Springfield Forestry: 125 Years of “The City of Trees”

The success of the Forestry Division and the existence of Springfield’s significant tree resource is the direct result of the care and professionalism exhibited by its City foresters over the last 125 years. The city has had a total of ten individuals lead the Forestry Division as City Forester.

The Forestry Division was established by Mayor Henry S. Dickinson in January of 1898. William F. Gale was appointed as the first City Forester in February of that year. In August of 1898, the Department of Forestry removed the “Queen Elm” located on Elm Street at the Elm Street School House. Gale’s efforts would set the precedent for the professional management of Springfield’s trees over a century later.

The longest serving City Forester was L. Fletcher Prouty who served for 44 years from 1918 until 1962. Prouty began his career as an assistant to City Forester J. Alden Davis in 1913 after

BY ALEXANDER R. SHERMAN, CITY FORESTER

attending the Massachusetts Agricultural College. Prouty led the Division through a great period of development within the city and is responsible for much of our mature tree canopy today.

Henry A. Mathieu served as City Forester for 21 years from 1968 to 1989. Henry continued the legacy of the Springfield municipal nursery and designed a bare root tree digging device he called “the thing,” and is credited with planting thousands of trees across the city.

The second longest serving City Forester is Edward P. Casey who served for 26 years from 1992 to 2018.

Casey brought the Forestry Division into the 21st Century by employing the latest research-based Urban Forestry practices. Casey also guided the division through one of the City’s worst natural disasters in 2011 when a Tornado caused significant tree damage. He led the Division’s efforts from initial cleanup through to reforestation and

ABOVE: REGREEN SPRINGFIELD, A NON-PROFIT FORMED FOLLOWING THE 2011 TORNADO CUT THROUGH SPRINGFIELD TO HELP REFOREST CITY NEIGHBORHOODS, LE AD A TREE PLANTING ON ROCHELLE AND ANNAWON STS. IN THE CITY ON APRIL 10, 2014. WITH HELP FROM THE CITY FORESTRY DEPARTMENT AND SPONSORSHIP FROM BERKSHIRE BANK, THE EVENT DREW VOLUNTEERS FROM AREA BUSINESSES AND SCHOOLS. FROM LEFT, DAVE BLONIARZ, PRESIDENT OF REGREEN SPRINGFIELD, DAN STROM, REGREEN SPRINGFIELD PROJECT DIRECTOR, ETHAN PAGE, A CITY FORESTRY DEPARTMENT INTERN AND STUDENT AT THE UNIVERSITY OF MASSACHUSETTS STOCKBRIDGE SCHOOL OF AGRICULTURE AND SPRINGFIELD CITY FORESTER ED CASEY. PHOTO BY MICHAEL S. GORDON/ THE REPUBLICAN

TOP: SPRINGFIELD CITY FORESTER ALEX SHERMAN TENDING TO SEEDLINGS IN THE FORESTRY DEPARTMENT’S GREENHOUSE IN FOREST PARK, APRIL 10, 2023. PHOTO BY DON TREEGER / THE REPUBLICAN the impacts of his leadership are evident in the re-vitalized tree canopy.

The state of Springfield’s urban forest is reliant on each

City Forester charged with the care of its trees building upon what his predecessor has achieved. The City of Springfield has consistently employed professional urban forest managers to care for its city’s trees.

BY MICHAEL S. GORDON/ THE REPUBLICAN