Dedicating a Survivor Tree

A “survivor tree,” named for a Callery pear tree that endured the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attack that destroyed the World Trade Center in Manhattan, will be dedicated on Sunday at 10 a.m. at the North End Common, at 51 Pantigo Road in East Hampton Village.

Bartlett Tree Experts, a multinational tree and shrub care company with a location in Southampton, harvested fruit from the original survivor tree in 2011. The company, in partnership with the National September 11 Memorial and Museum, is donating the tree to the village.

The original survivor tree was discovered, severely damaged but standing, at the World Trade Center site. It was removed from the rubble and turned over to the New York City Department of Parks and Recreation for rehabilitation. In 2010, the tree was returned to the site, now the memorial and museum, and serves as a living reminder of resilience, survival, and rebirth. In 2013, students of John Bowne High School in Flushing, Queens, took custody of the tree’s seedlings and continue to care for them.

The National September 11 Memorial and Museum donates survivor tree seedlings to communities that have overcome tragedy each year. Survivor tree seedlings can be requested for memorial sites across the United States that were created, developed, or enhanced in memory of Sept. 11, 2001.