Franklin D. Roosevelt Commemorative – Southern Magnolia

Franklin Roosevelt seated in a chair. — President Roosevelt lays the cornerstone for the East Wing on November 5, 1942, months after the building was constructed. The President is seated during this ceremony as he relied on a wheelchair due to a polio diagnosis and did not want to be seen using a wheelchair in the public eye.
Courtesy Franklin D. Roosevelt Presidential Library and Museum / NARA

Magnolia grandiflora

1942-2025

In 1942 this southern magnolia tree was planted southeast of the entrance to the newly constructed East Wing. This planting replaced a southern magnolia tree planted by President Warren G. Harding in 1922. The new tree was designated as a commemorative tree for President Franklin D. Roosevelt in the mid-1950s.

The tree was removed in September 2025 as part of the White House East Wing expansion project.