Prelude: The Chipmunk Connection - Moravian College

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Lasting Legacy
The revered old elm that once grew near Main Hall has
returned to its Church Street roots. But instead of beautifying
the street before Main Hall, as it did for more than 200
years, the legendary tree now graces Main Hall’s parlor in
the form of a one-of-a-kind table. Local woodworker Michael
Kane contacted the College in 2007, after the tree was
taken down because disease had made it a hazard.
“I admired that tree for years,” Kane said. “The day it
was cut down, I offered to make a table from some of the
wood.” Kane smoothed the surface of the rough-cut slabs
with a series of sandings, then applied seven coats of tung
oil and two coats of wax. With its gnarly perimeter
and distinctive knots, the finished 4-by-7-
foot table captures much of the character of
the original. It promises to be at the center of
many gatherings of good cheer and warm fellowship
for years to come.
photo by michael wilson
Henry Elms
I was pleased to learn that the wood from the famous Church Street
elm is being preserved (“From Tree to Table,” Summer 2009). This
tree was not an American elm but an English elm—a rare species
in this area. English elms have become associated with the Henry
family, who, for five generations, operated the Henry Gun Factory
at Boulton, just north of Nazareth, Pa. There were two large
English elms at the Henry homestead (in Jacobsburg, Pa.), which
fell to Dutch elm disease some time ago. Across the road, there once
were two ancient English elms at the John Joseph Henry house;
these were more recently destroyed by the same disease. Moravian’s
Church Street elm bears witness to the fact that Henry daughters
attended the old Female Seminary.
To my knowledge, the last standing Henry elm is on the grounds
of the church in the village of Belfast, Pa. The Henrys helped to build
this church and established a Moravian congregation there to serve
workers at the nearby Henry Gun Factory. It is curious that there is
no record of an English elm at Nazareth Hall, a Moravian school for
boys that was attended by Henry sons.
—Robert P. L. Frick ’49, Bethlehem, Pa.
8 MORAVIAN COLLEGE MAGAZINE SUMMER 2010