Salem's First Outdoor Christmas Tree

Salem’s first outdoor Christmas tree was set up on the lawn of the Marion County Courthouse in December 1913 and was reported to be the first outdoor tree in Oregon (and perhaps the nation) to be decorated with electric Christmas lights. This tree served as Salem’s Christmas tree for 38 more years after that initial lighting, and by 1951 it was 72 feet tall. On August 18, 1952 the 70 year old tree was pulled over by a bulldozer and was burned along with three other evergreen trees from this block. Even though the original tree is gone, Salem continues to use a living tree to celebrate the holidays.