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It’s Arbor Day–Tree Planting Time

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The following is a guest post by Helena Zinkham, Chief, Prints & Photographs Division.

The United States celebrates Arbor Day on the last Friday in April to remind us of the need to plant and nurture trees. This year, the national celebration day prompted me to check the Prints & Photographs Online Catalog. How many of the thousands of tree-related pictures at the Library of Congress represent the planting of new trees?

While only a few digitized images relate directly to Arbor Day, several hundred pictures show people establishing new trees in their own yards, attending special memorial tree dedications, and working on major conservation projects. Two of the digitized images especially caught my eye.

Quentin Roosevelt Planting a Tree
Quentin Roosevelt Planting a Tree. Photo by Edward S. Curtis, copyright 1904. http://hdl.loc.gov/loc.pnp/ppmsca.23805

A delightful scene called Quentin Roosevelt Planting a Tree