The Washington Elm today stands sentinel over workers at the south entrance to the Blasdell Building just to the east of the Capitol.
Photos courtesy of Kathie Taylor
The Washington Elm, where legend has it, George Washington took command of the Continental Army on July 3, 1775, in Cambridge, Massachusetts*, serves in the collective memory of the United States as an enduring symbol of America's fight for independence.
Though the original tree no longer stands, its legacy lives on through its descendants, including a grandchild of the original Washington Elm planted on the Capitol grounds of Carson City. This tree was dedicated by the Nevada Sagebrush Chapter of the Daughters of the American Revolution, a nonprofit organization for female descendants of a person involved in supporting the American Revolutionary War, and who are devoted to preserving American history.
Representatives of Wood Rodgers, an engineering firm contracted by the State of Nevada, announced a tree survey and assessment on the Capitol grounds. The Battle Born Chapter of the Daughters of the American Revolution contacted the Wood Rodgers team to share more of how this piece of living history grew roots in Nevada history. The tree is a testament to the deep historical connections and the dedication of the DAR to preserve the memory of the Revolutionary War.
The Legend of the Washington Elm
Although depicted in the arts and prose over time, no official record of George Washington taking command of the army under the tree exists. One such mention was an oration in a Cambridge meeting house on July 4, 1826, by Edward Everett that Washington had taken command "[B]eneath the venerable elm which still shades the southwestern corner of the common." The poet Henry Wadsworth Longfellow reportedly wrote the inscription for the marble slab placed by the tree in 1864, but even Longfellow's contribution was not recorded until1884 :
Under This Tree
Washington
First Took Command
Of the
AMERICAN ARMY
July 3rd, 1775
A Historic Monument
The Washington Elm, which stood in Cambridge, Massachusetts, was already nearly 60 years old on that fateful day. As Cambridge grew, the tree ended up in the middle of a traffic island. An iron fence protected it from being damaged by wagon wheels. The legend of the Washington Elm, glorified by stories, art and poetry, grew to symbolize not only Washington's leadership but also the unity and resolve of the colonies in their fight for independence.
As the years passed, the Washington Elm aged, and despite the community's work to save it, the tree eventually died. The tree collapsed on June 27, 1923, as workers attempted to remove its dangerous limbs. When the trunk split and fell, hundreds of onlookers gathered around, collecting wood fragments as keepsakes from this once-majestic tree. Though the original tree was gone, its legacy would live on in numerous ways.
The Legacy of the Washington Elm
The death of the Washington Elm inspired a movement to preserve its memory by distributing pieces of the tree and its offspring throughout the country. On Oct. 26, 1923, Gov. James Scrugham of Nevada received a section of the original Washington Elm from the mayor of Cambridge, Edward W. Quinn. It is thought the section, which came with a certificate of authenticity, would be sent to the Nevada Historical Society in Reno. The section was dedicated on the Capitol grounds on Oct. 5, 1932, by the Daughters of the American Revolution, where it stands today adjacent to the Blasdell Building, constructed in 1957.
Mrs. Dorsey’s Washington Elm Nursery
G. D. Edwards, the Dean of the Bible College at the University of Missouri, purchased a piece of the original elm. Edwards reflected on the significance of planting a descendant of the Washington Elm on his campus through personal letters. As a student at Harvard, he described standing under the original elm, feeling the profound connection to America's founding, and wishing to preserve that sentiment by planting one of its descendants on the college grounds.
Mrs. James H. Dorsey of Baltimore was a key figure in preserving the Washington Elm's legacy.
Yet another Harvard student, who would marry into the Dorsey family and become an uncle-by-marriage to Mrs. Dorsey, had once reached through the iron grate around the base of the original tree in Massachusetts and collected seeds in 1888. He, too, recalled feeling "thrills" standing underneath such a monument.|
He planted these seeds in his own garden. When they were still saplings, he gave 13 of them to Mt. Vernon (now known as Longfellow House–Washington's Headquarters National Historic Site), one to the State House grounds in Annapolis, and one to another of her uncles, who planted it on his property. Mrs. Dorsey spent happy days growing up under this uncle's tree, even passing by it on her way to her wedding.
