Senator (tree)
Encyclopedia
The Senator is the oldest pond cypress
tree in the world, located in Big Tree Park, Longwood, Florida
. It is 125 feet (38.1 m) tall, with a trunk diameter of 17.5 feet (5.3 m).
Indians and other Native American Indians who lived throughout Central Florida used this tree as a landmark. In the late 19th century, the tree attracted visitors even though much of the surrounding land was swamp
; reaching the tree was done by leaping from log to log. A walkway was later constructed by the Works Progress Administration
(WPA). In 1925, a hurricane destroyed the top of the tree, reducing its original height of 165 feet (50.3 m) to its present height of 119 feet (37 m). The Senator is named for Senator M.O. Overstreet, who donated the tree and surrounding land to Seminole County
for a park in 1927. In 1929, former president Calvin Coolidge
visited The Senator and dedicated the site with a commemorative bronze plaque. The plaque and portions of an iron fence were stolen by vandals in 1945 and never recovered.
Taxodium ascendens
Taxodium ascendens, also known as Pond Cypress, is a deciduous conifer of the genus Taxodium, native to North America. Many botanists treat it as a variety of Bald Cypress, Taxodium distichum Taxodium ascendens, also known as Pond Cypress, is a deciduous conifer of the genus Taxodium, native to...
tree in the world, located in Big Tree Park, Longwood, Florida
Longwood, Florida
Longwood is a city in Seminole County, Florida, USA. The population was 13,745 at the 2000 census. As of 2006, the population recorded by the U.S. Census Bureau is 13,491. It is part of the Orlando–Kissimmee-Sanford Metropolitan Statistical Area....
. It is 125 feet (38.1 m) tall, with a trunk diameter of 17.5 feet (5.3 m).
History
The SeminoleSeminole
The Seminole are a Native American people originally of Florida, who now reside primarily in that state and Oklahoma. The Seminole nation emerged in a process of ethnogenesis out of groups of Native Americans, most significantly Creeks from what is now Georgia and Alabama, who settled in Florida in...
Indians and other Native American Indians who lived throughout Central Florida used this tree as a landmark. In the late 19th century, the tree attracted visitors even though much of the surrounding land was swamp
Swamp
A swamp is a wetland with some flooding of large areas of land by shallow bodies of water. A swamp generally has a large number of hammocks, or dry-land protrusions, covered by aquatic vegetation, or vegetation that tolerates periodical inundation. The two main types of swamp are "true" or swamp...
; reaching the tree was done by leaping from log to log. A walkway was later constructed by the Works Progress Administration
Works Progress Administration
The Works Progress Administration was the largest and most ambitious New Deal agency, employing millions of unskilled workers to carry out public works projects, including the construction of public buildings and roads, and operated large arts, drama, media, and literacy projects...
(WPA). In 1925, a hurricane destroyed the top of the tree, reducing its original height of 165 feet (50.3 m) to its present height of 119 feet (37 m). The Senator is named for Senator M.O. Overstreet, who donated the tree and surrounding land to Seminole County
Seminole County, Florida
Seminole County is a county in the U.S. state of Florida. Located between Orlando to the south and Deland and Daytona Beach to the north, it is part of the Greater Orlando metropolitan area. Its county seat and largest city is Sanford...
for a park in 1927. In 1929, former president Calvin Coolidge
Calvin Coolidge
John Calvin Coolidge, Jr. was the 30th President of the United States . A Republican lawyer from Vermont, Coolidge worked his way up the ladder of Massachusetts state politics, eventually becoming governor of that state...
visited The Senator and dedicated the site with a commemorative bronze plaque. The plaque and portions of an iron fence were stolen by vandals in 1945 and never recovered.