Black Hills spruce goes to Washington

In mid-November a towering spruce tree leaves a secluded location in the Black Hills National Forest to begin a circuitous journey to Washington, D. C.

Decorated with ornaments contributed by South Dakotans, the white spruce will be set up on the on the west lawn of the Capitol grounds as America's 1997 Holiday Tree. More than 10,000 twinkling lights will be turned on during televised lighting ceremonies on December 10 at 5:30 p.m. (EST)

Although Christmas trees from the Black Hills were put up in the White House for Presidents Eisenhower and Nixon, (in 1955 and 1970) this will be the first time South Dakota has supplied the national tree. Providing the 1977 "People's Tree" is a joint project the Black Hills National Forest, State of South Dakota and Keep South Dakota Green Association have been working on for the past four years.

America's Holiday Tree was officially chosen by Matthew Evans, landscape architect at the U. S. Capitol, when he visited the Black Hills last July. Gary Say, supervisory forester of the Spearfish/Nemo Ranger District, had been keeping his eye on the 64-foot white spruce for nearly two years, along with several other trees selected as backups.

"We all felt it was the best tree we had and were hoping Evans would agree," he said.
Forest Service officials were gambling on Evans' agreement last January when they took local artist Jon Crane to the site by snowmobile. Once Crane saw the tree in its Northern Hills setting, he volunteered to paint the scene and donate reproduction rights to the Holiday Tree Committee's fund-raising efforts. Private funding rather than tax money will cover expenses of sending the tree to Washington.

Crane's original watercolor was unveiled in his Hill City gallery last summer to "a collective gasp from the audience," said Gail Crane, the artist's wife.

Signed and numbered prints of the Crane painting went on sale June 1, along with artists proofs, miniature prints and greeting cards. About half of the $40-$50,000 needed for expenses had been raised by October 1. "We'll make it," Say said. "So many things we need are being donated ... cranes, ropes,signs ... even the trucks and drivers to transport the trees."

In addition to the big spruce, South Dakota will also send 40 to 50 smaller Black Hills Christmas trees to decorate Capitol offices. They'll go in a second truck, along with several thousand ornaments representing the theme, "Celebrating South Dakota's Rich Heritage and Cultural Diversity."

"Somewhere in the Northern Hills," has been Say's response when asked about the Christmas tree location. To prevent vandalism, the precise site has been a well-guarded secret to be revealed just before a public tree cutting ceremony at 9:30 a.m. on November 14. "Accessibility is one criteria for selection of the tree," Say explained.


South Dakotans will be able to see America's Holiday Tree at stops throughout the state enroute to the Capitol.. The itinerary includes Spearfish and Hill City on Sunday, November 16; Custer, Mount Rushmore and an overnight stay at Ellsworth AFB outside Rapid City on Monday, November 17. Proceeding east, with stops at Wall, Pierre, Chamberlain and Sioux Falls, the caravan will go to North Carolina, provider of next year's Holiday Tree, and arrive in Washington, D. C. on December 1.

The Black Hills was chosen from 155 National Forests to provide this year's national holiday tree.




ABOUT THE COVER: It's been quietly growing in a secluded Black Hills forest for nearly 100 years. Now the perfectly-shaped white spruce will become South Dakota's Christmas gift to the nation. Prints and greeting cards of Jon Crane's cover painting, America's Holiday Tree, are being sold to defray expenses of transporting the tree to Washington, D.C.