The Stagg Tree, officially the Amos Alonzo Stagg Tree and formerly known as the Day Tree, is 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
Alder Creek Grove in
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 ...
's
Sierra Nevada mountains
The Sierra Nevada ( ) is a mountain range in the Western United States, between the Central Valley of California and the Great Basin. The vast majority of the range lies in the state of California, although the Carson Range spur lies primarily ...
. It is the
fifth largest tree in the world and the tallest giant sequoia south of the
Lincoln Tree
The Lincoln Tree is a huge Sequoiadendron giganteum, giant sequoia located in Giant Forest in Sequoia National Park. It is currently considered by many to be the List of largest giant sequoias, fourth largest tree in the world.
Description
The ...
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 features the second largest footprint of any living giant sequoia, measuring in circumference at ground level, and second only to the
Boole Tree. The tree is believed to be over 3,000 years old, making it one of the oldest living giant sequoias.
The Stagg tree has sat upon the private land of the Rouch family, making it the largest privately owned tree in the world. However, it remains freely accessible to the public.
History
The tree was renamed in 1960 after
Amos Alonzo Stagg
Amos Alonzo Stagg (August 16, 1862 – March 17, 1965) was an American athlete and college coach in multiple sports, primarily American football. He served as the head football coach at the International YMCA Training School (now called Springfie ...
(1862–1965), a pioneering football coach at the
University of Chicago
The University of Chicago (UChicago, Chicago, or UChi) is a Private university, private research university in Chicago, Illinois, United States. Its main campus is in the Hyde Park, Chicago, Hyde Park neighborhood on Chicago's South Side, Chic ...
who spent much of the last several decades of his life coaching in
Stockton in the nearby
San Joaquin Valley
The San Joaquin Valley ( ; Spanish language in California, Spanish: ''Valle de San Joaquín'') is the southern half of California's Central Valley (California), Central Valley. Famed as a major breadbasket, the San Joaquin Valley is an importa ...
.
In 1993, a group of climbers scaled the full height of the tree and discovered a hollow room inside its trunk near the very top.
On September 17, 2019, the
Save the Redwoods League
Save the Redwoods League is a nonprofit organization whose mission is to protect and restore coast redwood (''Sequoia sempervirens'') and giant sequoia (''Sequoiadendron giganteum'') trees through the preemptive purchase of development rights ...
announced it had agreed to pay the Rouch family $15.6 million by December 31 to formally protect Stagg and the
surrounding grove. Once the deal is finalized, the League plans to spend another $4.75 million on ecosystem studies and restoration work before handing the grove over to the
U.S. Forest Service
The United States Forest Service (USFS) is an agency within the U.S. Department of Agriculture. It administers the nation's 154 national forests and 20 national grasslands covering of land. The major divisions of the agency are the Chief's ...
to be incorporated into
Giant Sequoia National Monument
The Giant Sequoia National Monument is a U.S. National Monument located in the southern Sierra Nevada (U.S.), Sierra Nevada in eastern central California. It is administered by the United States Forest Service, U.S. Forest Service as part of th ...
.
[ It will then become the largest giant sequoia on land managed by the U.S. Forest Service, edging out the Boole Tree of ]Converse Basin Grove
Converse Basin Grove is a grove of giant sequoia (''Sequoiadendron giganteum'') trees in the Giant Sequoia National Monument in the Sierra Nevada, in Fresno County, California, 5 miles (8 km) north of General Grant Grove, just outsid ...
, the current largest on forest service land.
The Stagg tree was saved from the Castle Fire in 2020 by a sprinkler system set by firefighters.
Dimensions
L. Day noticed the tree in 1931 and, with help from two others, made measurements of it in 1932. Wendell Flint measured it in 1977 as follows:
See also
* List of largest giant sequoias
The giant sequoia (''Sequoiadendron giganteum'') is the world's most massive tree, and arguably the largest living organism on Earth. It is neither the tallest extant species of tree (that distinction belongs to the coast redwood), nor is it the ...
* 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 oldest trees
This is a list of the oldest-known trees, as reported in reliable sources. Definitions of what constitutes an individual tree vary. In addition, tree ages are derived from a variety of sources, including documented "tree-ring" ( dendrochronologic ...
References
External links
Composite image of the Stagg Tree; Copyright: photographer James BalogAerial footage of the Stagg Tree; Copyright: Animal Planet, Redwood Kings, 2013.
Natural history of Tulare County, California
Individual giant sequoia trees
History of Tulare County, California
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