The Champion American Elm of Allegheny Commons

Dutch elm disease killed most of the great American elms that once arched over the streets of the eastern United States. In March 2024 Pittsburgh's Shade Tree Commission named this one, in Allegheny Commons on the North Side, a Pittsburgh Champion: the commission's own category for the largest tree of a species on public property. That makes it a rare thing to see at size. The disease is a fungus carried from tree to tree by bark beetles, and once it reached North America in the twentieth century it went through the country's favourite street tree for decades. Plenty of American elms are still planted and still standing, but a champion-sized one is the exception. How this one came through, nobody has published. The commission did not record its age, girth or height, and we will not guess at a story nobody has told. Allegheny Commons is a long, narrow public park, free to walk, and it holds a good many elms among its other trees. Our pin is approximate, near West North Avenue, so size is your best guide: the champion should be the biggest American elm in the park. American elm leaves are lopsided at the base and double-toothed along the edge, and in October they turn yellow. If you know this tree, its age or its measurements, tell us. A city champion deserves a number.