‘Freedom Tree’ Planted Tuesday in Warren as Part of Nation’s 250th Anniversary Celebration

Times Observer photo by Josh Cotton Joe McClellan, county liaison for America250PA, helps plant the Liberty Tree at Gen. Joseph Warren Park in Warren on Tuesday. The tree will be dedicated in a ceremony scheduled for Saturday at 1 p.m.

At the beginning of the American Revolution, the Sons of Liberty often gathered under a tree known as the Liberty Tree.

This trend gained momentum, and Liberty Trees began appearing throughout the colonies.

The last tree died in the 1990s, but seeds from its offshoots survive.

And now one has been planted in Warren.

It is a joint project of the Pennsylvania Freemasons and America250PA, an organization established by the General Assembly to coordinate the organization’s 250th anniversary celebrations, which will take place in 2026.

This portion of the celebration will conclude with a dedication ceremony at Gen. Joseph Warren Park in downtown Warren on Saturday at 1 p.m.

Joe McClellan, district liaison for America250PA, said “the entire audience” is invited to the event “celebrate planting a tree.”

According to America250PA, the last Freedom Tree stood on the campus of Saint John’s University in Maryland until it was destroyed by Hurricane Floyd in 1999.

“Today we collect seeds from the shoot of the original tree, grow them into seedlings and plant them throughout the Community” they say. “America250PA’s Liberty Tree Project, generously sponsored and in partnership with the Pennsylvania Freemasons, aims to plant a certified liberty tree in each of Pennsylvania’s 67 counties between fall 2021 and 2026.”

The Warren tree was planted Tuesday morning at Gen. Joseph Warren Park.

Ryan Knopf, deputy grand master of the Masonic district, said Saturday’s ceremony is “a nice, public event, something that brings everyone together.”

It is no secret that the Warren Liberty Tree was planted in the same spot, next to the monument to Dr. Joseph Warren, patron of the city and county, who died at the Battle of Bunker Hill.

Knopf said the goal was to plant the tree in a place where “it has to do with the revolution.”

Considering that Warren was on the frontier in the 1770s, he felt that “quite a difficult task.” This led to a partnership with the city to have it placed at the Warren Memorial.

The country’s 250th anniversary is still a few years away, but McClellen stressed that the celebrations are “it really comes at the right time… which is really good for a country that sometimes feels divided.”

McClellan said America250PA has four goals: educate, protect, innovate and celebrate.

“They want 2026 to be epic” he said.

Planning is still in the early stages, but activities will include student innovation challenges, volunteer opportunities and events to “engage the entire community” and emphasize “Not only is America a great place to live, but Pennsylvania played a key role in the founding of the country” With “having a rich past but hoping to lead America into its future.”

The Freedom Tree planted on Tuesday is a tulip tree.

Joe Reinke, an arborist from Warren, called it “a really fast-growing tree.” While the first year won’t show much, he suspects that within a few years the tree will double its current size.

He said these trees can live for more than 100 years and are characterized by: “really nice” flower.

He noticed two tulip trees growing near the fountain in Crescent Park.