Currently at the Memorial & Museum

The Survivor Tree

March 23, 2011

This is National Arbor Week in Oklahoma when we celebrate trees and what they provide to a community. The Survivor Tree stands at the highest point of the Oklahoma City National Memorial grounds and is a symbol of the resilience and strength of this community. It provided shade in a gravel parking lot the morning of the bombing of the Alfred P. Murrah Federal Building and burned that day after the bomb was detonated. Today, 16 years later, the tree is still growing and producing shade now for thousands of visitors who come to visit the Memorial. “We are grateful for the help the State Department of Agriculture, Food and Forestry and Mark Bays provides us in carrying for this very important tree,” said Kari Watkins, Executive Director.

During this Arbor Week, we pause to celebrate the Survivor Tree and all that is has contributed to the healing of our community. Learn more about the history of the nearly 100 year old American elm that lives in downtown Oklahoma City.

Survivor Tree saplings are grown from seeds harvested from the Survivor Tree each year and are available through American Forest.

Click Here to purchase your own Survivor Tree sapling to grown in your own yard.
Click Here for a copy of the video about this historical tree at the Oklahoma City National Memorial & Museum.

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