A plaque marks the site of the Old Elm that stood here for more than 200 years. History has it that Ann Hibbens was hanged on the branch of the elm tree for witchery in 1656, and Mary Dyer for religious heresy in 1660. On a happier note, the Sons of Liberty hung lanterns on its branches as a symbol of unity. Boston’s ‘oldest inhabitant’ was damaged in 1869 in a brutal storm and destroyed for good by another storm in 1876.
