30-04-2025
Tuesday storm uproots historic tree in Jordan Valley Park
SPRINGFIELD, Mo. — The Springfield-Greene County Park Board says a landmark of Jordan Valley Park was lost to the severe storms that hit Springfield on Tuesday.
The Horton Alexander Hackberry tree — called the oldest tree in Jordan Valley Park — was toppled Tuesday morning. It was the first tree to be designated under the Tree City USA program, which began in 1985.
The Park Board estimates the tree to have been 150-200 years old.
'[The tree] stood as a symbol of strength and legacy in the heart of our city,' the Park Board stated in a Facebook post. 'Though we're saddened by its loss, we're grateful for the decades it watched over our downtown and inspired our community.'
The hackberry tree was named in part after Jan Knauer Horton, who was the first executive director of the Community Foundation of the Ozarks, the Park Board says.
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