Sequoias are a marvel of nature, towering above every other type of three. This combined with the fact that they take millennia to grow, and only do so in very specific climates made many skeptical about their existence. One specific tree named after Mark Twain was chosen to aid with that in 1891.
The Mark Twain tree was a giant sequoia at the edge of the then-new Sequoia National Park. Named after the prolific writer, this 16-foot (4.9 meters) in diameter tree was one of the last remaining giants in the grove. While the cutting down of the trees was no longer allowed at this point, an exception was made for this tree for scientific reasons. Namely, many people worldwide did not believe Sequoias were real.
The men from Bill Mills and S.D Phips cut down the tree and prepared cuts from the thickest part of the tree to be shipped out. One segment ended up in New York’s American museum of Natural History, and the other was sent to the British museum in Londen. Both pieces are still on display there wowing guests for over a century, dispelling all doubt of Sequoias. However, these two cuts are not the only remnant of the tree, as the stump that was left after the cutting is still in its original location in the park.
Lined with a little staircase, the stump is a popular photo spot as it is the most accessible of all the stumps in the area, as well as the biggest. People taking photos on it seem absurdly small, to the point where it seems like photoshop.
