Spreading an Image of Peace
Part 1 | Part 2

George Lehman (American, ac. 1830-1870) William Smith, publisher The Great Elm Tree of Shackamaxon (Now Kensington), c. 1830 Aquatint with watercolor, 14 1/2 x 18 image  Gift of Mr. and Mrs. Meyer P. Potamkin 95.75.104

The image of Penn’s Treaty soon appeared everywhere, in advertisements, on children’s toys, even on fine china. In its many forms the picture became a source of local pride and a colorful illustration of America’s early history.

The "treaty elm," where Native Americans may have met William Penn, served as a visible reminder of the Commonwealth’s founding. A monument in Penn’s Treaty Park in Philadelphia marks the spot where the great tree stood until toppled by a storm in 1810.

In its form it was remarkable wide spread, but not lofty; its main branch inclined towards the river measured 150 feet in length; its girth around the trunk was 24 feet, and its age, as it was counted by the inspection of its circles of
annual growth, was 283 years.

- - John F. Watson, 1870