Before Dutch elm disease took its toll on American elm trees, we could have debates such as the one spurred by this photo.

Was this Northwest Ohio’s largest elm tree? This huge tree was located in Paulding County, near the village of Oakwood, and it was thought to be one of the area’s biggest. Located on the John Carnahan farm, the tree trunk had a circumference of 20 feet. On March 11, 1953, Toledo Blade photographer Paul Mohr asked Karl Adams, left, and Donald Adams to stretch out their arms to illustrate the size of the tree. It stood about 150 feet tall, and was estimated to be between 100 and 200 years old. Donald Adams built his home of timber cut from the same woods.

Oakwood is about 70 miles southwest of Toledo.

PHOTO GALLERY: Pictures of the Week for March 2-8, 2015

According to the Ohio State University Extension Service, Dutch elm disease was introduced into America near Cleveland in the 1930s. It is called “Dutch” elm disease because the first extensive research was done by Dutch women. The disease still kills mature elm trees today, and can be found in most states, except the desert Southwest. It is caused by a fungus carried by elm bark beetles. If the disease is caught early enough, steps can be taken to save a tree, but trying to prevent the disease on a city-wide scale proved to be cost-prohibitive for most communities.

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First Published March 9, 2015, 4:00 a.m.