capitol christmas tree

A crown jewel of American Christmas trees lit the night sky Dec. 3 as thousands of lights burst around the 88-foot-tall 2013 Capitol Christmas Tree. A momentary hush of silent awe overcame the crowd gathered on the west lawn of the U.S. Capitol to witness the ceremony that has origins dating back to 1964.

An eight-point star shimmered at the top of the 79-year-old Englemann spruce harvested from the Colville National Forest in Washington State. Decorating the tree are hundreds of ornaments made by people of Washington, many of them drawn and glued together by school children.

The 88-foot Engelmann spruce tree that will grace the west lawn of the U.S. Capitol as a gift from the people must first get from Colville National Forest in Washington State to Washington, D.C.

That means careful packing with special attention paid to cocooning the 2013 U.S. Capitol Christmas Tree so the thick branches stay intact and nothing hangs over the side of the trailer it is placed on.

“What does it take to wrap an 88-foot-tall Engelmann spruce?” said Franklin Pemberton of the Colville National Forest. “Also a lot of hard-working volunteers, 4,000 feet of parachute cord with a 550-pound breaking strength and a huge building.”

More than 300 people gathered on in 25-degree weather to witness the harvesting of the 88-foot 2013 Capitol Christmas Tree from the Colville National Forest, the first step in its 5,000 mile journey from Washington State to the U. S. Capitol in Washington, D.C.

More than a dozen spotters and equipment operators manipulated the tree into position as the Mack Truck pushed the trailer underneath. The enormity of the Engelmann spruce became apparent as the tree floated above the trailer while a few extra feet from the trunk had to be removed.

Every December, the Speaker of the House hosts a lighting ceremony on the U.S. Capitol grounds. With a simple flip of a switch roughly 10,000 lights bring the tree to life. But first it has to make the journey.

Every year, the Forest Service plays an integral role in providing the annual Capitol Christmas Tree, known as “The People’s tree”, from one of the agency’s 155 national forests to bedazzle the U.S. Capitol lawn. This year’s tree, a 73-foot Engleman Spruce, comes from the White River National Forest, in central Colorado.

Have you ever wondered how this tree gets transported from one of our many national forests to the nation’s capital?

This year’s Capitol Christmas Tree is coming from the White River National Forest in the Rocky Mountain Region and will be harvested at a private ceremony today, Nov. 2.  Forest Service employees and the non-profit partner Choose Outdoors are hard at work planning the public tree celebration taking place on Nov. 3.

About one week after its arrival to Washington, D.C., the Capitol Christmas Tree flashed its 10,000 lights and dazzled onlookers on the west front lawn of the Capitol Dec. 6.

A 63-foot Sierra white fir from Stanislaus National Forest arrived Monday morning and is now gracing the west front lawn of the Capitol.

The 65-foot white fir from California’s Stanislaus National Forest was harvested and embarked on its journey toward the nation’s capitol on Nov. 5.

When the 65-foot Californian white fir from the Stanislaus National Forest arrives at the Capitol at the start of the holiday season, it will arrive with several thousand of its friends from California.

The Californian friends will be ornaments, as many as 5,000, that will decorate the Capitol Christmas Tree. Each ornament, which will stand 9 to 12 inches tall and be built strongly enough to endure Washington D.C.’s winter, will be handmade by residents of the Golden State.

In less than two months, a 65-foot Californian white fir from Stanislaus National Forest will grace the west lawn of the U.S. Capitol.

Have you ever wondered how the Capitol Christmas Tree is selected?