todaysdocument:The 1941 Christmas Tree: A Bright Light in Dark TimesThe Roosevelts had planned for a
todaysdocument:The 1941 Christmas Tree: A Bright Light in Dark TimesThe Roosevelts had planned for a “more homey” lighting of the National Christmas tree on December 24 in 1941. FDR had directed that the tree be moved from the Ellipse to the White House grounds, just next to the South Lawn Fountain. But after the attack on Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941, there was some doubt that the ceremony would take place at all. With firm backing from the President, the tree-lighting went forward, and thousands came to the White House to share a bright moment of hope during dark and uncertain times. Roosevelt addresses the crowd at the Christmas tree lighting ceremony from the White House South Portico on December 24, 1941. Churchill can be seen on the right. (FDR Presidential Library) Plans for this “more homey” event had been set in motion the previous December. A few days before the ceremony, the Roosevelts had an idea. At the 1940 tree-lighting ceremony, FDR raised the issue to the crowds gathered on the Ellipse, “Next year the celebration must take place on the South End of the White House, where all can see the tree,” and “all you good people” would be invited to the gardens of the Executive Mansion to hear the President deliver his message.A few months later, FDR wrote a memo to Col. Edward Starling, the head of the Secret Service detail: “I was not fooling and I think the proper place for the tree is right next to the fence at the south end of the White House grounds.”The 1941 Christmas Tree would be the first ever inside the White House grounds. By November, two oriental spruce trees (to be used in alternate years) had been transplanted from the White house tennis courts to either side of the South Lawn Fountain. All was in place for a “homey celebration.”And then Pearl Harbor was attacked.In the aftermath of December 7, 1941, the President sided with custom, tradition, and his promise. An estimated 20,000 people passed through the military inspection on Christmas Eve afternoon, with many checking their last-minute holiday purchases outside the East Gate.The Secret Service scrutinized the assembled crowd—perhaps grateful that in 1939, because of the “war clouds” over Europe, they had replaced the 3-foot-high fence surrounding the White House with a 6-foot-high one.As twilight settled into evening, the warm lights of the White House silhouetted two leaders—President Roosevelt and an added attraction, Prime Minister Winston Churchill—standing on the South Portico.Keep reading at: The 1941 Christmas Tree: A Bright Light in Dark Times | Pieces of History -- source link
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