Authored by Carly Ford

Trees became a symbol of hope for Oklahomans after the April 19, 1995 federal building bombing. An American Elm tree that grew in the parking lot of the Murrah building somehow survived the blast and then was nearly chopped down as investigators recovered evidence that had gotten caught in its branches (Linenthal, n.d.). This tree became known as the “Survivor Tree” because many Oklahomans saw it as a representation of the people’s ability to persist even in the face of such an atrocity. The survivor tree is memorialized at the Oklahoma City Bombing Memorial in recognition of the survivors of the blast. It is part of the logo for the memorial marathon that takes place every year (Fredrickson 2015) and its seeds are collected and distributed to communities throughout the United States so that the tree’s longevity is continued through its offspring (Slipke 2017).