Loggers Cut Down One Tree That Held a Surprising Discovery

Suppose you showed up to work on an ordinary day, and suddenly the day turns into a wild adventure and ends in one of the most intriguing discoveries? You’d look forward to the next few days at work, probably even fall in love with your job all over again. Gone will be the drab, dull, boring days. That said, you might struggle to imagine an intriguing day at work, particularly if you feel stuck in what you may imagine being the most dead-end job. However, an unforgettable memory or day at work can still creep up on you, even if you were a logger. What exciting thing would happen in a normal logger’s life? You are about to find out.

Surprise Surprise!

On a normal day, a logger and his colleagues are usually assigned enough trees to keep them busy and meet their quota. The logger had kept the power saws roaring throughout the day to fulfill the builder’s construction requirements. Like any other day, the logger and his team launched into the day’s task in earnest.

But just as the power saws were warming up, the team realized that they had to stop--they saw something that brought their operations to a cold halt.

Business Unusual

It was going smoothly for the woodcutters of Georgia Kraft Co. until the teeth of the first power saw first began to grind against a particular tree. It would give the entire team the most unimaginable experience of their lives. Even today, the loggers still recount the experience with great amusement.

The world is full of illogical occurrences, and even when science tries to step in and cast a revealing light on the event, it can remain difficult to digest. But on this particular cloudy morning, what they were about to discover would remain cloudy, at least until they got some answers later.

Nothing Odd

Not too many people are excited about the logging profession. They are mostly frowned upon because of the nature of their work, that is, bringing down all those nice trees in the woods. But they are somewhat tolerated in Jasper City where every family has a direct or indirect link to the logging industry.

The beautiful city is located Pickens County, Georgia, and next to vastly spread mountains like Big Canoe, Bent Tree, and the Sharp Mountain Preserve. It’s often known as “the first mountain city.”

Not Your Average Good Wood

A large mass of American Chestnut trees surrounds the mountains near Jasper city, providing a rich source of income due to their commercial value. Chestnut trees generally burst from the ground and begin to tower above the ground in a much shorter time than oak trees. A fungal infection had threatened to wipe out the American species back in the early 20th century.

But somehow they survived and are now spread across eastern North American regions like Nova Scotia, New Hampshire, Tennessee, Alabama, and Georgia. They have unique characteristics, but the loggers were about to discover something that had never been seen.

Lunchbreak

One fine morning in 1980, about 7-8 Georgia Kraft Co. workers left their homes for work just after 10 AM. They all sat in an empty truck that was barreling towards the location for the day. There was too much work that needed to be completed before the end of that day.

The loggers set about their various tasks immediately upon arriving at the site. It was a completely normal day, at least until lunchtime. As soon as they resumed their duties after their lunch break, they noticed something odd about one of the trees.

The Strange Tree

They were right on schedule and they’d chopped down most of the chestnut trees they were supposed to. Only a few of them remained, including a particularly lightweight one that seemed to be a hollow inside.

At a glance, it seemed like it would require the easiest of efforts as compared to the rest of the trees. However, the tree contained a hideous secret within itself and one that they were about to unearth.

Something Was Not Right About That Tree

As soon as the tree trunk had fallen on its side, the loggers began to cut it into smaller sizes for easier transportation. But while going about this routine procedure, one of the loggers noticed something unusual. They had previously assumed the tree was hollow, and they were partly right.

In that case, sunlight should have been passing through the trunk, from one end to the other. But this wasn't the case, which meant one of two things; the tree was not hollow or there was something stuck in between.

A Black Hole?

People looking at the tree trunk from a distance described it as looking like a black hole inside a tree. But whichever way they looked at it, it looked both fascinating and intriguing at the same time.

One could easily mistake it for a stem growing inside a tree. But it looked much weirder than that.

Just One Alternative

While the loggers exchanged quizzing looks about what could be blocking the light from passing through, they faced another dilemma; who was going to go inside and check out what was blocking the light from coming through the hollow tree?

Suspicions ran wild among the community and no one was volunteering initially. They all agreed that it couldn’t be anything dangerous but still, there was a general hesitation.

Check-It-Out

The loggers appeared to have reached a stalemate when one of them suddenly offered himself up to get into the hollow trunk and solve the mystery. The brave volunteer bent forward and stuck half of his body inside to try and get a closer look.

