Mitchell in Lawrence County, Indiana — The American Midwest (Great Lakes)

Space Age Sweetgum Tree

Photographed By Cosmos Mariner, August 24, 2021

1. Space Age Sweetgum Tree Marker

Inscription. STS-41D — Mercury Program
This tree was grown from a seed which orbited the Earth with astronaut Charles Walker, native of Bedford, Indiana aboard Space Shuttle Discovery from 30 Aug. to 5 Sept. 1984. It was presented to the Grissom family by astronaut Walker in recognition of the ultimate sacrifice of their son, Virgil I. Grissom, in the United States Space effort.

This memorial has been placed here by members
of the Grissom family and the Space Museum of Bonne Terre, MO.

Erected by Gus Grissom family and the Space Museum of Bonne Terre, MO.

Topics and series. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: Air & Space • Disasters • Horticulture & Forestry • Science & Medicine. In addition, it is included in the Historic Trees series list. A significant historical date for this entry is August 30, 1984.

Location. 38° 43.796′ N, 86° 28.395′ W. Marker is in Mitchell, Indiana, in Lawrence County. Marker can be reached from West Grissom Avenue west of South 7th Street, on the right when traveling west. Marker is mounted at ground-level, directly in front of the subject tree, about 10 yards north of the sidewalk. Touch for map. Marker is at or near this postal address: 715 West Grissom Avenue, Mitchell IN 47446, United States of America. Touch for directions.

Other nearby markers. At least

Paid Advertisement

Click on the ad for more information.
Please report objectionable advertising to the Editor.

Click or scan to see
this page online

8 other markers are within 3 miles of this marker, measured as the crow flies. Astronaut Virgil I. (Gus) Grissom Boyhood Home (a few steps from this marker); Mitchell Opera House (approx. 0.3 miles away); Lehigh Portland Cement (approx. 2½ miles away); Hat Factory (approx. 2½ miles away); Montgomery Tavern (approx. 2½ miles away); The Stage Coach Trail (approx. 2½ miles away); Amzi Munson Residence (approx. 2.6 miles away); The Granny White House (approx. 2.6 miles away). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Mitchell.

More about this marker. Marker and subject tree are located on the west side of the Virgil I. (Gus) Grissom Boyhood Home.

Also see . . .
1. Gus Grissom.

Grissom was the pilot of Mercury-Redstone 4 (Liberty Bell 7), the second American suborbital flight, on July 21, 1961. His next flight was in the Project Gemini program as command pilot for Gemini 3 (Molly Brown), which was a successful three-orbit mission on March 23, 1965. Grissom, commander of AS-204 (Apollo 1), died along with his fellow astronauts Ed White and Roger B. Chaffee on January 27, 1967, during a pre-launch test for the Apollo 1 mission at Cape Kennedy, Florida.

(Submitted on April 10, 2022, by Cosmos Mariner of Cape Canaveral, Florida.)

2. STS-41-d.

STS-41-D
Photographed By Cosmos Mariner, August 24, 2021

2. Space Age Sweetgum Tree Marker
(marker is mounted on ground, directly in front of tree)
was the 12th flight of NASA's Space Shuttle program, and the first mission of Space Shuttle Discovery. It was launched from Kennedy Space Center, Florida, on 30 August 1984, and landed at Edwards Air Force Base, California, on 5 September 1984. Three commercial communications satellites were deployed into orbit during the six-day mission, and a number of scientific experiments were conducted.

(Submitted on April 10, 2022.)

Space Age Sweetgum Tree image. Click for full size.

Photographed By Cosmos Mariner, August 24, 2021

3. Space Age Sweetgum Tree

(Gus Grissom Boyhood Home visible on right)

Virgil I. (Gus) Grissom Boyhood Home image. Click for full size.

Photographed By Cosmos Mariner, August 24, 2021

4. Virgil I. (Gus) Grissom Boyhood Home

(tree is located on west side of the Grissom Boyhood Home)

Credits. This page was last revised on April 10, 2022. It was originally submitted on April 10, 2022, by Cosmos Mariner of Cape Canaveral, Florida. This page has been viewed 236 times since then and 30 times this year. Photos: 1, 2, 3, 4. submitted on April 10, 2022, by Cosmos Mariner of Cape Canaveral, Florida.