Flickr - USCapitol - Capitol Christmas Tree - 2009

The Capitol Christmas Tree (formerly the Capitol Holiday Tree) is the decorated tree that is erected annually on the West Front Lawn of the United States Capitol, in Washington, D.C., to celebrate the

Christmas holiday season The Christmas season or the festive season (also known in some countries as the holiday season or the holidays) is an annually recurring period recognized in many Western and other countries that is generally considered to run from late November ...

. The selection, installation, and decoration of the tree are all overseen by the Superintendent of the Capitol Grounds of the Architect of the Capitol (AOC). The tree is traditionally lit by the

Speaker of the United States House of Representatives The speaker of the United States House of Representatives, commonly known as the speaker of the House, is the presiding officer of the United States House of Representatives. The office was established in 1789 by Article I, Section 2 of the U. ...

, joined by a essay contest winner during a ceremony at the beginning of December, and remains lit each night through

New Year's Day New Year's Day is a festival observed in most of the world on 1 January, the first day of the year in the modern Gregorian calendar. 1 January is also New Year's Day on the Julian calendar, but this is not the same day as the Gregorian one. Wh ...

. By tradition, the President and Vice President of the United States will not attend the tree lighting ceremony.

History

Records of the AOC indicate that a Christmas Tree was purchased in 1919; however, it was not until 1964, one year after the suggestion of John W. McCormack, the 53rd Speaker of the House, that a procedure was established for the installation of a yearly tree. The 1963 tree was a live Douglas-fir, purchased from a Pennsylvania nursery. It was re-decorated each year through 1967 when it was severely damaged in a wind storm and subsequently died as a result of root damage. After the 1963 tree died, white pines from Maryland were cut down and put on display for the 1968 and 1969 seasons. Beginning in 1970, trees have been provided by the

U.S. Forest Service The United States Forest Service (USFS) is an agency of the U.S. Department of Agriculture that administers the nation's 154 national forests and 20 national grasslands. The Forest Service manages of land. Major divisions of the agency in ...

from various

National Forests A state forest or national forest is a forest that is administered or protected by some agency of a sovereign state, sovereign or federated state, or territory (country subdivision), territory. Background The precise application of the terms va ...

. In the late 1990s, the ''Capitol Christmas Tree'' was renamed to the ''Capitol Holiday Tree''. There was never a clear explanation as to why the name change occurred, but the name change raised controversy. On November 29, 2005, the day after the 2005 tree arrived from New Mexico, the tree was renamed the ''Capitol Christmas Tree'' at the request of

Dennis Hastert John Dennis Hastert (; born January 2, 1942) is an American former politician and convicted felon who represented from 1987 to 2007 and served as the 51st speaker of the United States House of Representatives from 1999 to 2007. The longest-se ...

, the 59th Speaker of the House. Traditionally, The tree is lit following a 5 second countdown and the tree lighting ceremony has been followed by the playing of O Christmas Tree.

Trees

Gallery

Capitol Christmas Tree in Ukiah, California - 2021-10-31 - Sarah Stierch 02.jpg, Special semi-truck wrap for the 2021 Capitol Christmas Tree Capitol Christmas Tree in Ukiah, California - 2021-10-31 - Sarah Stierch 01.jpg, 2021 Capitol Christmas Tree in its transport Capitol Christmas Tree in Ukiah, California - 2021-10-31 - Sarah Stierch 08.jpg, People signing the truck transporting the 2021 Capitol Christmas Tree at an event in Ukiah, California File:Arrival of the 2022 Capitol Christmas Tree (52508817775).jpg, Arrival of the 2022 Capitol Christmas Tree

References

{{coords, 38.8898, -77.0112, display=title United States Capitol grounds Individual Christmas trees Recurring events established in 1963 1963 establishments in Washington, D.C. Christmas in Washington, D.C. Individual trees in the District of Columbia

History

Trees

Gallery

See also

References