Iron Mountain Family Donates 60-Foot Spruce as Michigan State Christmas Tree

60-Foot Iron Mountain Spruce to Be Cut Thursday for the Ride to the Michigan Capitol

The 2026 Michigan State Christmas Tree — a 60-foot spruce donated by the Larry Riccio family of Iron Mountain — will be felled at 9:30 a.m. Central Thursday at 902 Vulcan Street, WLUC (uppermichiganssource.com) reported, before beginning a 450-mile trip to the state Capitol in Lansing.

It is the 40th tree to grace the Capitol lawn since the state began the tradition in 1987, the 26th to come from Michigan’s Upper Peninsula, and only the second from Iron Mountain, according to the Michigan Department of Technology, Management and Budget. For a holiday ritual that now draws crowds, high school bands and television cameras to a Dickinson County street, the story begins quietly: a tree that simply outgrew the yard.

A Tree That Outgrew Its Property

Larry Riccio told state officials that when his family bought their house in 1986, the spruce was already quite large, but it has since outgrown the property. Donating it to the state, he said, turned a looming removal problem into an honor.

Iron Mountain Family Donates 60-Foot Spruce as Michigan State Christmas Tree — Photo: michigan.gov

“It is pretty cool to be able to say that your tree is the state Christmas tree,” said Larry Riccio. “When we first bought our house in 1986, the tree was quite large but now it has outgrown the property. Our family is excited and honored to donate this year’s tree.”

Iron Mountain has now supplied the state tree twice, and Upper Peninsula trees have accounted for 26 of the 40 Capitol trees since 1987 — a steady pipeline of northern Michigan timber into the state’s most visible holiday display.

Thursday’s Ceremony and the “Timber” Moment

The public is invited to 902 Vulcan Street, where a ceremony featuring high school bands and the singing of the National Anthem will precede the cutting. Heath Miller, facilities supervisor for the State of Michigan Department of Technology, Management and Budget, told WLUC the harvest draws a crowd precisely because of the unscripted moment at the end.

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“When you see it all come together, crowds are here, everyone is cheering. When you hear them yell, ‘Timber’ tomorrow, Denny will yell ‘Timber,’ it will be a loud event. Then they take that tree down. It’s quite a spectacle to see. It’s something you want to see if you get the opportunity,” Miller said.

Organizers told WLUC the event is one attendees won’t forget — a claim backed by the logistics: a 60-foot spruce does not come down quietly.

Tree Transported from Harvest Site

After Thursday’s harvest, the spruce arrives in downtown Lansing on Saturday, Nov. 7, according to michigan.gov. The Michigan Association of Timbermen, the Great Lakes Timber Professionals Association and DTMB’s Christmas tree crew will handle the transport. Once at the Capitol, local Boy Scout troops will continue the tradition of untying the tree, and the HI-Ball Company of Lansing will provide a crane and crew to hoist the spruce into place near the intersection of Capitol and East Michigan avenues. The City of Lansing’s forestry team will then prepare it for the lighting scheme designed by the Michigan Capitol Commission and the Lansing Board of Water & Light.

The journey culminates Friday, Nov. 20, at the 42nd Annual Silver Bells in the City celebration, when dignitaries flip the switch on thousands of lights at approximately 7:30 p.m., rain or shine. Details are at SilverBellsintheCity.org.

The two accounts of the same event frame it differently: WLUC centers the Thursday spectacle in Iron Mountain — the bands, the anthem, the roar of the crowd — while michigan.gov traces the tree’s path from a Riccio family yard to the Capitol lawn and the Nov. 20 lighting. Both agree on the core: a 60-foot spruce, one Upper Peninsula town, and a 40-year tradition that turns a backyard tree into the centerpiece of the state’s holiday season.

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