How one woman’s Japan obsession and a 1938 tree riot saved DC’s cherry blossoms

Eliza Scidmore’s Cherry Crusade and the 1938 Tree Rebellion

Washington’s famous cherry trees came from one woman’s 24-year fight.

In 1885, travel writer Eliza Scidmore fell in love with Japan’s blossoms and pitched the idea to DC officials. They said no – for decades.

First Lady Helen Taft finally backed her in 1909, and Japan sent 3,020 trees as a gift. Yet these pink symbols faced doom in 1938 when the Jefferson Memorial plan meant cutting 600 trees.

That’s when newspaper boss Eleanor Patterson stepped in. She led 150 women who chained themselves to trees and grabbed workers’ shovels.

The trees won.

Today, you can walk among these living monuments at the Tidal Basin and learn their full story at the Japanese Lantern and Pagoda area.

A Travel Writer Fell In Love With Japan’s Pink Blossoms

Eliza Scidmore got off a boat in Japan in 1885 and couldn’t believe her eyes.

As one of America’s first female National Geographic writers, she had seen pretty places before, but nothing like the pink cloud of cherry blossoms that covered Japan each spring.

The trees lined streets, filled temple grounds, and brought locals together for viewing parties. She knew right away that Washington’s muddy, ugly Potomac waterfront needed these trees to make it beautiful.

Twenty-Four Years Of Hearing "No" Didn’t Stop Her

Every time a new boss of Public Buildings and Grounds took office, Scidmore showed up with her cherry tree idea. From 1885 to 1909, she pitched her plan to one official after another.

One boss flatly asked her, “What good is that sort of cherry tree? ” when she explained they made flowers, not fruit.

But Scidmore didn’t give up easily.

After 24 years of rejection, she tried something new in 1909: skip the officials and write straight to the new First Lady, Helen Taft.

Helen Taft Said Yes In Less Than Two Days

The First Lady answered Scidmore’s letter almost right away: “I have taken the matter up and am promised the trees. ” Unlike the string of rude officials, Mrs. Taft had lived in Japan and knew the beauty these trees could bring to Washington. She quickly started plans for a cherry tree walkway along the Potomac.

Word spread through Washington social circles and soon reached members of the diplomatic community with ties to Japan.

The First Trees Met A Fiery End

Japanese scientist Dr. Jokichi Takamine heard about the cherry tree project during a Washington visit and saw a chance to help.

He talked with Tokyo Mayor Yukio Ozaki, who agreed to give 2,000 cherry trees as a friendship gift between the countries.

The trees arrived in January 1910 with much excitement, but farm inspectors found bugs and plant diseases. To protect American crops, officials ordered all 2,000 trees burned.

Workers burned the entire shipment on the National Mall.

Japan Sent 3,020 Perfect Trees As A Second Gift

Mayor Ozaki refused to let the failure stop the project. He set up a second, bigger gift of 3,020 carefully picked cherry trees in 1912.

Japanese tree experts spent over a year growing these trees, making sure they passed all checks before shipping.

The new trees arrived healthy and ready for planting, with most being Yoshino cherry trees known for their cloud-like white-pink flowers. The shipment cost Japan millions in today’s money.

Two Women Planted The First Trees Together

First Lady Helen Taft and Viscountess Chinda, the Japanese Ambassador’s wife, met at the Tidal Basin on March 27, 1912, for a simple ceremony.

The two women used special shovels to plant the first two cherry trees along the water’s edge. No big crowds came that day, and few people knew they watched the start of what would become a national treasure.

Those original trees still stand today, marked with small signs near the Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial.

Cherry Blossom Fever Swept Through Washington

The trees grew fast and bloomed each spring, creating a pink-and-white wonderland around the Tidal Basin. Locals began making yearly trips to see the blossoms, and tourists started planning visits during peak bloom time.

Photographers took pictures of the trees framing the Washington Monument and the new Lincoln Memorial.

The first official Cherry Blossom Festival started in 1935, bringing music, art, and cultural events to mark the yearly flowering.

The Memorial Plans Would Cut Down Hundreds Of Trees

Government officials announced plans in 1938 to build the Jefferson Memorial right where many grown cherry trees stood.

Architects and engineers marked nearly 600 trees for removal around the Tidal Basin to make room for the new building and its plaza. When the public learned about the plan, anger spread throughout Washington.

Many felt the cherry trees, now symbols of the city, were being cut down needlessly for a building that could go somewhere else.

Women Chained Themselves To Trees And Grabbed Workers’ Shovels

Eleanor “Cissy” Patterson, powerful owner of the Washington Times-Herald, gathered 50 women to march to the White House with a petition on November 17, 1938.

The next day, Patterson led 150 women to the work site at the Tidal Basin. The protesters took shovels from shocked workers and chained themselves to the marked trees.

Work stopped as news photographers took pictures. The women stayed until officials agreed to rethink the memorial plans.

Roosevelt Called The Protesters “Flimflam” Women

President Franklin Roosevelt dismissed the tree defenders as creating “flimflam” and fake outrage. He threatened to move “the women and their chains” along with the trees.

Patterson fought back through her newspaper, printing front-page stories that showed Roosevelt’s misleading claims about the number of trees that would be lost.

She published maps showing the true size of the planned cutting and rallied public support against the original design.

The Rebellion Saved Hundreds Of Cherry Trees

The Jefferson Memorial construction moved forward, but with significant changes.

Workers removed only 88 trees instead of the planned 600, and officials agreed to plant hundreds of new cherry trees around the completed memorial.

The rebellion turned the cherry trees from mere decorative plants into protected national treasures.

Today, the Jefferson Memorial stands surrounded by some of the most photographed cherry trees in Washington, a living reminder of how a group of determined women protected Eliza Scidmore’s 24-year dream.

Visiting Bathing Beach, Washington

You can walk the 2. 1-mile Tidal Basin Loop Trail to see where Eliza Scidmore fought for 24 years to bring Japanese cherry blossoms to DC and where women led the 1938 Cherry Tree Rebellion to save them from Jefferson Memorial construction.

The original two trees from 1912 are still at 17th Street SW. Rent paddle boats for $38-40/hour during peak bloom in late March to early April.

Take Metro to Smithsonian station and walk 10-15 minutes.

This article was created with AI assistance and human editing.

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