Trending
SMITHFIELD -- The Friendship Park District will host a public dedication ceremony Sept. 12 for Jefferson County's official Heritage Tree as part of Ohio's Heritage Trees: Planting History Project.
The ceremony will begin at 11 a.m. at Shelters 4 and 5 overlooking Friendship Lake. The event is free and open to the public.
The statewide project will place a white oak, Ohio's official state tree, in each of the state's 88 counties as part of the America250 commemoration of the nation's 250th anniversary. Cenovus Energy is the presenting sponsor, with Ohio Liquor and the Lubrizol Foundation serving as supporting sponsors.
The white oak was selected to symbolize strength and endurance. The Heritage Tree at Friendship Park is intended to serve as a living landmark for generations of county residents and visitors.
Friendship Park already is home to a tree connected to American history. The 1,320-acre park has one of Ohio's three surviving Moon Trees, a sycamore grown from a seed that orbited the moon aboard Apollo 14 before being planted at the park during the U.S. Bicentennial in 1976.
With the addition of the Heritage Tree 50 years later, the park will have two trees connected to significant milestones in American history.
"Friendship Park is honored to be the recipient of Jefferson County's Heritage Tree. The Heritage Trees Initiative draws inspiration from the historic Liberty Tree in Boston during the Revolutionary War," Park Commissioner Judy Henthorn said.
The morning also will include dedications of two other park improvements.
At 10:30 a.m., before the Heritage Tree ceremony, the Park District will unveil a new boat ramp and courtesy dock funded by the Mary Jane Brooks Charitable Foundation.
A new Adaptive Fishing Pier at Jenn's Landing also will be dedicated. The project was funded in part by the Ohio Parks and Recreation Association Foundation and the Pugliese Charitable Foundation.