Star Trees
Planted at commencement in 1942 as the "Temple of the Centuries" to honor the University's centennial, each giant Sequoia has a ceramic plate beneath it containing historical information about Willamette. If a person stands in the center of the trees and looks upward, the five trees create a star-shaped view of the sky. The community fathers on the first Saturday in December to watch the lighting of the Star Trees, signaling the start of the holiday season.