Where did Arbor Day come from?

Once again, this Friday is the South Ogden Arbor Day.  This is an exciting day with real unifying affects for a city and those who participate.  To help my readers understand the importance of the day and why we should all participate I thought I would give you all some info about Arbor Day and where it came from.

In 1855, a man named Julius Sterling Morton moved to Nebraska City, Nebraska with his new bride Caroline.  Quickly his new family began to miss the lush forests of the east coast, and along with other settlers, began planting trees.  By 1858 he had planted an apple orchard and many other trees and shrubs on his 150 acre property.  He quickly realized the Nebraska soil was very suitable for tree planting and began pushing for more. As more and more settlers moved to the area, there was more need for trees for homes, shade and fuel.  Mortan began publishing articles in his newspaper calling for all settlers to plant trees on their property.

Mr. Mortan had worked in the Grover Cleveland administration as the 3rd Secretary of Agriculture and was well respected as an agriculturalists.   He spent much of his time teaching farmers the most modern techniques in farming and forestry.  By 1872 he was now a member of the Nebraska Board of Agriculture and began pushing for a special day to plant trees in the state.  Mortan offered $100 ($1800 in 2010) to the county which could plant the most trees and $25 ($450 in 2010) and a complete farm library to the person who could do the same.  With this reward available, the first Arbor Day on April 10th 1972 was a huge success.   Nearly 1 Million trees were planted in the state.  Other states and countries began to follow the example making Arbor Day a world wide event.

Since the first Arbor Day, the event has expanded to 36 countries and has promoted environmental awareness and unity.  Upon Mr. Mortan's death in 1902, President Cleveland dedicated his home as Arbor Lodge.  The national marker has one of Mr. Mortan's quotes, "Other holidays repose upon the past - Arbor Day proposes for the future."

We look forward to seeing you all this year at the South Ogden Arbor Day events. Remember you can help plant trees on Friday at 10 am at the Club Heights Park or 4 pm at the Glasmann Park. Also you can take the Arbor Day Quiz and have a chance to win a $25 Costco Gift Card. See Here: http://goo.gl/C0Adm

Comments welcome.