William Penn was born in London, England on October 24, 1644. This is an accurate historical date until 1752, when both the UK and North America switched from the Julian calendar to the Gregorian calendar, which then meant that William Penn was born on October 14, 1644. If you are confused by that understand that the Gregorian calendar was created by Pope Gregory XIII in 1582, but it took a while for the new calendar to take hold.
Now that that bit has been digested, understand that Penn and the Lenape Indians probably signed a “great treaty of friendship” in 1663 under an elm tree in what is now Kensington in Philadelphia. No copy of this treaty has ever been found.
Treaty of Penn with Indians By Benjamin West - Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts, Philadelphia
However, the DNA of that elm tree lives on. Unfortunately the great elm was blown over in a storm on March 6, 1810. A good many snuff boxes, items of furniture, and walking sticks were made from wood that grand, fallen tree. General Paul Oliver had transplanted a shoot from the tree to his home. A scion from Oliver’s tree was presented to Haverford College about 1840 and planted on Founders Green. Seven slips were taken from that tree and planted about the college.
The Founders Green Elm succumbed to Dutch Elm Disease as did six of the seven seedlings. However, seeds were taken from the Founders Green Elm and planted as gifts throughout the Philadelphia area. Valley Member Nancy Gibbs acquired one of the seedlings from one of the surviving “grand/great grandchildren” of the great tree and presented it to our First Day School. The seedling was planted October 20, 2019.
Click on any of the pictures below for a larger image.
