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American Elm v. Slippery Elm.

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NadiaEira:
A university maintains a database that records large surviving trees or those that have achieved significant size without suffering damage.
 

bassman211:
Vikings used elm most of the time, and the English on occasion. Time tested, and proven to be a good bow wood. Not easy to split, and work with, but the end result is worth the effort. Red oak under clear glass makes a handsome glass bow, and has been used for years to get that look. On a scale from 1 to 10 for me it is a 10 for white wood bows. Try a fire hardened sapling, and you will be pleasantly impressed.

Jim Davis:
Is the OP in the USA? Here in Kentucky, nearly all the elm is witch/winged elm and is great bow wood.

I don't think any elm is a great candidate for an English long bow.

Badger:
   In southern Ca. we have a lot of Chinese elm. Great bow wood but hard to handle. It works easy enough once split but almost impossible to split. The wood looks very similar to the American varieties.

Bob Barnes:
I have American(White), Slippery(Red), and Winged(Cork) on my farm.  The American and Slippery weigh 35-37# per cubic foot while the Winged weighs about 47#.  Heat treated Winged elm makes great bow wood I think.  If you can find dead leaves beneath the tree, American has an uneven base while the others are even.

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