Historical Name: Woodrow Wilson
Common Name: Hackberry
Latin Name: Celtis occidentalis
The President Woodrow Wilson Hackberry stands at the Staunton, Virginia birthplace of the nation’s 28th president. Woodrow Wilson was born in 1856, the son of a Presbyterian minister. Wilson was the nation’s first international leader. His vision of world peace was outlined in his famous “Fourteen Points,” an address to Congress on January 8, 1918. He campaigned for reelection on the slogan, “He kept us out of war.” However, he finally succumbed to the pressures of war after four American ships were sunk by the Germans during World War I. Addressing Congress, Wilson asked for a declaration of war, saying, “It is a fearful thing to lead this great peaceful people into war.” Wilson was recognized as a peacemaker, however. He won the Nobel Peace Prize in 1919. He was also an author, scholar, university president, governor and statesman. His Staunton home is now a National Historic Landmark. This tree grew from a seed taken from the Woodrow Wilson Hackberry in Staunton, and was planted into UCNJ’s Historic Tree Grove in 1997.
(text adapted from American Forests)