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America's Famous and Historic Trees: From George Washington's Tulip Poplar to Elvis Presley's Pin Oak
Like many residents of Jacksonville, Florida, the Jeffrey Meyers family liked to picnic under the city's magnificent Treaty Live Oak. When their toddler handed them an acorn from the tree, Meyers, a nurseryman, planted it in their back yard.
That acorn was the inspiration for an immensely popular project, America's Famous & Historic Trees, sponsored by American Forests, the country's oldest nonprofit conservation organization. Through this program, Meyers and his volunteers have collected seeds from more than a thousand different historic trees, which are grown to sapling size in the project's nursery. The descendants of these famous trees have been planted on the grounds of state capitols, in schoolyards, and in back yards across the country. In this fascinating book, Meyers tells the stories of seventeen historic trees, describes their role in America's history, and tells how their seeds were collected and their offspring propagated. For readers who want to grow a replica of an important tree themselves, each chapter contains instructions for planting the seeds of that particular species.
Among the trees in this book are the Indian Marker Pecan, dating back to the 1600s, when Comanche warriers would mark a good camping spot by tying a young pecan tree to the ground. At the other end of the time line is the Moon Sycamore, grown from seeds that traveled to the moon in 1971 on Apollo 14.
Trees associated with presidents are George Washington's Tulip Poplar, Abraham Lincoln's Gettysburg Address Honey Locust, Andrew Jackson's Southern Magnolia (planted at the White House in memory of his wife), and John F. Kennedy's Post Oak, which grows beside his grave at Arlington National Cemetery. Most of the original trees still stand, but in some cases all that remains of their place in history are the seeds propagated by Meyers and his group. These include the last Johnny Appleseed Rambo Apple tree and the last Lewis and Clark Cottonwood.
That acorn was the inspiration for an immensely popular project, America's Famous & Historic Trees, sponsored by American Forests, the country's oldest nonprofit conservation organization. Through this program, Meyers and his volunteers have collected seeds from more than a thousand different historic trees, which are grown to sapling size in the project's nursery. The descendants of these famous trees have been planted on the grounds of state capitols, in schoolyards, and in back yards across the country. In this fascinating book, Meyers tells the stories of seventeen historic trees, describes their role in America's history, and tells how their seeds were collected and their offspring propagated. For readers who want to grow a replica of an important tree themselves, each chapter contains instructions for planting the seeds of that particular species.
Among the trees in this book are the Indian Marker Pecan, dating back to the 1600s, when Comanche warriers would mark a good camping spot by tying a young pecan tree to the ground. At the other end of the time line is the Moon Sycamore, grown from seeds that traveled to the moon in 1971 on Apollo 14.
Trees associated with presidents are George Washington's Tulip Poplar, Abraham Lincoln's Gettysburg Address Honey Locust, Andrew Jackson's Southern Magnolia (planted at the White House in memory of his wife), and John F. Kennedy's Post Oak, which grows beside his grave at Arlington National Cemetery. Most of the original trees still stand, but in some cases all that remains of their place in history are the seeds propagated by Meyers and his group. These include the last Johnny Appleseed Rambo Apple tree and the last Lewis and Clark Cottonwood.
130 pages, Hardcover
First published April 20, 2001
45 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews
January 26, 2025
History, Science, and breezy. A nice read for anyone looking to shade in a bit more of their canopy of knowledge about tree varieties and their presence in US history.
August 23, 2011
I chose this book because I'm a big fan of trees and quite fond of history. It not only gives you a brief history of the tree and some information on each tree variety for those considering planting one in their own backyard, but it also includes instructions on how to propagate each of these species directly from seed. Some of them are as simple as 1) pick up seed, 2) put seed in soil, 3) feed and water, 4) transplant, but some tree species perfer to occupy the bottom shelf of your refrigerator for two to three months. And if you find that too intimidating, the author takes plenty of oppertunities to remind you that he is willing to sell you a sapling that is a descentant of one of these "famous and historic" trees.
I will admit to being a little disappointed in the photography, for the most part, which seemed largely to be family snapshots and in black and white, except for a handful of color plates in the center.
I will admit to being a little disappointed in the photography, for the most part, which seemed largely to be family snapshots and in black and white, except for a handful of color plates in the center.
June 23, 2014
This book is beautifully done. Neat stories about some of our oldest, most significant trees combined with practical information for how to grow them written in a somewhat informal, casual voice makes for a lovely book to pick up and search through. Even if you are only a little interested in trees, this will win you over and you'll be looking around you at trees and forests differently.
January 19, 2016
America has trees associated with historic personages or events. This book tells the story of some of the most famous. In addition the book tells about the species itself and how to plant one from seed if you desire that species. The author runs a nursery that specializes in selling the descendent seedlings from these and other historic trees.
June 26, 2008
This is one of my favorite books and I high recommend it to the history/nature lover in your life. Or for the person who has everything.
March 28, 2016
Lovely photography, though a bit dry.
May 11, 2019
Look someone is already doing something I wanted to do!
Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews