Dawn Redwoods (Metasequoia glyptostroboides) are a coniferous tree with a fascinating paleontological history. They are a deciduous conifer, dropping their needles every fall, turning a beautiful copper color. Growing well over 100 feet tall, they have a conical, uniform shape with a fine, airy textured leaf. They are an endangered species in the Cupressaceae family and are closely related to Sequoias and Cypresses, unusual conifers that thrive in water. While noteworthy in appearances, their fascinating history is what intrigues plant lovers.

For hundreds of years, scientists found Redwood-like fossils in China, Japan, Eastern Siberia, Central Asia, and North America dating back 90 million years. Many of these fossils found in the American West date to 70 million years ago, the classic age of beasts like the Stegosaurus and Tyrannosaurus Rex. These fossils looked very much like Coastal Redwoods (Sequoia sempervirens). The consensus in the scientific community was that Coastal Redwoods, astounding trees only found in California that grow over 400 feet tall - populated these regions at various prehistoric times. The Metasequoia was unknown.

In 1941 a Japanese scientist named Shigeru Miki made a significant paleobotanical discovery. While studying an extraordinarily well preserved ancient Japanese tree fossil, he doubted it was a Coastal Redwood. He created the first genus for an extinct plant, and named the fossil 'Metasequoia glyptostroboides'. It was assumed that the Metasequoia had been extinct for millions of years.

In the same year, a second discovery was made. An uncertain and shaky Chinese government had moved into the wild interior of China following the Japanese invasion. As Professor T. Kan of the National Central University (NCU) was walking through a remote town within this interior, he noticed a very unusual and dynamic tree. Not only was this tree unique from a botanical perspective, but it had a small tile shrine built at the base of it. The villagers in this small town called Modaoqi said that they believed a god lived within this very old tree. He noted that specimens of this tree that looked something like a Chinese cypress needed to be collected.

Three years later specimens were collected, and brought to Prof. W. C. Cheng of the NCU. He also agreed that they were unusual, and brought them to the renowned botanical expert, Dr. H. H. Hu, in 1946. Dr. Hu, who trained at Harvard, was immediately impressed by the specimen. He studied it closely, and realized the similarities it had to the new 'Metasequoia' discovery five years prior. He checked over the papers again, and then confirmed the discovery. A living Metasequoia had been found, a mere five years after the genus - assumed to be extinct - was discovered.

Dr. Hu informed famous botanists and Professors from around the world, including Dr. Merrill, the Director of the Arnold Arboretum of Harvard University. Dr. Merrill, an Asiatic botany enthusiast, asked for an exploratory grant. Within a year seeds were acquired from this tall tree at Modaoqi, known as the "type" tree. The seeds were sent from China to the Arnold, and from there to nearly 100 institutions and persons worldwide, mostly in the U.S. This happened just before China's Communist Party took power, ending trade relations between China and the United States. Had this discovery happened five years later, Metasequoias would not be as old as they are in the U.S. today.

One of the institutions that the Arnold sent seeds to was U.C. Berkeley, where they were sent to Dr. Ralph Chaney, a paleobotanist and Chair of the Paleontology Department at Berkeley. He had been very intrigued by the Metasequoia discovery and had been asking Dr. Merrill and Dr. Hu for seeds for months. After receiving them he quickly went on trips planting them throughout the States. He then went on a very famous and well documented trip with a science reporter named Milton Silverman from the San Francisco Chronicle to China. They went to both Modaoqi, and to 'Metasequoia Valley', a small valley south of Modaoqi where up to a thousand old Metasesquoias live. This was widely covered by the media and made Dr. Chaney the assumed patriarch of Metasequoias, which in reality belongs to both Dr. Merrill and Dr. Chaney. A more complete version of this story is found on the U. C. Berkeley garden site.

The news of the Metasequoia discovery spread as quickly as their seeds were sown. This study involved collecting data on many of these original Metasequoias. The result is a database with 331 trees from 44 institutions. These are institutions from Vermont to Los Angeles, Georgia to Seattle, mostly botanical gardens and universities. The following data was collected: quantity per site, height, diameter at breast height (DBH), planting date, and seed source. This was done in an effort to understand the growing habits of Metasesquoia in the United States today. This is important because of the extremely brief recent history of the plant in the Americas. There is a lack of literature on the plant and my goal is to provide quantitative data that may contribute to future writings and understandings.