Pierre weekly free press. (Pierre, S.D.) 1889-19??, 1905-12-07
A BOSTON LANDMARK
HISTORY OF A FAMOUS OLD ELM
DESTROYED BY THE WIND.

LED M GO of u TIE VIM.
This Celebrated Tree, Relieved to
Have Existed Before the settlement
of the City. Was Blown Down In
the Great Storm of 1873.
Feb. Is, 1876, was a sad day for To-
cal historians in Boston, for the news
about O'Clock the previous evening
the old elm Oh Boston Common had
been destroyed by great storm which
swept over the city ut that time So
many eulogies, both oral and written.
were delivered OH this most ancient of
lied that connecting link with the
remote past was gone forever.
1t is not known when the tree began
to grow, but AN old Boston tradition
was that the wife of Thomas Hancock,
the eminent merchant. who was Lydia
ed that her grandfather Hezekiah
Henchman, planted the tree when he
was boy. This would have made the
tree just 200 years old at the time of
its destruction.
1t is probable that some of the many
persons on record as being publicly
executed on Boston Common looked on
the fair world for the last time when
standing beneath its branches. for 1t
was one of the largest trees, If not the
largest, III the town, and it stood on
its outskirts, and also in 1722 it must
ton, for Bonner'S map OF the town,
published in that year. shows it as Il
feature.
In 1925 the first recorded measure
ment of the old elm showed its di-
mansions to be as follows: Height, 60
feet; circumference, u feet inches at
8 feet inches from the ground. and
the extreme diameter of the branches
was Sc feet. AT this time it was said
Of the tree that this pride of our Com
mon is pronounced by judges to be as
handsome in form as it is large In size
and venerable in age. and ii may be
worth the remark, Notwithstanding all
the buffeting it has received from
storms and hurricanes for more than
Il century, its original beauty and sym
metry have not been impaired. al
though it has at times lost many of It's
branches.
ihe tree was accurately measured by
the city engineer Of Boston lii 1855, and
ii was found that it was considerably
larger than in 1925. its height being
figured at seyenty-five feet. This
showed that it was still growing in its
extreme old age.
The first serious damage the tree re-
ceived was in 1882, when the largest Of
its limbs WAS so rent asunder that
three branches rested on the ground,
but at much cost and labor they were
replaced in their former positions and
held together by iron rods and bolts.
The great ale Il! $50 ii,.na:!!
the tree TO such an extent that its for.
mer symmetry was destroyed. and at
this time the cavity in the trunk was
filled with several loads Of material
On one of the branches which were
torn off at the time 100 rings were.
counted, which indicated the great age
of the tree
The opening of the centennial year of
tie republic, 1876, found the tree alive,
but decrepit, and it would probably
] have been decorate tea on Evacuation
day and the Fourth OF July. but, rs
| stated ut the beginning Of this article
| Feb. - saw It's destruction
| The Old elm fell at III o'clock In the
evening, its trunk pointing toward the
Park Street church, and the force of
| the fall shattered the trunk. while the
branches We're scattered in every di-
rection. The melancholy news spread
like wildfire through the city, and soon
| despite the storm, the fallen monarcl,
was surrounded by relic hunters. Arm
ed With saws, hatchets and knives
/ they quickly detached pieces Of the
| branches to preserve as souvenirs. Per
| sons were seen in the theaters laden
with bouglis. and it was a common
| sight that evening to see Tien in the
streets carrying limbs several feet in
length and as large around as a stove
| PipS. AhGli w lIc tltc WIS ulHuS lutI
veneer, and op>e book at least of Local
| history has OF its back cover large
veneer from the tree. bearing on its
/ face a lifelike engraving of the same
] So passed the old elm, and Boston
4 mourned for its passing
Z. Dir. Jerome Y. G. Smith, mayor o.
! the city in 1854 showed his interest il
the old elm by having the tree care
4 fully pruned and cleaned, and III
caused to. be placed around 1t an orna
4 mental iron fence. octagonal in shape
4 On the entrance gate was attached az
oval tablet bearing the following In
Ecription:
THE OLD ELM. 4
4 This tree has been standing here 70
i an unknown period. 1t is believed to hay
/ existed before the settlement OF Boston
4 beng full grown in l722: exhibited mark
4 Of old age in 1892 and was nearly destroy
Led by a, storm in 1892 Protected by a,
iron inclosure In 1854.
j. " G. SMITH Ma-~-
+ Soon after the failing of tho old elm
la young tree Of the same species wa!
PLANTED in the center Of the Enclosure
and today it has attained large AM
sturdy growth. Coming generations o
Bostonians may be familiar with /.
i second old elm on Boston Common. hu