A replica of the U.S. Capitol made out of gingerbread, and featuring the official state flowers of all 50 states, is pictured on Tuesday, Dec. 3, 2024. (Photo by Jennifer Shutt/States Newsroom)

WASHINGTON — The holiday season kicked off on Capitol Hill this week with the official Christmas tree lighting ceremony and the unveiling of a gingerbread replica of the U.S. Capitol — complete with sugar flowers representing all 50 states.

U.S. House Speaker Mike Johnson of Louisiana and the Alaska congressional delegation illuminated the 80-foot 2024 Capitol Christmas Tree on the West Front lawn Tuesday evening.

Sen. Dan Sullivan of Alaska said the tree “is a really good substitute to give you a sense of our majestic state.”

“Imagine tens of thousands of trees just like this blanketed in several feet of snow. It’s a magical place, it’s a magical time of year, and for us Alaskans, this is a slice of home right here in the capital,” Sullivan said.

The Sitka spruce, Alaska’s official state tree, was harvested on Oct. 19 from the Tongass National Forest on Zarembo Island.  A self-contained watering system built by local high school students kept the tree alive on its weeks-long journey to Washington, D.C.

Sen. Lisa Murkowski of Alaska recounted for the ceremony crowd the tree’s 752-mile trip by sea and more than 4,000-mile truck ride through the lower 48 states. Murkowski and Sullivan praised the “masterful driving” by Teamster truckers Fred Austin and John Schank, who delivered the tree safely to the Capitol.

“You think about the logistics. This is a huge, massive tree. It did not come in parts that are assembled. So it (arrived) on one huge 80-foot-plus flatbed,” Murkowski said.

“You can’t get this thing around corners and do it easily,” Murkowski added.

Fourth-grader Rose Burke of Kenai, Alaska, who won Murkowski’s essay contest, read her piece of writing titled “Alaska’s Christmas Tree” before helping Johnson switch on scores of colored lights.

The tree is adorned with thousands of handmade ornaments created by Alaskan school students and community volunteers.  Historian and Teehitaan clan leader Mike Aak’wtaatseen Hoyt designed a logo for the tree featuring the Tlingit words “kayéil’, sagú and ka toowúk’é,” which means “peace, happiness, and joy” in English.

The tree will be lit from sundown to 11 p.m. Eastern every day through Jan. 1. The Capitol tree lighting ceremony began in 1964.

Gingerbread Capitol

Another holiday tradition is underway in the Cannon House Office Building. A gingerbread model of the U.S. Capitol was wheeled into the building’s rotunda Sunday. The 8th annual deliciously scented replica, themed “United in Bloom,” presents a snowy scene brightened by the official flowers from each of the 50 states.

Just over 350 flowers, crafted from sugar, stand out from the white fondant and icing snow. The flowers alone took more than 100 hours of labor by pastry chef Audrey Angeles, owner of the local Frost and Flourish Bakery and Patisserie.

The gingerbread model was constructed by a team of six culinary professionals led by Fred Johnson III, senior contract administrator with the Office of the U.S. House Chief Administrative Officer and a native of Norwalk, Ohio.

Johnson, who led a long and distinguished career cooking for U.S. military personnel and President Barack Obama, has baked and constructed the gingerbread replica since 2017. This year’s model is made of 125 pounds of gingerbread that Johnson baked in an oven on the Capitol complex grounds.

Johnson said his team of pastry chefs added roughly 30 pounds of fondant icing to decorate 365-degrees around the model, the first time the team has done so as the replica is usually displayed against a wall. Visitors will see a detailed fondant carousel and will again be able to spot pandas in the display — a nod to their return to the National Zoo in Washington, D.C.

“I think the success of this year’s model was allowing people to come up with their ideas and just do it,” Johnson said.

The team worked each Sunday for six weeks decorating and detailing the entirely edible model that features white candy cane pillars and Isomalt windows.

“The dome was the one thing that stressed me out in 2017,” Johnson said.

He’s since developed a system to mold the dome out of Rice Krispies Treats and form the gingerbread around it and cut the windows. Through a careful process of freezing, baking and peeling, Johnson can place the dome on top.

“I’ve got it down to a science now,” Johnson said.

The gingerbread Capitol will be on display throughout the holiday season.

This article has been updated with a recent change in title for Fred Johnson.