But then he jumped back out in a shriek and for a few seconds, couldn’t even bring himself to describe what he’d just seen.

A Beast!?

His colleagues came all over him as soon as he’d caught his breath, glaring at him with curious faces. But he just stood there, pale and spellbound by what he’d seen. By then, his colleagues’ curiosity had reached boiling levels. When he finally spoke, he informed them that he’d seen a beast.

They didn’t immediately believe him even though they were still scared, so much so that every one of them had stopped working. It’s not every day the loggers get caught in the middle of confusing circumstances.

What Was This Thing?

Several other loggers peeked for a quick look and came out with looks of puzzlement in their faces. How on earth did such a thing get there? What was it in the first place? It was a dreadful scene for them, never mind that it would be the very first discovery of its kind.

And they were about to learn that not only scientists and archeologists make such discoveries.

Making a Phone Call

One thing was clear to the loggers; they were not going to be able to use the tree, and that they’d have to count it as a loss of their work. But they also knew that whatever was stuck in between the tree trunk was significant and valuable.

So they took the most logical step; they called their manager. But the manager instructed them to focus on completing the day’s work as required.

The Teeth

From a casual look, whatever was stuck in the tree seemed like a monster trying to jump out. Others saw it as a ferocious canine, growling and baring its teeth. Despite the varying descriptions, one thing was clear to anyone who looked in; it was a living being.

Well, it wasn’t alive at the moment, but that it must have been there a while. Curiosity levels heightened, and everyone was itching to learn just how the monster got stuck in the hollow tree.

Frozen In Time

The way the creature was positioned in the trunk indicated that it might have been trying to move forward but then got frozen in time. Everyone wondered what could have happened to the creature. Questions and guesses flew around but only one of them was right.

The clue lay with the creature’s teeth, something they noticed after taking a closer, second or third look. It seemed pretty obvious as soon as they’d looked keenly.

A Pooch!

The creature had a long snout with sharp teeth and the paws were also visible. These features were visible because it had been close to the trunk’s top.

But the mystery only began to unfold when the loggers established that the creature was a dog. They sighed when they learned that this creature had been a living dog at some point in time.

Mummified Pooch?

People began to make all kinds of amusing descriptions, with others calling it a mummified dog. But what in the world would a mummified dog be doing in there? They were not in ancient Egypt and the dead dog was certainly not buried in a coffin.

The creature wasn’t even mummified in the first place. It seemed the dog had simply obeyed a command to freeze and stay still until he died. And he agreed. But this was only speculation.

More Valuable

While the loggers agreed that leaving the trunk uncut would affect their profit margins, they were aware it was too valuable to just chop it down into pieces. They elected to not cut it down any further and to absorb the costs.

It was a wise choice since the trunk would reveal so much more about human lives than they couldn't possibly believe themselves.

Let’s Get Down To Some Research

Soon after completing the day’s tasks, the loggers hauled the trunk to what they felt would be the right place. It was the place, they figured, where all their queries about the strange dog and its tree would begin to unravel.

None of them could imagine or even fathom the mystery of what happened to the dog. But they were going to get to the bottom of it.

A Long Road To Answers

The right place to take the trunk was to the scientists who, the loggers figured, could come up with the necessary answers. But it turned to be a long wait because it took more than a year before they got any answers from the scientists.

In 1981, a year after the discovery, the scientists finally came up with the answers. The loggers were relieved to have the mystery solved. However, they couldn’t help but feel sad about the real story of the pooch.

The Southern Forest

In Waycross, Georgia stands a museum called The Southern Forest World. The museum was opened under the Southeastern United States’ industry of forestry. It features a collection of wood production from colonial America to modern-day farming techniques.

It was here that the canine ended up, still held within the tree trunk, as an artifact for the people. They had decided to donate it to the museum authorities who’d helped solve the mystery.

The Popular Exhibit

When the loggers took the tree trunk to Southern Forest World, the authorities were yet to inaugurate the museum. From all indications, the exhibition was going to be a success. But the museum needed the backstory of the dog. Then, the only information they had was the fact that the loggers had discovered the trunk.

They wanted the real story. Kristina Killgrove, a biological anthropologist, came into the scene to help establish the possible background.

