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The Pine Tree Flag (or the An Appeal to Heaven Flag) was one of the flags used during the American Revolution.The flag, which featured a pine tree with the motto "An Appeal to Heaven", or less frequently "An Appeal to God", was used by a squadron of six schooners commissioned under George Washington's authority as commander-in-chief of the Continental Army beginning in October 1775.
The tree had four symbolic roots, the Great White Roots of Peace, spreading north, east, south, and west. If any other nation ever wished to join the League, it would have to follow the White Roots of Peace to the source and take shelter beneath the tree. Atop the tree, he placed an eagle to scream out a warning at the approach of danger.
Fossilized white pine leaves and pollen have been discovered by Brian Axsmith, a paleobotanist at the University of South Alabama, in the Gulf Coastal Plain, where the tree no longer occurs. [14] Eastern white pine forests originally covered much of north-central and northeastern North America.
The Pine Tree Riot was an act of resistance to British royal authority undertaken by American colonists in Weare, New Hampshire, on April 14, 1772, [2] placing it among the disputes between Crown and colonists that culminated in the American Revolution.
While there are some variations, common designs include a plain colored field (usually red) with a pine tree in the canton. The eastern white pine (Pinus strobus) is the most common and prominent symbol of New England and is featured on many of the region's flags.
Various folk cultures and traditions assign symbolic meanings to plants. Although these are no longer commonly understood by populations that are increasingly divorced from their rural traditions, some meanings survive. In addition, these meanings are alluded to in older pictures, songs and writings.
In western states, a paint ring may signify a tree affected by mountain pine beetles. A splotch of head-high color could also be a trail marker, showing hikers or mountain bikers which way to go.
The pine tree is a traditional symbol of New England and has been featured on New England flags since at least 1686, notably the Pine Tree Flag, although the White Pine as a symbol probably is derived from Native American usage going back to the Iroquois Tree of the Great Peace which was first used more than 800 years ago.