White House Christmas tree the White House of President William McKinley received letters urging the president to forgo participation in the "Christmas tree habit". The letter writers, which the "Chicago Daily Tribune" noted had taken up the "forestry fad", referred to "arboreal infanticide", according to the "Tribune". Those opposed to a tree in the White House that year also termed Christmas trees "un-American" because it was a historically German tradition. At least one tree was displayed in the White House that year, in the kitchen department, for the maids. The Nixon administration's choice of tree topper, the atomic symbol of peace rather than a
Franklin Pierce University Marcucella Hall was built for classrooms, enabling most of the classrooms in Crestview and Monadnock to relocate there. The Manor remained a student center as Rindge Hall became financial aid and registration offices. Franklin Pierce held its first graduation in 1967 and became accredited by the New England Association of Schools and Colleges (NEASC) in 1968. While the college was overcrowded by 1970 despite building projects, the student body began to shrink by 1972. The college stayed roughly the same size throughout the 1970s. In 1975, Frank DiPietro stepped down as college president, and former New Hampshire governor Walter Peterson