An old (original) elm is located at 2000 Elm Street, in front of one of the city's most important preserved historical buildings, The John Stark House. This was the childhood home of General John Stark, who served with Roger's Rangers, fought at the Battles of Bunker Hill and Trenton, and commanded the Battle of Bennington.
The house was built in 1736 by Stark's father, Archibald. It is now owned by the Molly Stark Chapter of the Daughters of the American Revolution. It is open by appointment only.
Fortunately, Manchester has an elm restoration project
which has been highly successful. On April 16, 1998, Rich Davis,
Executive Director of Intown
Manchester,
announced that a "first round" of disease-resistant American elm
trees and elm-relatives had been planted on Elm Street in downtown
Manchester. The plantings, part of a $2 million dollar Elm Street
reconstruction project, are the first step in the long-term
restoration project.
Older, less healthy trees of various species which are located in downtown Manchester will be gradually replaced with the various varieties of tall, shade-providing trees in the elm family. Davis is hopeful that the 1998-planted elms, and others to be planted in the future, will help restore some of the style and grace that the elms of the early 1900s brought to the downtown section of the city.
Observations made in mid-summer of 2000 indicate that
Davis' hopes are being realized. Nearly all American elms and
elm-relatives have grown well during their first three years in their
new homes. The newly-planted trees have been carefully maintained.
Watering has been done on a regular basis and small pipes, which
nearly protrude from the soil at the base of the trees, have brought
water directly to the roots and aerated the soil. This approach was
especially important during the summers of 1998 and 1999, which were
hot and dry.
The trees are located at various sites along Elm Street from Bridge Street to Lake Avenue/Granite Street. In many cases, they are complemented by nearby containers of flowers. The appearance of both trees and flowers is impressive, and they are a definite asset to businesses in the downtown Manchester area.
The downtown scenes of elm relatives, elms and flowers were photographed in July, 2000.