Dendrochronological techniques were used to examine growth differences between paired “declined” and “healthy” oak trees (subgenus Erythrobalanus) in western North Carolina. Declined trees exhibited better growth prior to the late 1940’s. Following major growth reductions in the early 1950’s, in 1961, and in the late 1960’s for both health groups, annual radial growth of declined trees continued in a downward trend while growth of trees in the healthy class recovered, albeit at a somewhat reduced rate. By 1991, trees in the declined group exhibited typical decline symptoms.