Converse Basin Grove is a grove of giant sequoia (Sequoiadendron giganteum) trees in the Giant Sequoia National Monument in the Sierra Nevada, in Fresno County, California, 5 miles (8 km) north of General Grant Grove, just outside Kings Canyon National Park. Once home to the second-largest population of giant sequoias in the world, covering acres, the grove was extensively logged by the Sanger Lumber Company at the turn of the 20th century. The clearcutting of 8,000 giant sequoias, many of which were over 2,000 years old, resulted in the destruction of the old-growth forest ecosystem. The Converse Basin Grove has not recovered despite attempts at restoration in the 20th century. The planting of single-species conifer plantations and the practice of fire exclusion has resulted in two high intensity wildfires since the end of the logging era, further degrading the giant sequoia habitat. Despite these challenges, the grove offers opportunities for studying forest resilience and restoration efforts. Converse Basin Grove is home to several notable giant sequoia trees, including the Boole Tree, the sixth largest of its kind in the world, and the Chicago Stump, the remains of the General Noble Tree which was cut down for the 1893 World's Columbian Exposition. Another notable tree in the grove is the Muir Snag, which is believed to have been 3,500 years old at the time of its death, making it one of the oldest known giant sequoias. History Eponym Converse Basin was named after Charles Porter Converse. Converse was a founder of the Kings River Lumber Company and had planned to log the area in the 1860s. However, an economic recession interrupted Converse's plans. He left the company shortly after its founding. Logging Era Converse Basin was once the world's second-largest giant sequoia grove before it was logged of most of its giant sequoias between 1892–1918. The Kings River Lumber Company was refinanced as the Sanger Lumber Company and began logging the grove. They engaged in destructive clearcutting practices, cutting down 8,000 giant sequoias in a decade-long event that has been described as "the greatest orgy of destructive lumbering in the history of the world." Only 60-100 large specimens survived. Conservation Movement In the 1870s, the threat to Converse Basin motivated conservationists to take action. Colonel George W. Stewart, a newspaper publisher and editor, played a crucial role in linking local efforts to preserve giant sequoias to the national conservation movement. As