MADERA, Calif. – Highway 99 is full of iconic roadside landmarks.

There is Buck Owens’ Crystal Palace in Bakersfield, the giant crate of Halo mandarins in Delano, the silhouettes of runners on a freeway overpass in McFarland and – just recently unveiled – the Merced Mammoths.

Less well known – but perhaps even more mysterious – is a pair of trees between Fresno and Madera, sometimes referred to as “the palm and the pine.” They have stood firmly in the median of a highway south of Madera for nearly a century.

Although their exact origin is unknown, many believe the trees represent the center of the state – the pine to the north and the palm to the south. Thousands of cars, semi-trucks and freight trains pass by daily. While most drivers probably don’t notice the spot, some seek it out and even say it evokes a sense of home.

But the trees won’t be here much longer.

They have to be demolished because of a planned motorway expansion. And although the transport authority plans to build another monument in their place, many locals are disappointed to lose a familiar landmark.

Catch a glimpse of the trees

Esther Quintanilla

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KVPR

If you’ve never noticed the two trees, you’re not alone. Even San Joaquin Valley locals who have driven up and down Highway 99 countless times can miss the landmark.

But if you look closely, you can see that the top of the pine tree protrudes above the traffic a mile or two from the site, and the palm fronds become visible as cars approach.

The trees are in full view for only about a second before—whoosh!—they disappear in the rearview mirror. The landmark, which stands out so much against the pink and white oleander bushes around it, can inspire awe even in those who don’t know its history.

Musicians are also impressed by the trees. Some have even immortalized the trees in folk and country songs, thus keeping their mythology alive.

In a 2020 ballad, country singer Bryan Lanning wrote, “I plant my roots where palm trees meet pine trees.”

Folk singer Danny O’Keefe’s 1970 song “In Northern California” tells the story of an affair between a man and an older woman in the land where palm trees meet pine trees.

“She had left me as if she had found me at the very last moment… in Northern California, where the palm meets the pine,” he wrote.

Earlier this year, a CBS station in Sacramento O’Keefe tracked downwho told them: “I’m sorry you’re cutting down the trees, but plant more of them. We need more trees, not fewer.”

A highway project that will change a landmark

But soon the place where the palm and the pine meet will change completely.

The California Department of Transportation (Caltrans) recently announced plans to widen the section of highway where the trees are located from four to six lanes. While the widening is intended to relieve traffic along the route, it means that the trees will have to be cut down.

“It’s just going to make commuting a lot easier,” said Caltrans spokesman Larry Johnson. “We have so many people driving from Madera to Fresno every day. We have so many trucks hauling produce and agricultural products.”

The authority estimates that 80,000 cars travel on the highway every day. In two decades, this number could be as high as 130,000.

Esther Quintanilla

/

KVPR

“This additional lane will be a real benefit for everyone,” Johnson said.

The construction work on the motorway is Start expected at the end of 2025and is expected to cost around $127 million. The project could take two to three years to complete.

But the project also aims to keep the essence of the landmark alive. Caltrans will palm trees and 15 pine trees along the roadside near where the trees now stand. Johnson said the new grove will have its own irrigation system so it can “thrive for years to come.”

The trees have a long history – and a mysterious origin

Caltrans is working with the Historic Highway 99 Association to ensure the trees are appropriately memorialized. The nonprofit organization is dedicated to preserving the route – including the location of the palm and pine.

“I was surprised at how much interest and attention there was for the trees,” said founder Michael Ballard.

Ballard, a historian who has conducted extensive research on the historic route and the trees, says no one seems to know who planted the trees there – or why.

While some believe farmers planted the trees to mark north and south between long rows of crops, the prevailing theory is that they represent the midpoint between Mexico and Oregon. (That’s not true, by the way – the exact center of the state is in the North Fork, both north and east of the site in the foothills of Madera County.)

Equally mysterious is when the trees appeared. Some local historians believe The location is off Highway 99.which was built in 1926. Ballard said the first newspaper clipping he could find mentioning the trees was from the 1920s.

According to Ballard, one of the trees standing today isn’t even original. In 2005, a storm knocked down the pine tree — sparking a public outcry to replace it. Two years later, Caltrans planted a new pine tree.

“Caltrans has recognized for many years that this is a significant point in local culture and history,” Ballard said.

He believes the proposal to plant the new grove would “carry on” the “legacy” of the original trees. But Ballard also hopes Caltrans will put up a commemorative sign exactly where they once stood. Perhaps, he suggested, it could be something similar to the signs put up in Oregon to commemorate the 45th parallelthe midpoint between the equator and the North Pole.

“One way or another, we’re going to make sure something gets done there and it gets done right,” Ballard said. “We don’t want this to just disappear and be lost.”

The locals also do not want to lose the location

About five miles south of the trees, at a TravelCenters of America rest area that was bustling on a recent afternoon, people waiting at the food court for snacks and meals for the trip told their own stories about the palm and the pine.

Esther Quintanilla

/

KVPR

Waiting for a chicken sandwich, Inderjit Singh, the owner of a local trucking company, said he had heard that the trees marked the site of a long-gone convenience store.

Traveler John Parraz drives from his home in Olympia, Washington, to Fresno several times a year to visit his son, who is studying at Fresno State. With a soft drink in hand, Parraz says the moment he passes the palm tree and the pine tree, he knows it’s only a few miles to being reunited with his son.

Sharlene Shepherd of Fresno didn’t know about the landmark despite living in the area for over 50 years. But when she learned about its history, she was shocked that it was going to be removed. She said she would “share the news with everyone” and even wondered if there was a petition to keep the site in place.

Jamie Hefner of Madera, who runs a wine and spirits tasting room at the rest stop, said she has driven past the trees “thousands and thousands of times, sometimes two or three times a day.”

The trees bring back childhood memories, Hefner said, of driving with her father in his Jeep and pickup truck. She, too, was surprised when she learned the trees were to be cut down.

“I really hate to see her go,” she said.