Witness Trees

Plant or adopt a tree in honor or memory of a person, occasion or event. Trees are an important connection to the history and culture of our region.

For a minimum donation, you can commemorate special occasions and enhance our urban forest.

• Anyone can apply to the Witness Tree Program.
• If planting a new tree, we’ll work with you to find the right species for the right location.
• Trees can be planted or adopted in honor of cultural celebrations, births, graduations, holiday gifts, weddings, anniversaries, in honor of a loved one and more.

Download an application.

The City’s first Witness Tree

A cottonwood that stood at the foot of Main Street is considered to be Vancouver’s Witness Tree.

The tree stood witness to the history of our region:

• The cottonwood overlooked the peace pipe meeting of local Native American chiefs in the early 1800s.
• It was the landing point of the Hudson’s Bay Company fur traders around 1824.
• General O.O. Howard fixed the military post survey lines with the Witness Tree at its southwest corner.
• Surveyors who tracked the southwestern portion of Washington State drove a copper stake into the tree.
• In the mid 1800s, Amos and Esther Short included the cottonwood in their land claim.

The tree’s trunk grew to be five feet in diameter. The tree’s crown spread 50 feet at a height of 75 feet. In 1909, with large portions of the riverbank washed away by spring run-offs, the tree leaned out over the water until it could no longer support itself. Attached to the shore by a portion of its trunk and root system, the tree held on for two more years. 

On June 29, 1911, the tree tore loose and disappeared downstream. Before the tree fell, sightseers visited the tree and took away branches and bark. Pieces found their way into City Hall, the public library and the State Historical Society. Pieces of wood were carved into gavels. Many visitors planted branches in the ground that took root. Many offspring of this historic tree are believed to exist throughout the Vancouver urban area.

What do donations go towards?

$150 Certificate and a map with GPS coordinates to the recognized existing tree.  

$350 Certificate and a map with GPS coordinates. A tree of your choice planted on City property.

If you’d like to plant or adopt multiple Witness Trees, reach out to Urban Forestry. 

Donation schedule effective January 1, 2026. Donations are tax-deductible. 

To learn more or discuss your idea for a living tribute, call 360-487-8308 or email us at trees@cityofvancouver.us. 

Current Witness Tree inventory

Browse the tree inventory to learn more about the City’s Witness Trees. By participating in the Witness Tree program, you can add your own tree to the inventory.