Arboreal Environmental History of Dartmouth Trees

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The College Trustees formally designated the Dartmouth Cemetery as a burial ground in 1774, three years after the acre being set aside in the original Survey of Hanover. John King Lord, in his History of the Town of Hanover, wrote that “The graveyard on the College Plain comprised an acre of level land, set apart in the original Survey of the village in 1771 and formally sequestered by the College Trustees in 1774 for a burying ground for use of the College and the inhabitants of the vicinity.” Though no one has been buried here in quite a while, the cemetery and its looming pines like the one in front of you are a living remnant of Dartmouth’s early planning and development.

2. The Hiker's Elm

The Hiker’s Elm is located on the corner of Main and Wheelock street, across the street from the Hanover Inn. Described as the “ascendant lord of the local trees,” the Hiker’s Elm is marked with the double blazes of the Appalachian trail, which instructs hikers to turn a corner. The tale of this American Elm can be told through the journey of the Dartmouth Green’s development.

3. Fahey McLane Elm

The oldest and largest tree on the Dartmouth campus, this American Elm rests between Fahey Hall and Russell Sage. Former Dartmouth College arborist Brian Beaty refers to it as one of the “remaining” elms on campus, referencing the Dutch Elm disease that passed through the college in the 1960s and 1970s.

4. Lone Pine

Dartmouth’s Old Pine tells a story of the intertwining history and legend within the cultural and natural landscapes of the college (Legends). “The Lone Pine above her,” as it is referred to in Dartmouth’s Alma Mater, is Dartmouth’s main symbol, present in most iconography for the college. Though now all that remains is its stump, it was once a white pine before it was removed in 1895 due to wind and lightning damage (Forever Green). Evoked in Alexis’s novel as a symbol of aloneness surrounded by trees, the Old Pine has remained vital to generations of Dartmouth students and centuries of Dartmouth mythology. Relics of the Old Pine pine are available to visit in Dartmouth’s Rauner library.

5. College Park Norway Spruce

As the most populous tree in College Park, the Norway Spruce dominates one of the few dedicated green spaces on Dartmouth’s campus. A small forest on Dartmouth campus, it serves as a brief escape for Dartmouth students to relax in nature. But this small forest tells a much more involved story of the College’s relationship with what was here before it. These woods came about through deliberate development rather than preservation, as one might think.

This Tour is a Walking Tour.

Arboreal Environmental History of Dartmouth Trees

Created by Edel Galgon on February 2nd 2022, 5:14:03 pm.

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Description

This campus tree walk skirts and slides across the campus of Dartmouth College, paying close attention to the land use change history that allowed the trees to become what they are today. Dartmouth’s campus trees hold dramatic histories— after a beloved pine fell prey to disease and lightning, its role within Dartmouth mythology transformed, shaping culture without aliveness. Stately oaks and elms line The Green in perfectly spaced fashion, but hide the story of the Dutch Elm Disease that rolled through campus. However, for now, the trees are here, cultivated and resilient and susceptible and old and young. As you embark on this tour, you can begin to ask and answer the question of why the trees of Dartmouth College are the way they are?

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Arboreal Environmental History of Dartmouth Trees

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