Removal of 'iconic' 150-year-old elm tree begins in downtown Portland

The City of Portland is removing a 154-year-old elm tree due to safety concerns, despite efforts to save it, and plans to plant a replacement tree by 2025.

PORTLAND, Ore. (KOIN) – Monday marks an end of an era in the City of Portland as the large elm tree standing downtown began its departure after 154 years.

The tree located behind the Portland Art Museum will be fully removed over the next few days due to safety concerns, according to Portland’s Heritage Tree Program Manager Sam Wolf.

"It suffered a lot of canopy loss during the last winter ice storm,” Wolf said. “It's not able to recover."

Despite efforts from arborists and experts to save an “iconic” tree, the Portland Parks and Recreation Department announced in late July that the only thing left to do is remove it.

Designated as Heritage Tree #1 and located at 1111 SW 10th Avenue, the tree is likely Oregon’s oldest elm. Sometimes called “Burrell elm” or “Rosa’s tree,” it is named after Rosetta F. Burrell, “a notable figure in Portland’s history and prominent social reformer of the era,” according to PP&R.

The Burrell elm is notable for being one of the first trees in the nation listed on a city’s historic register when it was approved to be included by the City’s Historical Landmarks Commission in 1975. In 1993, the elm was the first inductee into Portland’s Heritage Tree Program.

The tree has been in place since 1870. The city plans to plant a replacement tree by 2025.