[Congressional Record Volume 171, Number 209 (Thursday, December 11, 2025)]
[Senate]
[Page S8668]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




       RECOGNIZING THE 100TH TREK TO THE NATION'S CHRISTMAS TREE

 Mr. SCHIFF. Mr. President, I rise today to recognize the 100th 
Annual Trek to the Nation's Christmas Tree in Kings Canyon National 
Park in California.
  Also known as the General Grant Tree, it is located in Grant Grove, 
home to many giant sequoias, and is one of the oldest trees in the 
world, standing proudly for millennia. This magnificent tree stands 268 
feet tall, with its lowest branch 130 feet above ground, and has a 107-
foot trunk circumference. For 100 years, visitors have gathered on the 
second Sunday in December at the base of the tree to honor veterans and 
the Christmas holiday.
  The trek started in 1925 when R.J. Senior, then-president of the 
Sanger Chamber of Commerce, and Charles E. Lee, then-secretary of the 
Sanger Chamber of Commerce, wandered into Grant Grove. While they 
marveled at the massive tree, they overheard a little girl say, ``What 
a lovely Christmas tree that would be.'' That statement sparked Lee to 
write a letter to the President of the United States Calvin Coolidge to 
suggest that the General Grant Tree be recognized as the Nation's 
Christmas Tree. Four months later, on April 28, 1926, the General Grant 
was officially designated the Nation's Christmas Tree by the U.S. 
Department of the Interior. Later, on October 1, 1949, Sanger, CA, was 
recognized by the Post Office Department as the Nation's Christmas Tree 
City.
  The Tree was further recognized on March 29, 1956, when Congress 
designated the General Grant Tree as a National Shrine. Fleet Admiral 
Chester W. Nimitz represented U.S. President Dwight D. Eisenhower in 
dedicating the General Grant Tree as a perpetual shrine to our Nation's 
fallen veterans. Members of the National Park Service join in the 
Nation's Christmas Tree services each year by placing a wreath at the 
base of the tree.
  Because of the pride and dedication of the Sanger community, the 
Nation's Christmas Tree is known nationally and internationally.
  I ask all Members to join me in celebrating the 100th Annual Trek to 
the Nation's Christmas Tree on December 14, 2025.

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