The advocate., 1897-09-01
aIANT TREEs or CONNEOTICUT.

GIANT TREES OF CONNECTICUT,
II. L. Reade, of Jewett City, has
been rouslng public interest in this
States old trees. He has found that
the elms furnished the most attractive
group of trees in point Of historical In
terest. There is a weeping elm on Mr..
Reade's lawn which, although 1t has
very small trunk, is a wonder as re-
CARDS the space 1t covers. It's trunk Is
not over two and half feet in dame
ter. It's branches nearly touch the
ground making a shade, when the sun
is directly overhead, Of siXty-nine feet
in diameter, or large enough for 2,5OO
men.
Some of the oldest elms in the State
are at Stratford; a number there are
known to be over two centuries old.
The Mcclellan elms, In South Wood
stock, were planted on June II, 1875,
by the grandmother Of Gen. George b.
Mcclellan. The fine elms OF East Hart
ford were set out with one or two eXcep-
tions, by French troops under ROcham-
beau. The matchless elms in South
Windsor were planted by British pris-
Oners of war in Revolutionary times,
There are two monster elms In front OF
j. l.. Judd's place, in Litchfield, which
are shown to visitors as the Calhoun
elnls. They were set out by John G..
Calhoun while he was law student
at Litchheld, in 1906. There Is an
other elm at the corner Of North and
West streets in Litchfeld, the finest In
the village which was the village whip
y ping post In the old days.
One of the largest elm trees in the
State stands on the land OF Miss NC
Kinney, OF South Windsor. Its trunk
is thirty feet in circumference. South
ington has the Barnes elm, which was
admired for years by Henry Ward
Beecher, and he knew something about
elms, too, for he was born among the
elm-clad streets of Lltchfleld. On the
estate OF Francis A. Stiles, In the white
oak district of Southbury, there is a
gigantic weeping elm which seems to
he right in It's prime to-day and ready
to branch out for the twentieth century.
Six feet from the ground It's trunk
measures twenty-One and q half feet
around, and it's branches spread out
1l9 feet. HartfOrd's famous Ledyard
elm was set out by John Ledyard, the
traveller, in 1865.
Norwich has some storled elms. They
are unusually large and each OF them
casts shade more than lUO feet In
diameter. Two of them, at Norwich
Town, were mentioned by DIR. Oliver
Wendell Holmes In his "AutOcrat Of
the Breakfast Table" The third Is the
Bean Hill elm written about by Whit
tier. This tree is known as the Gospel
elm, for under it's broad shaue the fa-
NOUS old-time revlvalist, Lorenzo Dow
used to hold his peculiar religious SER
vices. Under this tree, while lament
ing the loss OF his faithful wife
Peggy" who had recenuy died, ne
suddenly announced himself as ready
and willing to put on the matrimonial
yoke, adding: "If any woman present
is willing to become the wife Of Lo-
renzo Dow will thank her to signify
her willingness by rising" Where
upon Miss Lucy DOlbeare, a prim Bean
Hill spinster, arose and announced her
Willingness to take Brother Lorenzo
for better or for worse 80 be 1t,
thundered Lorenzo Dow in reply; "the
Lords will be DONE" And they were
maried.
The most famous Of the many New
Haven elms stands at tho corner oi