Historic Trees of New Bedford Walking Tour #1 'Walk for Health'

The Historic Trees of New Bedford is brought to you by Out on a Limb whose members are dedicated to the preservation and enhancement of our city’s urban forest by raising awareness of the environmental significance, botanical beauty, unique heritage, and

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Historic Trees of New Bedford Walking Tour #1 'Walk for Health'

New Bedford, Massachusetts 02740, United States

Created By: CAS - New Bedford Trees Tour

Tour Information

The Historic Trees of New Bedford is brought to you by Out on a Limb whose members are dedicated to the preservation and enhancement of our city’s urban forest by raising awareness of the environmental significance, botanical beauty, unique heritage, and maintenance needs
of New Bedford’s public and private tree population. Out on a Limb meets at the James Arnold Mansion, where the Arnold Arboretum was conceived with James Arnold’s assistance.
Bound by the Hawthorn Street historic 19th century ‘Morelands’ homestead of Leander A. Plummer and the Union Street former homestead and residence of William J. Rotch, now the
James Arnold Mansion, and the William Rotch, Jr. house, now the Rotch-Jones-Duff House & Garden Museum, the New Bedford Historic Trees Walking Tours offer a glimpse of the former grand estates that graced New Bedford with views of the magnificent trees that have survived to this day.
The walk offers a pleasant introduction to the trees of the former estates including the L.A. Plummer homestead, J.G. Delano residence, and the Stetson estate that were built within 19th century New Bedford, “the Shining City on the Hill” and repurposed in the twentieth century.

Narrative and Text:
J.E. Ingoldsby, ASLA
Natural & Cultural Landscapes

For: Out On A Limb
James Arnold Mansion, Inc.
427 County Street
New Bedford, MA 02740

Trees of New Bedford series
Dendrology and Silviculture Excerpts by:
J.E. Ingoldsby, ASLA, Contributing Writer

Trees of New Bedford series
Historical Excerpt by:
Steven Froias, Contributing Writer

Technical Consulting:
Michael Antonio - Commercial Art Services, Westport


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What You'll See on the Tour

Liriodendron tulipifera With distinctive square lobed leaf structure, large green and orange tulip-shaped flowers, and woody cone-like seeds, the prehistoric tulip tree is relatively unchanged since the Early Cretaceous period, 145 to 100.5... Read more
Nyssa sylvatica The oldest known hardwood tree in North America is a tupelo tree estimated at >710 years old. In 1312, this tupelo sprouted in a hummocky swamp in southern New Hampshire. Tupelo trees are long lived.  With a wide lateral... Read more
Ilex opaca “Deck the halls with boughs of holly” is a familiar traditional yuletide carol that speaks to the beauty of the holly in winter that adds to the celebratory mood of the holidays and New Year. American holly is an upright, pyr... Read more
Quercus alba This is a tree that launched a thousand ships and timbered thousands of 18th-century post and beam homes with its weatherproof, close-grained hardwood. Massive in size and ancient in age, this slow-growing oak can live for five... Read more
Magnolia acuminata The prehistoric Magnolia is historically one of the earliest flowering Angiosperm trees from the Early Cretaceous period. The evolutionary rise of flowering plants fueled a diversity of pollinating insects, and herbivores... Read more
Tilia species Tilia or the linden tree comes in different shapes and sizes, leaves and habits, from messy to refined, depending on the cultivar. The American linden has large 8” leaves that are alternate and broadly ovate in shape that cl... Read more
Quercus rubra Oaks’ lineage with beech makes this tree another from the fossil record.  Quercus dates back to the Cretaceous period, when dinosaurs roamed the Earth. A member of the beech family, this deciduous oak reaches 75-100 feet i... Read more
Platanus acerifolia The London planetree was so named because of its adaptability to the smoke and grime of early industrial London.  The London planetree is a massive tree rising up to 100‘, and out to 80’ from a stout trunk with plat... Read more
Fagus sylvatica The magnificent European Copper Beech is a climax forest tree of mammoth proportions, with a youthful smooth gray bark that becomes elephantine with age; with wide-spreading branches often sweeping the ground; and emergent c... Read more
Acer saccharum If ever a tree typifies New England, it is the sugar maple.  Sugar maple is a stately native tree rising above the forest with its tall trunk and rounded oval canopy.  Sugar maple is known for its brilliant autumn yellow to... Read more
Ginkgo biloba The Ginkgo tree dating to the days of the dinosaurs is a survivor of geologic time and historic time.  Trees can live for over a thousand years.  A Ginkgo tree re-sprouted from the charred radioactive remains of the atomic b... Read more
Liriodendron tulipifera Can you hear the low-frequency infrasound calls of the duck-billed hadrosaurs vibrating to the soles of your feet or smell the flatulence of the long-necked sauropods browsing on the leaves of the prehistoric Liriode... Read more
Carpinus caroliniana, American Hornbeam, Ironwood What kind of tree looks as if it is flexing its biceps with it muscular smooth barked branches festooned with pendulous cut green leaves?  It must be an one hundred year old Japanese maple.... Read more
What kind of tree can grow so large as to fill a city block with its branches? The answer is to be determined.  No trespassing...requires the owner’s permission to investigate Return to St. Luke's Hospital to finish this tour.  ...

 

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