AUGUSTA, Maine - One hundred years ago, a WW I cargo ship carrying munitions to France exploded in Halifax Harbor, killing almost 2,000 people, destroying a Micmac village, and flattening buildings for half a square mile. Today, a 53-foot Nova Scotia white spruce is wending its way through "the Boston states" to the city itself, in honor of those who came to help Nova Scotia's capital recover from the worst disaster in its history.
Known as the Halifax Explosion, the maritime disaster occurred when the French ship, SS Mont-Blanc, carrying arms and explosives, collided with the Norwegian vessel the SS Imo.
"This was the largest manmade explosion prior to the development of nuclear weapons," says Matthew Dunlap, who in addition to being Maine's Secretary of State is also an avid historian. "The ship caught fire before it blew up in the harbor."
The fire drew the townspeople to the docks. "School children had their faces pressed to the glass watching all this," says Dunlap. "When the munitions exploded, people were killed instantly, or severely injured, blinded by flying glass."
The half-ton anchor shaft of the Mont-Blanc was found two miles away; the 90 mm deck gun was found three and half miles away. The blast had created a devastation never before seen, and to complicate matters, it was winter with no help close at hand. The city sent out an urgent SOS to Ottawa. "And they got sort of a non-response." says Dunlap. "They a got 'well we'll try to form a committee and try to figure out what's going on' kind of response." The same message asking for aid also reached the New England states, and within a day and a half a full complement of medics, aid, and supplies had left Boston Harbor and arrived in Halifax.
"And they've never forgotten that," says Dunlap.
This is where the tree comes in.
In December 1918, the year following the explosion, the city of Halifax sent a Christmas tree to the city of Boston in gratitude. That gift was revived in the 1970s and it's been a tradition ever since. Each November, a prime spruce or fir, is selected by the Nova Scotia Department of Natural Resources, and sent on the 660 mile journey to Boston.
According to the Nova Scotia Department of Natural Resources, potential Boston trees are identified throughout the year, and must come from healthy, pest-free regions, with tree candidates naturally grown, dense, symmetrical, and at least 40 feet in height. This year's Boston tree is a white spruce donated by Bob and Marion Campbell of Cape Breton Island.
In recognition of the role Mainers also played in responding to the December 6, 1917 disaster, the Halifax Tree for Boston will make a special stop at Augusta's Capitol Park at 10 a.m. on Monday, after spending Sunday night in Bangor. It's the first time the tree has been given a special day in the Pine Tree State, and will be a part of a WWI commemoration event hosted by the Maine State Archives.
Dunlap is pleased that the tree is making a stop, and he says it's an opportunity for the state to remind its neighbors of one thing: "That we always stand together in times of trouble- and that's nothing new."
