Did you ever notice in Old pictures of downtown Rochester that the city streets were lined with large, beautiful Elm trees?

In the 19th century, Rochester, like many other New England towns, planted elm trees in order to beautify the downtown streets. In the 1930s, it was estimated that America had over 25 million elm trees.

Today, the giant elms are only a memory of our ancestors. Sadly, this venerable tree is nowhere to be found. You might ask; What happened? Where did the elm trees go?

In this episode, we will look at the infamous Dutch Elm Disease and the effect it had on downtown Rochester.

The Rochester Historical Society and Museum is located on Hanson Street. Visit www.rochesternh.gov/history for hours of operation, events, contact information, and to learn more about programming.