Witness Tree

The Witness Tree Rooftop Lounge opening in the sparkling new Hotel Indigo on the waterfront will reportedly offer an “elevated” gastronomic experience with artisanal cocktails and a locally-inspired menu. While you are sipping on your Old Fashioned made with pomegranate molasses and Douglas fir infused bourbon and nibbling on your geoduck & chorizo tacos with foraged nettle reduction, you can enjoy views of the majestic Columbia River and take note of the former location of the venerable Witness Tree (may she rest In peace). Although the exact location is not visible from the restaurant, which is in the parking lot of Who Song & Larry’s, I appreciate the nod to an important piece of local history.

Photo credit: Vanishing Vancouver (Images of America: Washington) by Pat Jollota

According to the City of Vancouver’s Witness Tree Program website, the tree was a black cottonwood located at the south end of Main Street and was known to be an important meeting site for Native Americans, as well as a landing spot for traders with Hudson’s Bay Company. The original survey boundaries for Fort Vancouver used the Witness Tree as its southwest corner monument, and later city surveys also employed the tree in a similar manner. At its maturity, the tree stretched to a height of 75 feet, with a crown spread of 50 feet. Ultimately, the ravages of nature claimed the Witness Tree as continued erosion from the Columbia weakened the bank. The last remains of the tree washed away on June 29, 1911.

A weathered and graffitied plaque along the waterfront trail near the location of the tree stands as a reminder of this important landmark. I hereby declare June 29th to be Witness Tree Day, and I decree that all should gather at the rooftop lounge annually and raise a toast with our Salish juniper G&Ts with filbert bitters to the memory of the O.G. Witness Tree.

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