![]() ![]() The Mingo Oak was the largest specimen of these giant white oaks that dotted the old-growth forests of pre-settlement West Virginia. Holden was the base of operations of the Island Creek Coal Company, which leased the land where the tree was located. The county was in turn named for the Mingo Iroquois peoples, of which Native American war leader Logan was affiliated. The tree was located near the census-designated place of Holden, 10 miles (16 km) from Logan and 1 mile (1.6 km) from the Logan County line in Mingo County, from which it took its name. The Mingo Oak, known alternatively as the Mingo White Oak, was a white oak that stood in such a cove at the base of Trace Mountain on a shelf near the headwaters of the Trace Fork of Pigeon Creek, a tributary stream of Tug Fork. White oaks also thrive in moist lowlands and in upland topography, with the exception of extremely dry ridges with shallow soil. According to botanist Earl Lemley Core, the species flourishes on northern mountain flanks, and in coves, which are small valleys or ravines between two ridge lines that are closed at one or both ends. While the white oak's range encompasses most of the Eastern United States, the most favorable environments for its growth are on the western slopes of the Appalachian Mountains. The largest of the tree species in this virgin timbershed was the white oak ( Quercus alba), which often exceeded 100 feet (30 m) in height and 6 feet (1.8 m) in diameter. The cove forests of the Appalachian Mountains were undisturbed for approximately 300 million years, and the ample moisture and deep soils of cove topography allowed for the proliferation of temperate broadleaf and mixed forest species. Prior to the arrival of European American settlers and explorers, the Allegheny Plateau region of West Virginia, lying to the west of the Allegheny and Cumberland mountain ranges of the Appalachian Mountains, was overlaid with old-growth forests consisting predominantly of deciduous mixed oaks and chestnut trees. Under the terms of the Island Creek Coal Company's lease with the West Virginia Game, Fish, and Forestry Commission, the land's lease around the former tree reverted to the company following the tree's felling.Ī map illustrating the Allegheny Plateau and the Allegheny and Cumberland mountain ranges of the Appalachian Mountains The tree was felled with fanfare on September 23, 1938, with transections being sent to the Smithsonian Institution and the West Virginia State Museum. The prevailing theory is that the tree died from the release of poisonous gases and sulfur fumes from a burning spoil tip in nearby Trace Gap. The commission cleared the surrounding land and made improvements such as seating and picnic accommodations for visitors.īy the spring of 1938, the Mingo Oak failed to produce leaves, and on May of that year, West Virginia state forester D. B. The Island Creek Coal Company, the North East Lumber Company, and the Cole and Crane Real Estate Trust leased 1.5 acres (0.61 ha) encompassing the tree to the West Virginia Game, Fish, and Forestry Commission for it to be managed as a state park for the life of the tree. ![]() ![]() Using borings from the tree, the Smithsonian Institution determined that the Mingo Oak was the oldest tree of its species. Various estimates place the Mingo Oak's seeding between 13 AD. While the tree had long been known about for its size, the unique status of the Mingo Oak was not recognized until 1931, when John Keadle and Leonard Bradshaw of Williamson took measurements of the tree, and found it to be the largest living white oak in the world. Following the tree's felling in 1938, it was estimated to weigh approximately 5,400 long tons (5,500 t). Assessments of its potential board lumber ranged from 15,000 feet (4,600 m) to 40,000 feet (12,000 m). The tree's trunk measured 9 feet 10 inches (3.00 m) in diameter and the circumference of its base measured 30 feet 9 inches (9.37 m). Its crown measured 130 feet (40 m) in diameter and 60 feet (18 m) in height. The tree reached a height of over 200 feet (61 m), and its trunk was 145 feet (44 m) in height. The Mingo Oak stood in Mingo County, West Virginia, in a cove at the base of Trace Mountain near the headwaters of the Trace Fork of Pigeon Creek, a tributary stream of Tug Fork. First recognized for its age and size in 1931, the Mingo Oak was the oldest and largest living white oak tree in the world until its death in 1938. The Mingo Oak (also known as the Mingo White Oak) was a white oak ( Quercus alba) in the U.S. West Virginia Game, Fish, and Forestry Commission ![]()
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