Mark Twain Tree

The Mark Twain Tree is the remaining stump of a giant sequoia in Kings Canyon National Park, USA, which before felling reached a height of about 331 feet (101 meters) and a trunk diameter of roughly 16 feet (4.9 meters) at ground level. The stump today sits along a walking trail and still shows the enormous scale of the original tree.

In 1891, lumbermen took 13 days to cut down this sequoia, which was more than 1,300 years old, and to send cross-sections to museums. Parts of the tree were later shipped to the American Museum of Natural History in New York and other institutions.

The annual rings of this sequoia were marked with handwritten notations to show events in human history that occurred during the tree's lifespan. Visitors can read these connections between natural growth and historical moments directly on the surface of the remaining stump.

The stump can be reached via the Big Stump Trail, which starts near the Grant Grove entrance at the Big Stump Picnic Area. The trail passes through an area with other remains of felled sequoias and is most easily walkable during summer months.

Cross-sections of this tree are displayed at both the American Museum of Natural History in New York and the Natural History Museum in London. This international distribution of the slices shows the practice at the time of dividing notable trees and presenting them scientifically across multiple continents.