By the middle to late 1920s, the oak was about fifteen feet tall and already gave a little shade to the Domestic Science building. From the middle 1920s through the early 1940s the Teaching Department ran a nursery school in this building. The best close-up images of the oak during these years occur in photos of the nursery school and its activities. The oak made excellent growth during this period. Early nursery school photos show a healthy, but still obviously young tree.
Late photos show the oak beginning to assume the shape of a mature oak.
During this time the diameter of the trunk also increased remarkably. Airviews offer another perspective on the oak. A shot from about 1930 shows the dark leaves of the oak peaking over the roof of the white frame Domestic Science building near the top center of the photo. This photo also gives a good idea of the proximity of the Circle Elm to the old power plant . An airview from the late 1930s shows the new power plant in operation on the left of the photo and the old power plant site cleaned up and landscaped.