For two decades the Capitol Christmas tree in Washington D.C. had come from eastern states, but in 1986 Northern California’s Siskiyou County provided the first tree from west of the Mississippi.
Tom Hamilton, a native of Dorris, a small town of 1,000 residents in northern California, worked for the Forest Service and had long admired a giant Shasta red fir that would make a perfect Christmas tree. The Shasta red fir or silvertip only grows in Northern California and Southern Oregon.
Hamilton contacted Jon Silvius of the Klamath National Forest telling him that in 23 years there had never been a western Christmas tree at the nation’s capital. Silvius pursued the matter and in 1985 a Capitol architect flew to the Klamath Forest to view five trees that had been selected by Hamilton as candidates. As Tom had guessed, the architect chose the Shasta fir.
Mike Stonecypher, a precision tree faller, won the honor of cutting the tree at a logging show in Siskiyou County. Southern Pacific Railroad provided a freight car for the 3,500-mile trip to Washington. Five thousand lights and 6,000 ornaments made by California school children adorned the 55-foot tree when decorated.
Sources: "103-Foot Shasta Fir Felled for Christmas Tree at U.S. Capitol." latimes.com. 24 Oct. 1986. Web. 15 Nov. 2015. http://articles.latimes.com/1986-10-24/news/mn-7225_1_capitol-chris.; "Capitol Christmas Tree to Get a Grand Send-Off." New York Times. UPI, 30 Oct. 1986. Web. 12 Nov. 2015. http://www.nytimes.com/1986/10/30/garden/capitol-christmas-tree-to-g.; Romberger, Judy. "Fir Tree is California's Christmas Gift to Capitol." latimes.com. 13 Oct. 1986. Web. 12 Nov. 2015.
