Claquato Pioneer Fir - Revisited
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Difficulty:
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Terrain:
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Size: 
(micro)
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The original traditional cache, placed by Jellis on May 2, 2008 and I adopted on May 18, 2009, needed to be archived as the container was placed near the tree. The Claquato Cemetery Association and I agree that this was no longer acceptable. The new location is outside the cemetery perimeter with nearby parking for one maybe two vehicles.
Please observe cemetery rules and hours of operation.
The stated coordinates will lead you to a plaque placed on the north side of the tree. Please follow these instructions.
The Arithmetic Section:
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Acquire the four digit date from the plaque.
============== North Coordinates =============
1) Add the date digits to come up with a two digit number
2) Multiple the sum by 5
3) Add 8 to that number to yield a three digit number ABC
4) The checksum = 9
5) Add ABC to the stated decimal minutes (.766) to provide a new value. ___ ___ ___
============== West Coordinates =============
1) Add the date digits to come up with a two digit number
2) Multiple the sum by 4
3) Subtract 3 from that number to yield a two digit number XY
4) The checksum = 14
5) Subtract XY from stated decimal minutes (.384) to provide a new value. ___ ___ ___
Do NOT drive through the cemetery to the final location. Utilize the perimeter roads.
History Section:
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The Claquato Pioneer Fir is an enormous native Douglas fir, Psuedotsuga menzeisii, that once sheltered nineteenth-century travelers in transit between Portland and Olympia and other points north. It stood north of Claquato, a town founded in 1852. Although it has since faded to obscurity, Claquato was once a bustling community with general stores, hotels, a blacksmith, stables, and other businesses. Not everyone who came through town could afford the price of a hotel, and the Pioneer Fir offered rustic accommodations for those traveling by covered wagon, on horseback, or by foot. The tree was close enough to town to offer a degree of safety and big enough to keep off winter rain and summer sun. The emigrants had spent many nights in places that were much worse.
When travelers camped under it 150 years ago, the Pioneer Tree was already ancient. It and a couple nearby trees are old-growth, and such trees are typically centuries old. Instead of the classic Christmas-tree shape with a thick trunk topped by a cone of foliage, this Doug fir is an octopus tree. It branches just a few feet above the ground and has four massive branches, each one the size of an average tree. These thick branches reach out and then up to form a wide-spreading canopy that is easily two or three times the size of typical Douglas fir. It measures more than 100 feet wide and offers plenty of room for several prairie schooners to set up camp under its sheltering branches.
Octopus trees, named because their branches spread like octopus arms, are not common. They grow this way because they lost part, but not all, of their crowns when they were young. Not all trees survive such damage, which can be caused by winter storms. Those that do usually have a branch just below the break that gradually starts growing straight up, and eventually becomes the tree's leader. Octopus trees take a different approach. Instead of one branch going vertical, three or four or five do. None become dominant, and they all grow into huge branches. Such trees can survive for centuries, and grow enormous, as has this particular tree.
The Pioneer Fir is located at the Claquato Cemetery. From Centralia, take Highway 6 west about two miles and turn right on Chilvers Road and then almost immediately left on Stearns Road. Follow Stearns up the hill and beyond the first cemetery entrance (red brick). Continue past Water Street to the Memorial Gate (gray stone). Turn right. At the first fork, take the right and drive about halfway around the circle to the north side. The Pioneer Fir is located on the left, opposite a fork in the road. A plaque marks the tree. It reads, "Claquato Pioneer Fir, A Shelter for First Settlers, Dedicated XXXX as a Memorial to Their Fortitude." The Pioneer Fir is the biggest tree in the cemetery, and is visible from just inside the gate.
Sources:
• Lewis County Historical Society
• Claquato Cemetery Association
---------------- Claquato Cemetery ------------------------
The Claquato Cemetery exists today as the most vital legacy of the Davis family, who came west in 1851 and established the village of Claquato (“high prairie” in the Chehalis Indian language). Through a series of additions, enhancements, and far-sighted plans, the cemetery continues to represent the brightest hopes of its founders.
Situated on the brow of a hill, overlooking the Chehalis River valley and the Cascade Mountains to the east, the cemetery commands a peaceful and scenic view of southwest Washington. It beckons to all those who value the serenity and beauty found there—from pioneer families whose members were buried 150 years ago, to today’s residents who have visited the cemetery and appreciate the care and dedication apparent in the landscaped grounds. Many who have moved out of Lewis County will return to be buried here at Claquato.
Lewis Hawkins Davis originally donated a small parcel of land to be used as a final resting place for those loved ones who have passed on from this life. The first burial was young Mary Spinning in 1856. Other pioneer burials followed. In 1893, the International Order of Odd Fellows platted a five-acre cemetery tract near the Davis parcel, for the use of their members.
By 1920, the Claquato Cemetery Association was formed and purchased a 20-acre portion of the Davis estate. Voluntary contributions and portions of lot sale prices were used to form endowment funds, the principal of which can never be reduced. The interest is used for perpetual care and upkeep of the grounds. The Cemetery Association was formed as a non-profit entity, and its directors have always served without compensation.
In the early years of the 20th Century, county founders showed their belief in the Claquato Cemetery, and other residents followed suit. Claquato gained acceptance as the preferred burial site for local residents. Its pioneer history, timeless beauty, and enlightened endowment plan made it the premiere cemetery of the area.
Over the years, many improvements have been made to the grounds. In 1927, local women formed a Women’s Auxiliary to beautify the site, and a water system was installed, bringing irrigation water up from the nearby Chehalis River. Also in the 1920s, a “Baby Rose Garden” was established to offer a quiet spot where infants could be laid to rest, and parents could fine solace and comfort.
In 1937, the huge fir tree within the cemetery was dedicated as the “Pioneer Tree” under which so many early settlers found shelter. A bronze plaque on the tree attests to its importance to the pioneers. In following years, many new plantings of ornamental shrubs, trees and flowers enhanced the stately grounds. Another 16-acre plot was added to the cemetery’s holdings.
By the 1950s, the Ridgely Lodge of IOOF established an adjoining tract of land called Sunset Memorial Gardens. In 1973, Sunset merged with the Claquato Cemetery Association to create one cemetery under the direction of the non-profit board.
Today, the approximately 70 acres under the care of the Association continue to offer a unique resting place. Unlike other cemeteries that suffer from neglect and vandalism, the Claquato Cemetery sustains its founders’ goal: to provide a burial place of lasting beauty, with freedom from industrial encroachment, and with a permanent endowment fund and public trust dedicated to perpetual care.
Claquato Cemetery preserves a sense of history and tradition while meeting contemporary needs and expectations, blending old and new in a natural setting. We invite you to visit the Claquato Cemetery, and experience for yourself the serenity and beauty found there.
Sources:
• Claquato Cemetery Association
• www.claquatocemetery.com
Additional Hints
(Decrypt)
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