Historic Camperdown elms saved on state Capitol grounds

Tree lovers rejoice. Four historic elms on the grounds of the Oregon State Capitol have been saved and relocated, and no one had to raise a fuss.

The laborious effort to salvage century-old Camperdown elms took most of a week and involved two different hydraulic cranes, one with a 600-ton capacity that required a full day to set up, and an experienced crew that specializes in moving and replanting large trees.

Some will be outraged at the $285,500 price tag, which is included in a budget to pay for improvements to the Capitol's utility infrastructure and is part of a $30 million bond authorized by the 2016 Legislature. It could have been worse. Getting approval to cut the trees down because they are protected by the Capitol's listing on the National Register of Historic Places could have added in excess of $2 million to the larger project. 

More would have been outraged if the trees had been chopped down to make room for new underground utility vaults on the east and west ends of the Capitol that will house heating, plumbing, and electrical systems.

Remember the fallout from the white oaks at the former site of the Oregon School for the Blind, the Japanese zelkovas on the sidewalk of U.S. Bank downtown, and the black walnut trees on the grounds of the Oregon State Hospital?

“People care about the trees. It doesn’t matter where it is. That’s Oregon,” said state parks forester Craig Leech, on hand to observe the relocation of the Camperdown elms.

Not every tree can be saved. Leech pointed out that a cedar recently had to be removed from the Capitol grounds because of disease. He said another may have it, too, and eventually need to be removed.

The Camperdown elms, at least two of which are believed to be more than 100 years old, appear to be thriving. Although not known to be the hardiest of ornamentals, they apparently love our mild climate, especially the mild winters.

The Capitol grounds are home to eight of these unique elms, which are recognizable by their rounded crowns and weeping branches. They look like giant parasols and were especially popular during the Victorian era, perhaps chosen for the landscaping to add a feminine touch to a stark, square statehouse. When their leaves drop, a tangled web of twisted branches is revealed.

The romance of the Camperdown elms, despite not being able to reproduce by seed, adds to their charm. Every tree is from a cutting from a cutting from a cutting of the original grafted tree in Dundee, Scotland. As the story goes, the gardener for The Earl of Camperdown found an oddly contorted sprig growing on the forest floor in the 1830s and grafted it to a Scotch elm. That resulting tree still stands today.

Paul Ries, an urban forestry expert who splits time between the Oregon Department of Forestry and Oregon State University, said Camperdown elms are uncommon but not rare. He guessed there may be a few hundred or so in the state, although there is no documentation for an accurate count.

Other Camperdown elms can be found in Salem, including one that sits prominently in the front yard of Bush House Museum, although not nearly as old or big as the foursome at the Capitol. Willamette University had a couple on campus until about 15 years ago, when they fell victim to Dutch elm disease, which Ries said the species is susceptible to.

All four trees that were relocated at the Capitol are roughly 20 feet tall with crowns 30 feet wide. It isn’t known when they were grafted or originally planted, but historic photographs and reports in the Statesman Journal archives show that Camperdown elms have graced the Capitol grounds for more than 100 years.

The earliest mention found in our archives is Aug. 6, 1910. On Page 6 of The Oregon Statesman, in a story with the headline “Salem’s Resting Places,” the Camperdown elms are singled out as being “among the trees that immediately attract your attention” at the Capitol.

“The grounds surrounding the State Capitol should be viewed with pride by every resident of the city and state, as they contain many rare trees and shrubs possibly not found elsewhere in this state outside this collection, originally made by a famous French gardener, who chose wisely as time has shown.”

At least two of the Camperdown elms survived the 1935 fire that destroyed the previous Capitol and had to be relocated twice before. The first time was after the fire. The trees were salvaged and then replanted in 1941 during landscaping of the new and current Capitol. They had to be moved again when the east and west wings were added to the building. The Statesman reported on Oct. 24, 1975, that a total of 26 mature trees in the path of construction were saved.

The two Camperdown elms were replanted in 1977, one at each of the wing entrances, and paired with a young Camperdown elm.

Chris Havel, a spokesman for Oregon State Parks and Recreation, said it is believed that the younger Camperdowns were planted “as an insurance policy” in case the mature trees didn’t survive.

The parks department, which manages the Capitol grounds, and the State Historic Preservation Office worked together to choose new locations for the four trees.

The east-side Camperdown elms now have a Japanese sophora, Norway maple, elkhorn cedar and Colorado blue spruce as neighbors. The west-side Camperdowns are now flanked by a Douglas fir, Deodar cedar, and saucer magnolia.

More historic moving:Relocating historic homes | Salem First Presbyterian Church

Marina Cresswell, the manager of the utility infrastructure project, was on site most of the week wearing a hard hat and safety vest. She seemed impressed with Environmental Design Inc., the subcontractor that orchestrated the painstaking process of preparing the trees for the move.

“They actually hand dug all the way around the trees,” Cresswell said on Day 1. “They are an amazing crew.”

The root structures — about 36 inches deep with a 12-foot radius — were wrapped in burlap and wire mesh. Tucked underneath each was a platform of recycled steel pipe for stability. Nylon lifting straps were woven carefully through the branches, a tricky proposition because of their dense canopies.

NessCampbell Crane + Rigging provided the heavy lifting — the trees weighed between 38,000 pounds and 55,000 pounds — and just one branch was lost in the move.

Maneuvering around other trees as well as statues and salvaged column remnants from the previous statehouse on the east end added to the challenges.

The Capitol’s 21-acre, T-shaped property encompasses the Capitol Mall, Willson Park, and Capitol Park. Strolling through the grounds is like visiting a vast arboretum, one with 75 species of trees.

Others are more photographed, such as the showy cherry trees that paint the landscape pink each spring, and more famous, such as Oregon’s Moon Tree, a towering Douglas fir that grew from seeds that went to the moon with Apollo 14. But none are known to have been moved three times.

The historic Camperdown elms are still settling into their new digs. Environmental Design will fill the holes at both the new and former locations.

Four younger Camperdowns will be planted in their former locations after the vault construction project is complete. Plans have been made to create planting wells within the structure of the vault lids to accommodate the new Camperdowns.

“Forward This” appears Wednesdays and Sundays and highlights the people,places and organizations of the Mid-Willamette Valley. Contact Capi Lynn at clynn@StatesmanJournal.com or 503-399-6710, or follow her the rest of the week on Twitter @CapiLynn and Facebook @CapiLynnSJ.