of New York 



HISTORIC TREES OF NEW YORK STATE 



By J. R. Simmons, 



71 N HISTORIC TREE is one near which, or "beneath whose 

 •**• shade" some event of importance in the life of the State 

 or Nation took place. But we have come to consider that 

 this definition should include those trees that have been 

 associated with noted personages; that commemorate hon- 

 ored dead; or that have grown to such great size that they 

 evidently deserve to be classed as historic on account of the 

 things they have seen and heard. Historic trees, indeed, are 

 our only living witnesses of all that has transpired on this 

 continent since Columbus discovered America. 



From the branches of an Elm that still stands in the City 

 of Rome, N. Y., near the geographical center of the State, 

 the American flag was first unfurled in battle. This tree ade- 

 quately measures up to the general definition, and in addi- 

 tion to this it possesses size, symmetry and great beauty. 



The Witenagemot Oak, signifying "an assemblage of the 

 wise," is typical of the second division of historic trees — 

 those associated with noted people. This tree is near Schagh- 

 ticoke, Rensselaer county, and marks the spot where the 

 Board of Indian Commissioners, headed by Governor Andros 

 and the militia of the King of England, assembled to confirm 

 the link of friendship between Indian tribes and to strengthen 

 the alliance between the Fort Albany Militia and their scouts. 



The trees planted in various parts of the State as memorials 

 for heroes of the Great War typify the historic trees of a 

 third division. A good example is furnished by the four 

 parallel rows on the Eastern Parkway in Brooklyn. But 

 many other planted under the auspices of the American Tree 

 Association might be named as evidence that the tree has 

 come to be recognized as one of the most beautiful and most 

 permanent of monuments, and that trees planted for heroes 

 are classed as historical. Most of them bear a bronze marker. 



Tree which for sheer size and beauty have become historic, 

 and which make up the fourth division, are best represented 

 by the Gowanda Elm, New York's greatest tree, and by the 

 enormous Balm of Gilead Tree at Balmville near the City 



