Have you ever been on a walk in downtown Edmonton and noticed a tree in the middle of an alleyway, surrounded by a wrought iron fence with a bench, and wondered why or how it got there?
The Holowach Tree is a horse chestnut tree planted around 1920 by Ukrainian pioneer entrepreneur Sam Holowach behind the site of his former shop and home.
It’s one of many hidden treasures downtown, located in an alley off Jasper Avenue between 105th and 106th Street.
Who were the Holowach family?
Sam Holowach was a Ukrainian immigrant who promptly abandoned homesteading east of Edmonton for a new life in the city.
He worked as a tailor after arriving in Edmonton, then became the operator of his own dyeing and dry-cleaning business. He has been described as one of Edmonton’s pioneer Ukrainian entrepreneurs.
The Holowach family had a lasting impact on the Edmonton community overall. Sam’s son, Ambrose, represented Edmonton for the Social Credit Party in both the House of Commons and the Alberta Legislature. In 1962, Ambrose became Alberta’s first cabinet member of Ukrainian origin.
A unique tree species in Edmonton
Horse chestnut trees are not a native species to the Edmonton area. The seed came from Vienna, where Holowach’s other son studied the violin and later became a concertmaster with the Edmonton Symphony Orchestra.
“Bare-branched and defiant during the long and bitter prairie winter, it is glorious in full bloom in the late spring and is a leafy green canopy amidst skyscrapers and concrete in the city’s short summer,” the Edmonton Maps Heritage site describes.
The tree was at risk of being chopped down in 1998, but it was saved by the City of Edmonton after concerned citizens and local businesses came together to preserve the iconic tree.
So, the next time you visit downtown, don’t forget to check out this fascinating, leafy piece of Edmonton history!