Traveling down a gently winding road in a sky-blue tram on Friday, Sept. 18, it is the perfect day at Dawes Arboretum for a special occasion. Amid different flora, celebrants congregate at the base of a post oak tree for a long-standing tradition at the arboretum.
The tree, grown from acorns collected by arboretum staff during a seed collecting trip to Arkansas in 1998, was dedicated to members of the America 250-Ohio Commission in honor of the nation’s semiquincentennial this year.
Members of the Dawes Arboretum Board of Trustees dedicate trees each year to “honor individuals or groups of outstanding achievement in the stream of human history, or events of significance to The Dawes Arboretum,” the arboretum said in a press release commemorating the event.
The tree dedicated this year was a post oak, also known as an iron oak, to celebrate the commission’s commitment to plant a native member of the white oak species in every one of Ohio’s 88 counties. Through this mission, the Ohio Commission planted a swamp white oak near the courthouse in downtown Newark.
The white oak is native to southern Ohio, and Holly Latteman, the arboretum’s director of science and research, said the trees are known for their resiliency.
“This is clearly a really special day,” said Doug Preisse, co-chair for the Ohio Commission. “It’s humbling to represent the 250 commission and all Ohioans in dedicating a tree that will last for centuries to come.”
Preisse and Todd Kleismit, another member of the commission, were there to celebrate the dedication on Friday.
And as part of the tradition, Preisse got to sign his name on the ceiling of the rathskeller – also known as a basement – in the Daweswood House Museum. The name signing is a tradition spanning back to cofounders Beman and Bertie Dawes, when Beman had all the dedication participants sign their names on the ceiling of his country residence’s basement.
The tree, grown from acorns collected by arboretum staff during a seed collecting trip to Arkansas in 1998, was dedicated to members of the America 250-Ohio Commission in honor of the nation’s semiquincentennial this year. 
Dawes Arboretum honored the Ohio 250 commission with a ceremonial tree at the arboretum. 
Dedication shovels hanging in the Daweswood House Museum Basement. 
“We try to do a [tree dedication] every year because there are so many notable people that have been recognized as famous Ohioans or have contributed to our mission here at Dawes,” Dawes Executive Director Stephanie Crockatt said. 
“We try to do a [tree dedication] every year because there are so many notable people that have been recognized as famous Ohioans or have contributed to our mission here at Dawes,” Dawes Executive Director Stephanie Crockatt said. Dawes Arboretum honored the Ohio 250 commission with a ceremonial tree at the arboretum.
Preisse’s name will be among more than 100 other names on the ceiling, joining the likes of veterans, politicians, athletes, ambassadors, adventurers, inventors and beloved central Ohio wildlife educator and zookeeper Jack Hanna.
Dawes Arboretum features many notable tree dedications, including a 1927 tribute to the “Great American Game of Baseball,” the third tree ever dedicated.
One of the more popular dedications at the arboretum is the 1935 white oak that Orville Wright, co-builder of the world’s first successful airplane, dedicated in honor of him and his brother, Wilbur.
In 1968, Colonel John H. Glenn Jr., an astronaut and U.S. senator from Ohio who was the first American to orbit earth, dedicated an American Sweetgum tree.
A few years later in February of 1973, record-breaking athlete and Olympic gold medalist Jesse Owens dedicated a Zelkova Serrata tree, known as “Green Vase” in Japanese.
“We try to dedicate mature trees; that was important to Beman rather than baby trees,” said Leslie Wagner, the arboretum’s historian. “When [Beman] used younger trees back in the day, sometimes they died. So in his wishes we dedicate mature trees.”
According to Wagner, the tree dedication ceremony is unique to Dawes Arboretum and it goes along with the arboretum’s mission to teach people that trees are living history.
“Beman really wanted to show people that trees can last a very long time and this is a great way to commemorate a historical event because it’s honoring the past and the future all at the same time,” Wagner said.
“This ceremony really worked out beautifully,” said Dawes Arboretum’s Executive Director Stephanie Crockatt. “I think the America 250-Ohio Commission was very happy and it’s nice to close out such an important anniversary here with this type of dedication for their work.”
In the arboretum gift shop visitors can find a map that will show some of the key areas with tree dedications. Crockatt said the arboretum even has an area called Pershing Avenue that contains most of the military plaques.
“We try to do a [tree dedication] every year because there are so many notable people that have been recognized as famous Ohioans or have contributed to our mission here at Dawes,” Crockatt said.
Shaye Phillips and Maddie Luebkert write for TheReportingProject.org, the nonprofit news organization of Denison University’s Journalism program, which is supported by generous donations from readers. Sign up for The Reporting Project newsletter here.
Maddie Luebkert is one of two Kirtley Mather Fellows at The Reporting Project. The Kirtley Mather Fellowship is created in memory of Kirtley Mather, Denison Class of 1909, with the mission of providing unique opportunities for students to engage in service to the common good.