Friday, March 20, 2009

Old Redwood Tree


For today’s post we have a then & now shot from the Marketplace. What a wonderful place the Marketplace once was. It was full of wonderfully fun things to see! Sadly most of the features that made it so special are now long gone. One of those special features was the old “Redwood Tree” stump that used to sit behind Virginia’s gift shop. It was from this very piece of tree that I learned about counting the rings to find out a trees age. I remember trying to count those rings and never being able to make it all the way through without losing track. These are the simple pleasures that make the memories of a lifetime.

The sign reads “This cross section is from a coast redwood. It was over 780 years old, over 13 feet through and nearly 300 feet high. It had its first birthday in 1161.”

This same area today. In this space now resides a phone booth, which in it's defense is fast becoming a relic of the past that may one day be marveled.

I am not sure when the Redwood Tree was removed but I know it has been gone for quite some time. Does anyone know approximately when it was removed?


So long for now! Take care and Thanks for Readin'

4 comments:

PTA Transit Authority said...

Boy do I remember this. Very, very nice.

ItsNotAPlace said...

wow. When was that tree removed? I don't remember it, but it looks like it would have been fun to see.

Another thing that used to be in the marketplace courtyard (in the rose garden area) was the multi-faced Town Clock (now known as the Dreger Clock) and which is being restored... but not at Knotts. Read more about it here: http://www.dregerclock.org

TokyoMagic! said...

LTK, I can answer your question. I was hired in Spring of '82 and it was still there, but it had a metal railing around it. They took it out two years later in 1984 when they did a refurb of the Marketplace area. I don't know if it was saved or not.

Those smaller signs on the surface of the tree stump gave the dates of certain historical events that took place during the tree's lifetime.

Let's Talk Knott's said...

Thanks "TM" for the time of removal for the old stump.