Metasequoia glyptostroboides, the dawn redwood, was originally known only from fossil remains dating back 70 million years until living specimens were discovered in China in 1944. Seeds gathered during a 1947 expedition were given to Carl S. English, horticulturist at the gardens at the Chittenden Locks in Seattle. He shared seeds with his Bellingham friend Mary Jane Moser, who planted them and gave one of the seedlings to LeVern Freimann. Knowing it would become a large tree, Freimann planted it on Courthouse grounds in 1953. Plans drawn in 1990 for a major remodeling of the Courthouse called for the tree's removal, but Tony Idczak, Parks Horticulturist, pointed out its significance to County Executive Shirley Van Zanten, who agreed it should be saved and directed the architect to reconfigure the building. The tree was preserved for future generations and is one of the largest living specimens of its kind in the United States.