The National Christmas Tree is a 40-foot (12 m) Colorado blue spruce from York, Pennsylvania, planted on the Ellipse in Washington, D.C. on October 20, 1978. The lighting of the tree by the President of the United States is the central event in the annual Christmas Pageant of Peace. There is also an official "White House Christmas Tree", which is usually a cut tree placed within the White House.
The tradition of the outdoor decorated tree began in November 1923 when First Lady Grace Coolidge gave permission for the District of Columbia Public Schools to erect a cut Christmas tree on the Ellipse south of the White House. The first tree was a 48-foot balsam fir from Vermont, lit by President Calvin Coolidge at 5 p.m. on Christmas Eve. The organizers named the tree the "National Christmas Tree". The following year the name was changed to the "National Community Christmas Tree", and the name was not changed back until 1972. In more recent decades the tree was lit in mid-December rather than Christmas Eve. Today the tree is lit in early December.
From 1924 to 1953 live trees, in various locations around and on the White House grounds, were lit on Christmas Eve. In 1954 the ceremony returned to the Ellipse and expanded its focus. Local civic and business groups created the "Christmas Pageant of Peace". Smaller live trees representing the 50 states, five territories, and the District of Columbia, formed a "Pathway of Peace". On December 17, 1954, President Dwight D. Eisenhower lit a cut tree donated by the people of Michigan. Cut trees continued to be used until 1973 when a live tree was planted. In 1977 the original tree needed to be replaced, but that tree only lasted one season, having been damaged in a windstorm. The current tree was 30 feet (9 m) when it was transplanted in 1978. The tree stands as a daily reminder of the holiday spirit and of the tradition each succeeding President has participated in since 1923.
In 1979, President Jimmy Carter only lit the crowning star atop the Tree in honor of the Americans being held hostage in Iran. In 1980, the tree was only fully lit for 417 seconds, one second for each day the hostages had been in captivity.
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The burning of the Yule Log is an ancient custom, ante-dating the Christian Era by centures. It was a part of a gay Festival honoring the mythical god Thor. Later, the English made it an integral part of Christmas Eve festivities, even as the beautiful ChristmasTree, tho' likewise of Pagan origin, is so dear to our hearts as a Christmas symbol.
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The burning of the Yule Log is an ancient custom, ante-dating the Christian Era by centures. It was a part of a gay Festival honoring the mythical god Thor. Later, the English made it an integral part of Christmas Eve festivities, even as the beautiful ChristmasTree, tho' likewise of Pagan origin, is so dear to our hearts as a Christmas symbol.
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The Haupt Fountains, built in 1967, sit in President's Park South, commonly called the Ellipse, a 52-acre park located just south of the White House fence. The fountains, built in 1967, were part of First Lady Claudia Taylor (Lady Bird) Johnson's Committee for a More Beautiful Capital. Part of her dream was to "frame the White House in water." Each fountain is made from an enormous slab of granite 18 feet square, nearly a foot thick, and weighing 55 tons. The granite was quarried in Morton, Minnesota, from rock more than 3.5 million years old. These rainbow granite monoliths were a gift of publishing magnate Mrs. Enid Haupt.
The Washington Monument, a large white-colored obelisk at the west end of the National Mall, is constructed of marble, granite and sandstone and was built as a memorial for George Washington. Designed by Robert Mills, construction began in 1848, but not completed until 1884, 30 years after Mill's death, resulting from lack of funding and the Civil War. A difference in shading (visible at 150 feet) delineates the two phases of construction. Its cornerstone was laid on July 4, 1848; the capstone was set on December 6, 1884, and the completed monument was dedicated on February 21, 1885. It officially opened to the public on October 9, 1888. At the time of its completion it became the world's tallest structure at 555 ft 51/8 in, a title it inherited from the Cologne Cathedral and held until 1889, when the Eiffel Tower was finished in Paris. It is still the tallest structure in DC and due to a 1910 law restricting new building's height from being no more than 20 feet greater than the width of the street they're on, probably always will be.
Despite momentum for an appropriate memorial in the new capital following Washington's death, progress was finally made in 1833--the centennial of his birth. The Washington Monument Society began collecting donations and announced a design competition in 1836. Mills, who had designed the Washington Monument in Baltimore, was selected with a design that called for a 600-foot obelisk, topped by Washington in a chariot, and surrounded with a circular colonnade, but an exorbitant price tag of $1M.
In 1849, after 4 years of non construction, to combat escalating costs after 4 years the Society encouraged states and territories to donate memorial stones, which came pouring in from all sorts of organizations, businesses and foreign nations, often bearing inscriptions with no relevance to Washington. After the anti-Catholic, nativist Know-Nothing's stole a block donated by Pope Pius IX and took control of the Society in an election many claimed to be fraudulent, Congress rescinded the $200k contribution they had promised. The Know-Nothing's eventually ceded control in 1858.
It wasn't until after the Civil War, in 1876, that the Congress appropriated another $200k to complete the monument. After renewed conversation around design, the Society abandoned Mills' colonnade and altered the obelisk to conform to Egyptian proportions. Construction resumed in 1879 under Lieutenant Colonel Thomas Lincoln Casey and was completed within 4 years.
In 2007, The Washington Monument was ranked #12 on the AIA 150 America's Favorite Architecture list.
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The Washington Monument, a large white-colored obelisk at the west end of the National Mall, is constructed of marble, granite and sandstone and was built as a memorial for George Washington. Designed by Robert Mills, construction began in 1848, but not completed until 1884, 30 years after Mill's death, resulting from lack of funding and the Civil War. A difference in shading (visible at 150 feet) delineates the two phases of construction. Its cornerstone was laid on July 4, 1848; the capstone was set on December 6, 1884, and the completed monument was dedicated on February 21, 1885. It officially opened to the public on October 9, 1888. At the time of its completion it became the world's tallest structure at 555 ft 51/8 in, a title it inherited from the Cologne Cathedral and held until 1889, when the Eiffel Tower was finished in Paris. It is still the tallest structure in DC and due to a 1910 law restricting new building's height from being no more than 20 feet greater than the width of the street they're on, probably always will be.
Despite momentum for an appropriate memorial in the new capital following Washington's death, progress was finally made in 1833--the centennial of his birth. The Washington Monument Society began collecting donations and announced a design competition in 1836. Mills, who had designed the Washington Monument in Baltimore, was selected with a design that called for a 600-foot obelisk, topped by Washington in a chariot, and surrounded with a circular colonnade, but an exorbitant price tag of $1M.
In 1849, after 4 years of non construction, to combat escalating costs after 4 years the Society encouraged states and territories to donate memorial stones, which came pouring in from all sorts of organizations, businesses and foreign nations, often bearing inscriptions with no relevance to Washington. After the anti-Catholic, nativist Know-Nothing's stole a block donated by Pope Pius IX and took control of the Society in an election many claimed to be fraudulent, Congress rescinded the $200k contribution they had promised. The Know-Nothing's eventually ceded control in 1858.
It wasn't until after the Civil War, in 1876, that the Congress appropriated another $200k to complete the monument. After renewed conversation around design, the Society abandoned Mills' colonnade and altered the obelisk to conform to Egyptian proportions. Construction resumed in 1879 under Lieutenant Colonel Thomas Lincoln Casey and was completed within 4 years.
In 2007, The Washington Monument was ranked #12 on the AIA 150 America's Favorite Architecture list.
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