Records at the Architect of the Capitol (AOC) show correspondence from 1919 indicate that a Christmas tree was purchased that year. However, it was not until 1964 that a definite procedure was initiated and a tree-lighting ceremony established.

In 1964, House Speaker John W. McCormack suggested to J. George Stewart, eighth Architect of the Capitol, that a Christmas tree be placed on the U.S. Capitol Grounds. A live 24-foot Douglas fir was purchased for $700 from Buddies Nurseries of Birdsboro, Pennsylvania, and was planted on the West Front Lawn. Each year through 1967 this tree was decorated and a tree-lighting ceremony was held.

U.S. Capitol Christmas Tree Lighting: A History

Unfortunately, a combination of factors, including a severe wind storm in the spring of 1967 and root damage, caused the tree to die in 1968; it was removed in the same year. The 1968 Christmas tree was made from two white pines from Finksburg, Maryland, and was 30 feet tall; the 1969 tree was a 40-foot white pine from Westminster, Maryland. The United States Department of Agriculture Forest Service has provided the trees since 1970.

Preparing the Christmas tree is a true team effort for the AOC. We work around the clock from tree selection to arrival, decoration and lighting. 🎄

Tree Details

Information about individual trees is listed below. Height is provided as measured in the forest by the National Forest Service.

YearTreeHeightSourceState
2025TBATBAHumboldt-Toiyabe National ForestNevada
2024Sitka Spruce80 feetTongass National ForestAlaska
2023Norway Spruce63 feetMonongahela National ForestWest Virginia
2022Red Spruce78 feetNational Forests in North CarolinaNorth Carolina
2021White Fir84 feetSix Rivers National ForestCalifornia
2020Engelmann Spruce55 feetGrand Mesa, Uncompahgre and Gunnison (GMUG) National ForestsColorado

2010s

YearTreeHeightSourceState
2019Blue Spruce60 feetCarson National ForestNew Mexico
2018Noble Fir80 feetWillamette National ForestOregon
2017Engelmann Spruce79 feetKootenai National ForestMontana
2016Engelmann Spruce80 feetPayette National ForestIdaho
2015Lutz Spruce74 feetChugach National ForestAlaska
2014White Spruce88 feetChippewa National ForestMinnesota
2013Engelmann Spruce88 feetColville National ForestWashington
2012Engelmann Spruce73 feetWhite River National ForestColorado
2011Sierra White Fir65 feetStanislaus National ForestCalifornia
2010Engelmann Spruce67 feetBridger-Teton National ForestWyoming

2000s

Image
Band playing during the 2008 U.S. Capitol Christmas Tree lighting ceremony.
Band playing during the 2008 Christmas tree lighting ceremony.
YearTreeHeightSourceState
2009Blue Spruce85 feetApache-Sitgreaves National ForestArizona
2008Subalpine Fir78 feetBitterroot National ForestMontana
2007Balsam Fir55 feetGreen Mountain National ForestVermont
2006Pacific Silver Fir65 feetOlympic National ForestWashington
2005Engelmann Spruce60 feetSanta Fe National ForestNew Mexico
2004Red Spruce70 feetGeorge Washington and Jefferson National ForestVirginia
2003Engelmann Spruce65 feetBoise National ForestIdaho
2002Douglas Fir70 feetUmpqua National ForestOregon
2001White Spruce74 feetOttawa National ForestMichigan
2000Colorado Blue Spruce65 feetPike National ForestColorado

1990s

YearTreeHeightSourceState
1999White Spruce70 feetNicolet National ForestWisconsin
1998Fraser Fir50 feetPisgah National ForestNorth Carolina
1997Black Hills Spruce63 feetBlack Hills National ForestSouth Dakota
1996Engelmann Spruce75 feetManti-LaSal National ForestUtah
1995Douglas Fir60 feetPlumas National ForestCalifornia
1994Balsam Fir58 feetGreen Mountain National ForestVermont
1993White Fir65 feetSan Bernardino National ForestCalifornia
1992White Spruce62 feetChippewa National ForestMinnesota
1991Blue Spruce (live)60 feetCarson National ForestNew Mexico
1990Engelmann Spruce65 feetRoutt National ForestColorado

1989-1964

Source

Kootenai National Forest, 
Montana

Type
Engelmann Spruce
Height
60 feet
Source

Manistee National Forest, 
Michigan

Type
Balsam Fir
Height
50 feet
Source

Wayne-Hoosier National Forest, 
Ohio

Type
Norway Spruce
Height
60 feet
Source

Klamath National Forest, 
California

Type
Shasta Red Fir
Height
54 feet
Source

Ottawa National Forest, 
Michigan

Type
White Spruce
Height
56 feet
Source

Superior National Forest, 
Minnesota

Type
White Spruce
Height
58 feet
Source

Chequamegon National Forest, 
Wisconsin

Type
White Spruce
Height
52 feet
Source

Riley Bostwich Wildlife Management Area, 
Vermont

Type
Balsam Fir
Height
50 feet
Source

Hiawatha National Forest, 
Michigan

Type
White Spruce
Height
50 feet
Source

Green Mountain National Forest, 
Vermont

Type
White Spruce
Height
48 feet
Source

Nicolet National Forest, 
Wisconsin

Type
White Spruce
Height
52 feet
Source

Savage River State Forest, 
Maryland

Type
Norway Spruce
Height
60 feet
Source

Nemadji State Forest, 
Minnesota

Type
White Spruce
Height
52 feet
Source

Monongahela National Forest, 
West Virginia

Type
Red Spruce
Height
41 feet
Source

Ottawa National Forest, 
Michigan

Type
Balsam Fir
Height
41 feet
Source

Pisgah National Forest, 
North Carolina

Type
Fraser Fir
Height
41 feet
Source

Allegheny National Forest, 
Pennsylvania

Type
White Spruce
Height
51 feet
Source

Cherokee National Forest, 
Tennessee

Type
Balsam Fir
Height
50 feet
Source

White Mountain National Forest, 
New Hampshire

Type
Black Spruce
Height
45 feet
Source

Monongahela National Forest, 
West Virginia

Type
Norway Spruce
Height
40 feet
Source

Westminister, 
Maryland

Type
White Pine
Height
40 feet
Source

Finxburg, 
Maryland

Type
White Pine
Height
30 feet
Source

Buddies Nurseries, 
Pennsylvania

Type
Douglas Fir
Height
24 feet
Source

Buddies Nurseries, 
Pennsylvania

Type
Douglas Fir
Height
24 feet
Source

Buddies Nurseries, 
Pennsylvania

Type
Douglas Fir
Height
24 feet
Source

Buddies Nurseries, 
Pennsylvania

Type
Douglas Fir
Height
24 feet

Quick Facts

Where is the U.S. Capitol Christmas Tree coming from this year?

The 2025 tree will be selected from the Humboldt-Toiyabe National Forest. The Humboldt-Toiyabe is the largest national forest in the continental United States with 6.3 million acres. This is the first time a tree has come from Nevada.

How is the tree selected?

The tree is selected by the AOC's Executive Director of Capitol Grounds and Arboretum in the summer, usually during the month of July. 

When are the arrival and lighting ceremony dates?

The tree arrives at the West Front Lawn in mid-November accompanied by a police escort and is received by the Architect of the Capitol during a ceremony.

The tree lighting ceremony is hosted by the Speaker of the House, usually in the last week of November or first week of December.

Specific 2025 ceremony dates will be announced in the fall.

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