Are you looking for a flowering tree or an evergreen?

The Arbor Day Foundation has this cool tool called the Best Tree Finder: Tree Wizard it ask 4 questions to narrow down choices for you
1) Zip Code (so can find your zone)
2) Type of Trees (Evergreen, Flowering, Ornamental, Shade...)
3) Soil and Sun
4) Height, Spread, and Growth rate desired

Here is a link that might be useful: Best Tree Finder: Tree Wizard

Thank you Trees 123- That will definitely be a bookmarked site- I am looking for a non evergreen - flowering or not. I used the link but only a crabapple came up that was closest to the size but a little too wide/dense. Perhaps shaping one of the suggested shrubs into more of a tree shape might be another direction. Thank you for the link. annoc

You could always try a dwarf fruit tree. We just bought a dwarf plum tree for a small area. It will make beautiful flowers in the spring and you'll have some fruits in the summer! Dwarf peaches or plums would be nice, but I'd stay away from dwarf apples...I've seen many a "dwarf" apple get humungous.

Their are also a lot of dwarf Japanese maple cultivars that stay very small, and could work well for you.

I have a 'pink fleshed' apple that is a natural dwarf and is staying quite small without much pruning.

Also, I recently read an article on summer pruning for fruit trees. The author's POV was that it takes two prunings yearly to keep dwarf fruit trees at an appropriate size. Dormant pruning in the late winter is for shaping the growth but does not limit size, a second pruning in the late summer should keep the tree from getting too big.

But fruit trees have their own problems - mainly fruit dropping and rotting if it is not all picked. I faced a similar situation and ended up choosing a large shrub that could be trained into a tree-like form.

Thank you for all your suggestions as I keep investigating.