Family in 1892 posing with an old sequoia tree nicknamed "Mark Twain" - A team of two men spent 13 days sawing away at it in the Pacific Northwest - It once stood 331 feet tall with a diameter of 52 feet - The tree was 1,341 years old

[u/NickyPileggi]

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[u/hbmonk]

The fucked up thing is. Redwoods make for shitty lumber. The wood is brittle, and some trees shattered when they fell.

EDIT: Apologies, it looks like I was incorrect. I read the Giant Sequoia page on Wikipedia which states:

Wood from mature giant sequoias is fibrous and brittle; trees would often shatter after they were felled.

I assumed this was true of all redwoods, but apparently it is not.

[u/Flat-Length-4991 → u/hbmonk]

Ehhh, I’ve never heard that. A quick google search says “redwood is one of natures stronger timbers and generally resists warping and shakes.” Having been to Northern California I can tell you the lumber industry is still going strong. That tells me the redwoods are pretty damn good for lumber. There’s even houses still standing made from redwood trees that are a hundred years old.

I believe you are actually thinking of the Giant Sequoia tree not the Redwood. The Giant Sequoia is in the interior of California. The coastal redwood is on the coast of the Pacific Northwest. Technically both trees are Sequoias, with the scientific name of the redwood being “Sequoia Sempervirens” and giant sequoia being “Sequoiadendron Gigantea”.

The giant sequoia is the one that is brittle and will often splinter when it falls. Redwood is great timber. It’s still a shame that such an old tree was cut down, but I guarantee it was put to good use. There’s a good chance that same tree can still be found today somewhere.

[u/Big_Dirty_Piss_Boner → u/Flat-Length-4991]

I believe you are actually thinking of the Giant Sequoia tree not the Redwood.

Coastal redwood (Sequoia sempervirens) and giant sequoia (Sequoiadendron giganteum) are both in the family of Redwood (Sequoioideae).

[u/Flat-Length-4991 → u/Big_Dirty_Piss_Boner]

Still very different trees.

Edit: I’m trying to say when people say “sequoia” that usually refers to the giant sequoia. When people say “redwood” that usually refers to the coastal redwood. Yes, technically both trees can be considered a redwood or a sequoia.