorCal) is a geocultural region that comprises the northern portion of the U.S. state of California, spanning the northernmost 48 of the state's List of counties in California, 58 counties. Northern Ca ...
, namely: Klamath Tour Thru Tree; Shrine Drive-Thru Tree; and
Chandelier Tree The Chandelier Tree in Drive-Thru Tree Park is a tall coast redwood tree in Leggett, California, with a by hole cut through its base to allow a car to drive through. Its base measures diameter at breast height (chest-high). A historic sign p ...
. The loss of the Pioneer Cabin Tree occasioned an encomium to other important trees that still remain.


See also

*
List of giant sequoia groves This is a list of giant sequoia groves. All naturally occurring giant sequoia groves are located in the moist, unglaciated ridges and valleys of the western slope of the Sierra Nevada range in California, United States. They can be found at el ...
*
List of individual trees The following is a list of individual trees. Trees listed here are regarded as important or specific by their historical, national, locational, natural or mythological context. The list includes actual trees located throughout the world, as we ...
*
List of California state parks This is a list of parks, historic resources, reserves and recreation areas in the California State Parks system. List of parks See also * California State Beaches * List of California State Historic Parks * Parks in California *California Dep ...
*
Mother of the Forest Mother of the Forest was a Sequoiadendron_giganteum, giant sequoia in the Sierra Nevada that was stripped of its bark and used as an exhibition tree. Discovered in 1852 by Augustus T. Dowd, it was the second largest tree in Calaveras_Big_Trees_ ...
– a huge ''Sequoiadendron'' tree


Notes


References


Further reading

*


External links

*{{Commons category-inline 2010s individual tree deaths 2017 in California History of Calaveras County, California History of the Sierra Nevada (United States) Individual giant sequoia trees Roadside attractions in California 2017 disestablishments in California