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Bostonians rushed to the Common when they heard the Great Elm had fallen
By adamg on Fri, 02/24/2017 - 9:57am
The Massachusetts Historical Society recounts the fall of the Great Elm, a tree that had long been a fixture on the Common, in 1876:
When the tree finally did come down in 1876, struck by a strong gust of wind during a storm, Boston citizens rushed to the tree to claim branches and scraps of wood as souvenirs.
The tree was repurposed in a number of other ways by inventive residents, including creating veneered pictures of the tree made out of wood from the elm itself and growing a root of “The Old Elm” around a china dish cover. Part of the tree was also used to make a chair for the Boston Public Library . ... One of these keepsakes belongs to MHS’s own collection, a pair of “Old Elm earrings,” made by Benjamin F. Knowlton.
Earlier:
Dying Back Bay elm tree says farewell.
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Comments
Natural shade
Yes!
The actual age of the Great Elm is in doubt - some say it was planted in 1670 while many believe it was much older. When it fell, they attempted to count the rings and estimated it had already stood for four hundred years prior to the Arbella's landing.
I've read that, at the time the Puritans landed, there were just four trees on what was to become the Boston Common - the Great Elm, two near Park Street, and the Liberty Tree. I think all of us would agree, the estimated location of the Liberty Tree wouldn't even be on the Common, but perhaps back in the day it was.
That's why, when people mock me (and people like me) I mock them back. "You don't want any buildings throwing shadows on the Common? TREES CAUSE SHADOWS."
Yes, they do. And the location for every single one of those trees was planned out ahead of time.
My go-to source for all-things Boston Common is this book, published 101 years ago.
https://books.google.com/books?id=p4QUAAAAYAAJ&dq=%22Boston%20Common%22&...
Common Trees
It's my understanding that most of the trees on Boston Common today were planted in the early 20th century by the sons of F.L. Olmsted.
Ancestors were lame
Didn't know how to take selfies with it
Elm is beautiful wood
Has a really nice grain. Not so good for burning; old-timers call it "pisswood" because of its smell.
I almost ran out the door .. .
... but I read the article and realized I was a few centuries too late to see the fallen elm.
The Liberty Tree was not on the Common but it was near. On private land owned by a farmer.
I now live amidst where it's uppermost branches may have reached.
I call for more shade trees on the Common and elsewhere in Boston Proper and less glass high rise developments. They fall down too. Look at the Millennium Tower in San Francisco if you don't believe me.
Squirrels don't like them either.
Think I found it!
A quick research in Mapjunction and I found two maps from 1814 and 1769 which I believe actually mark the Great Elm. What do you think?