The Pinchot Sycamore is a large American sycamore

American sycamore

Platanus occidentalis, also known as American Sycamore, American plane, Occidental plane, and Buttonwood, is one of the species of Platanus native to North America...

 (Platanus occidentalis) in Simsbury, Connecticut

Simsbury, Connecticut

Simsbury is a suburban town in Hartford County, Connecticut, United States. The population was 23,234 at the 2000 census. The town was incorporated as Connecticut's twenty-first town in May 1670.-Early history:...

. It is the largest tree in Connecticut. When measured by the Connecticut Botanical Society in 1998, the Pinchot Sycamore was 26 feet around and 95 feet tall, with an average canopy diameter of 140 feet. The sycamore is estimated to be at least 200 years old, and possibly over 300 years old. The tree was named in honor of influential conservationist and Connecticut resident Gifford Pinchot

Gifford Pinchot

Gifford Pinchot was the first Chief of the United States Forest Service and the 28th Governor of Pennsylvania...

. It was originally dedicated to Pinchot in 1965, and re-dedicated with an engraved stone marker in 1975.

The Pinchot Sycamore is located on the east bank of the Farmington River

Farmington River

The Farmington River is a river located in northwest Connecticut, with major tributaries extending into southwest Massachusetts. Via its longest branch , the Farmington's length increases to , making it the Connecticut River's longest tributary by a mere over the major river directly to its...

, near the base of Talcott Mountain

Talcott Mountain

Talcott Montain of central Connecticut, with a high point of , is a long trap rock mountain ridge located west of the city of Hartford. The ridge, a prominent landscape feature, forms a continuous line of exposed western cliffs visible across the Farmington River valley from Farmington to Simsbury...

, south of the town center of Simsbury. Since the completion of the Pinchot Sycamore Lighting Project by the town in 1997, the tree is lit by floodlights at night. The Pinchot Sycamore Park surrounds the tree; the park includes a launching point onto the Farmington River for small boats. It is a popular area for canoeing

Canoeing

Canoeing is an outdoor activity that involves a special kind of canoe.Open canoes may be 'poled' , sailed, 'lined and tracked' or even 'gunnel-bobbed'....

.

According to the conservation group American Forests

American Forests

American Forests is a 501 non-profit conservation organization dedicated to protecting and restoring healthy forest ecosystems. Their stated mission is to "grow a healthier world with trees". The organization was established in 1875 as the American Forestry Association by physician and...

 in 2000, the Pinchot Sycamore was scheduled to be listed in the 2001 edition of the National Register of Big Trees

National Register of Big Trees

The National Register of Big Trees is a list of the largest living specimens of each tree variety found in the continental United States. A tree on this list is often called a National Champion Tree....

 as one of the two largest known American sycamores in the United States, tied with a tree in Bath County, Virginia

Bath County, Virginia

As of the census of 2000, there were 5,048 people, 2,053 households, and 1,451 families residing in the county. The population density was 10 people per square mile . There were 2,896 housing units at an average density of 5 per square mile...

. In the 2008-2009 edition, a larger tree in Ashland, Ohio

Ashland, Ohio

Ashland is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Ashland County. The population was 21,249 at the 2000 census. It is the center of the Ashland Micropolitan Statistical Area...

is listed as the champion American sycamore.

In 2005, a guitar made from a fallen bough of the Pinchot Sycamore was auctioned off by the Farmington River Watershed Association.