"The decay that's there isn't going to go away, it isn't going to get any better." That was the consulting arborist talking about the valley oak in the Diablo Road median, in an October 2000 report by SFGate. His August report to the town had recommended removing the tree right away.
On Friday, November 27, the Danville Area Chamber of Commerce and the Town of Danville will light that same oak for what the Chamber calls the 50th time. The tree is still standing because the town chose to hold it up. Since early 2001 the Old Oak Tree has stood inside a steel frame, so this year's golden anniversary also marks 25 years since the frame went up. Even the rule about where a birthday sign can go traces back to that 2001 frame.
The Report Danville Overruled
The trouble began with road work. Diablo Road ran only along the north side of the tree until 1976, when the southern lanes were paved and the oak ended up in a median with traffic on both sides. Damage to the root system already shows in photographs from about that time, SFGate reported.
A valley oak can keep a full, healthy-looking canopy while its roots decay underneath, so the problem went largely unnoticed until a 1987 town study found the tree, then about 300 years old, was nearing the end of its life. In fall 2000, arborists dug around the base of the trunk and drilled 42 holes into the roots. They found decay in about 75 percent of the spots they tested.
SFGate described the council's decision that October as nostalgia and sentiment winning out over cost and risk management. The Danville San Ramon newspaper later reported that one council member had suggested taking the tree down. Residents organized instead and formed the Support the Oak foundation, which raised money toward the cost of a support structure.
Two Designs on the Table
The structure the council agreed to in October 2000 wasn't the one that got built. Its first plan was a $150,000 steel cage meant to catch the tree when it eventually fell. The town also looked at a smaller frame that wrapped around the tree itself. Danville built the smaller one.
| The cage the town considered | The frame the town built | |
|---|---|---|
| Design | Steel framework spanning all four lanes of Diablo Road | 16-foot-high frame on six columns, circling the trunk and branches |
| Purpose | Catch the tree if it fell | Support the tree upright |
| Cost | About $150,000 | $70,000 |
| Status | Not built | Built in early 2001 |
The frame had critics. A month after the council vote, an SFGate column joked that the planned 16-foot frame of steel columns on concrete foundations would look like "the world's largest bus shelter," and that Danville might as well order a convincing artificial copy of a tree the column described as 65 feet tall and 100 feet wide. The town built the frame anyway, and 25 years later it's simply part of what the oak looks like.
Why the Birthday Signs Go on the Steel
The frame's effect shows up most in the posters people hang at the tree. Long before the frame, poster boards tied around the trunk marked birthdays, graduations and other milestones, according to SFGate's 2000 report. The custom continued once the frame went up, but the signs moved.
The town's guidelines, as reported by the Danville San Ramon newspaper in 2008, are:
- Signs hang on the steel frame, not on the tree.
- Signs stay up for no more than 48 hours.
- No soliciting or advertising.
- Date your sign and take it down yourself. If it stays up too long, town maintenance or code enforcement staff will remove it.
So the frame holds the branches up and also holds the posters, which keeps tape and twine off the trunk of a tree the town paid to protect. A town staff member told the paper the oak is "really a gateway, you know, the main entrance into town."
Counting to Fifty
The Chamber's 2026 materials call this year the golden anniversary and the 50th annual lighting. Other sources count differently. The 2008 Danville San Ramon story said the ceremony began in 1976, the same year the road was widened that started stressing the roots. A 2018 Town of Danville press release called that year's lighting the event's 40th. Those three counts point to slightly different starting years.
Estimates of the tree's age vary the same way. Reporting in 2000 put it at about 300 years. The Chamber's history sheet for this year says it's estimated at 350. The sources all agree on the order of events, though. The road was widened, the lighting tradition began around the same time, the roots weakened over the following decades, and Danville kept both the tree and the tradition.
The Younger Oak Just Down the Median
The 1987 study also led to a backup plan. In 1988 the town planted a replacement tree called "Son of Oak" just west of the original. SFGate described both trees in 2000 as standing in a narrow center median at the entrance to downtown. If you're standing near the old oak on lighting night, look west along the median for the younger tree, planted 38 years ago to take over someday.
Friday, November 27: The Night Itself
The Town calendar lists the 2026 Lighting of the Old Oak Tree for 5:00 to 8:00 p.m. at Hartz and Prospect Avenues. According to the Chamber, the evening includes:
- Holiday music from the Danville Girls Chorus and the chamber singers from Monte Vista High School and San Ramon High School.
- Father Christmas and the Snow Angel greeting the crowd.
- A procession down Diablo Road and through downtown to more entertainment and holiday treats.
Downtown businesses can sign up with the town to appear on an event activity map listing their special hours, promotions and offers for the night. Check that map for where to go after the lights come on.
The 2026 street closures and countdown time haven't been posted yet. Past years give a rough idea, but they aren't this year's plan:
- 2018: Streets closed from 1:00 to 9:00 p.m. Officials spoke at about 6:15 p.m., and then Father Christmas and the Snow Angel led the countdown.
- 2023: Several downtown streets closed from 4:00 to 9:00 p.m., Local News Matters reported.
- 2025: Programming started at 5:15 p.m. and the countdown was planned for 6:30 p.m., Danville San Ramon reported, with Hartz Avenue businesses open until 8:00 p.m.
Closures have started anywhere from 1:00 to 4:00 p.m. in past years, so check the Town of Danville calendar the week of Thanksgiving before deciding when to drive in or where to park.
The town has more holiday programming after the lighting. On Tuesday, December 1, the Town calendar lists a Buzz Session called "Holiday Walk and Shop Local" from 10:00 to 11:00 a.m. at the Senior Center on East Prospect Avenue.
Ashley grew up in Danville and loves hearing people's Old Oak Tree stories, whether it's a graduation poster on the frame or a first visit with Father Christmas. If you'd like to share yours, or want help planning around downtown on lighting night, Hector Mancera is happy to hear from you. Let's Connect.