Bottom Of The Mystery

Thanks to her expertise, Kristina would provide the right advice and information after examining the canine inside the trunk. She initially appeared to confirm the earlier observations that the dog might have been mummified. But then she quickly dismissed the observations, indicating that they were not practically possible.

However, the biological anthropologist based at the University of West Florida had the exact explainable answers.

Preserved

Kristine broke down the explanation bit by bit, beginning with the process of tissue decay that began the putrefying process when microbes began to eat up the tissue soon after dying.

“They grow, they reproduce, and they start taking over the body,” the anthropologist explained. Of course, this was a more logical explanation.

Keeping It Alive

As it turned out, Chestnut trees contained tannin and desiccant, an organic substance that can absorb moisture. Kristine explained that this was, in fact, a distinctive characteristic of a chestnut tree, and one which prevented nature from taking its course. Therefore, the body of the canine lasted much longer in such an environment.

The lack of moisture stopped the microbes from eating up the body tissue. But that was only half the explanation. What about scavengers who could smell the body from afar and come running towards the potential food?

Hiding The Scent

“Anything that would eat dead flesh would never know he was in the tree,” Bertha Sue Dixon, Southern Forest World’s director added. Since there were no active microbes, there was no smell to lure flesh eaters. And even if there was some smell, it was blown upwards through the hollow trunk and away from potential scavengers.

All of this made sense but the big question still lingered in the minds of many people; how did the dog get there?

The Final Chase

According to Bertha, the canine was a hunting dog and he must have been chasing something in the tree. In 1960, the dog was aged four when he died. He must have been chasing a raccoon or a squirrel, entering through any hole and following it deep inside the trunk.

He may even have attempted to dig his way through and, being a dog, probably never noticed that the trunk was getting narrower towards the top. This bit of the explanation amused everyone who knew just how high he got stuck.

Too High

The dog must have been relentless because he never gave up inching up the trunk until he’d gone 28 feet high. He was never able to extract himself from the chestnut tree and died there. “A chimney effect occurred in the hollow tree, resulting in an upward draft of air. This caused the scent of the dead animal to be carried away, which otherwise would have attracted insects and other organisms that feed on dead animals.

The hollow tree also provided relatively dry conditions, and the tannic acid of the oak helped harden the animal’s skin,” the museum explained. But people already had some different thoughts about the animal and even proceeded to give him a name.

What’s His Name?

Until 2002, the mystery dog didn’t have a name. It was popular at the Southern Forest World as the mummified dog and occupied the center of the museum, in the middle of important tree species such as cypress, pine, and oak.

Today he stands as an ambassador of the museum, which now uses his image in most of its promotional materials and postcards.

Hello Stuckie

Having been known as the “Mummified Dog” for years, the dog was finally given the name Stuckie. The name had emerged after a spirited naming contest where three names, “Stuckie, ” “Chipper,” and “Dogwood” received most of the votes. But it was “Stuckie” that came out as the most popular name.

Someone pointed that the dog’s trunk coffin was similar to “pecan logs,” usually sold in Stuckey’s stores. To avert potential trademark’s issue, the museum slightly modified the spelling. However, this was still not the saddest part of the story.

The Sad Part

Brandy Stevenson, Forest World’s manager, often got queries about the dog as more and more people remained concerned about its body.

“People always ask me, ‘How did he get in there?’ And I always say, ‘Well, he was a hound dog. Maybe he was after a coon.’ And then they’ll say, ‘Poor old thing. I feel so sorry for him.'”

Release Him

There are differing opinions on what the museum ought to do with Stuckie, with some indicating that he should be given a decent burial rather than remain on display.

People raise questions on whether it’s okay to have his body displayed to visitors or if it should be resting in peace.

Not That Easy

But Stuckie had been stuck inside the hollow chestnut tree for years and his body was somewhat intact. Ever since his arrival in the museum, Stuckie has been one of the main attractions of the museum so the idea of letting him go has never come up for discussion.

It seems pretty much out of the question because the museum insists that he’ll remain on display to create awareness among kids.

Holding On

Whether or not people feel any pity for Stuckie, they find his story quite intriguing. Therefore, he is going to stay put where he has been for the past few decades now.

You can take your family and friends for a fun day outing and go visit him in Southern Forest World in Waycross, Georgia.