U.S. Capitol Christmas tree will come from Tongass

This year’s U.S. Capitol Christmas tree will come from the Tongass National Forest, only the second time an Alaska tree will light up the official spot.

Known as “The People's Tree” (reflecting the nickname for the U.S. House of Representatives, “The People's House”), it will stand on the West Lawn of the U.S. Capitol.

The only previous Alaska tree, a spruce, came from the Chugach National Forest in 2015. The tree has been selected each year since 1970 from a different national forest.

Brandon Raile, the project’s Forest Service spokesman in Alaska, said the tree will be cut down in late Octob...