Stump King has been in business since 1961, when it was established by Walden Parker. Wald (as he is known by clients, friends, and family) left his professional career as a "court reporter" to try something new where he could enjoy the outdoors. He searched for different business opportunities, and decided to create his own specialty - which was grinding and removing stumps. 39 years later, Wald retired - after grinding and removing over 1 million stumps, according to his estimates. In June 2000, Kyle Knight, purchased the business from Wald - Kyle like Wald had also been searching for a business opportunity where he could also enjoy working outdoors.