After the uncle’s home changed hands, the tree, a child of the Washington Elm, fell into disrepair. Mrs. Dorsey’s uncle-by-marriage was distressed at the condition of the tree and asked permission to gather shoots. He gave the shoots to Mrs. Dorsey, knowing her fondness for the tree, and she planted them.
She grew a collection of young trees, affectionately called her "Washington Elm nursery." As the nation approached bicentennial celebrations of George Washington's birth in 1932, Mrs. Dorsey sent these "grandchildren" of the Washington Elm to vital historical sites across the United States, believing that the trees would carry forward the spirit of Washington and the values of freedom and unity.
In a heartfelt letter to Edwards, who had purchased an offshoot of the original tree, Mrs. Dorsey described how she had nurtured many of these descendent trees, caring for them as if they were her own "tree children," ensuring their survival through droughts and harsh weather.
The Arrival of the Washington Elm in Nevada
One of these special "grandchildren" of the Washington Elm found its way to Nevada in 1932. Mrs. Dorsey, the national Daughters of the American Revolution (D.A.R.) chair of conservation and thrift, sent it to the Nevada Sagebrush Chapter of the D.A.R. This tree was one of many distributed to D.A.R. chapters for planting on Capitol grounds across the nation in celebration of George Washington's 200th birthday.
The three-foot-tall tree arrived in Nevada on April 27, 1932, and was planted in a sunny spot on the northeastern corner of the Nevada State Capitol grounds.
Plaque denoting the history of the Washington Elm’s journey to Nevada on the occasion of the 200th anniversary of the birth of George Washington in 1932. The Dedication of Nevada’s Washington Elm
On October 5, 1932, the Nevada Sagebrush Chapter of the D.A.R. held a dedication ceremony for the tree. Mrs. Carl Stevens of Reno, chair of the Washington Bicentennial observance, led the ceremony, which included D.A.R. members, Civil War veterans, state officials, and many Carson City schoolchildren.Sentiment and Significance: A Living Legacy
The Wood Rodgers tree survey confirmed the Washington Elm planted in Nevada continues to thrive. In 1957, the State completed construction on the Blasdel Building on the northeast corner of the Capitol grounds. H.G. Blasdell was the first governor of Nevada, serving from December 1864 to January 1871, through the Civil War and beyond to reconstruction. Blasdel is credited with organizing the government and drawing up plans for the Capitol.
This grandchild of the Washington Elm grows proudly on Nevada's Capitol grounds, much like the ideals it represents – firmly rooted in history yet ever-reaching toward the future. Its presence connects the past to the present, serving as a reminder of the spirit of freedom.
A Joint Celebration
In September of 2024, members of the Nevada Sagebrush and Battle Born DAR Chapters met with the Maryland DAR’s state historian, and representatives of Wood Rodgers to discuss the re-dedication of the tree on Arbor Day, April 25, 2025, to mark the 250th anniversary of Washington taking command of the Continental Army. It also marks the 31st anniversary of Carson City’s designation as a Tree City USA. This celebration is in the planning stage as of this writing.
Postscript: Disputing the Legend
* Many scholars dispute that George Washington actually stood under the Washington Elm, including Daniel Gottesman of the Harvard Political Review, who writes that the tree is notable for another legend. He writes that in 1746, preacher George Whitfield, a leader of the Great Awakening religious movement, gave a speech under that same tree, nearly 30 years before George Washington is said to have made history in that spot. Also of note, Gottesman writes at the approach of the Civil War, Cambridge’s leaders and residents were drawn to “an impromptu meeting under the historic tree, and all of Cambridge deliberated on how best to help the Union prevail.”