I came across a meadow of wild flowers in Southampton Village last week, while my daughter was rehearsing for her ballet show nearby. And then I found out that in 1640 the first settlers of Southampton in Long Island had walked and planted on this same site. 
I was in Southampton’s ‘Old Town’. Daisies, coneflowers, lupines, clovers and all sorts of wild flowers and shrubs surrounded me where a group of English puritans had erected their first crude dwellings. In 1648 they moved to what is now Main Street – less than a mile away – and built ‘proper’ homes.
On one side of the street, at the intersection of Old Town Road and Wickapogue Road, a path looped through the flowers. Amid them a memorial bench to Edward Howell had been placed by his 21st century descendants. Born in Buckinghamshire, England, he had emigrated to Lynn, Massachussets in the 1630s. He was part of the small group of colonists who first arrived in the Old Town of Southampton.
Among the native grass, shrubs and flowers were even scattered tiny wild strawberries.
On the other side of the road was a larger meadow with a developer’s sign. This area had once been a 53 acre farm until it was bought in 2005. Now it is being turned into plots for custom homes costing up to $20 million dollars or more. 440 mature trees were transported and planted here as well. The new landlords of Southampton’s Old Town will drive to their homes along lanes lined with London Plane trees. Anchor lines still hold the trees fast as their roots dig down into the new soil.
The small park on the site of Old Town became part of Southampton again and the corner field was turned into this native wildlife insect meadow.
And now I’m going to be rather indulgent with a display of some of the flora that I found – including clover, flowering chives, wild columbines, coneflowers and wild lupines. 
What made this land so beautiful was that it was wild and not manicured. It was filled with plants to attract wildlife and insects rather than pesticide and mowed grass. I wish more developers would do the same thing as I wandered past all the wild flowers and shrubs in this meadow in Old Town.
Pingback: 58. How Does Your Garden Grow? — Mammasaurus
What amazing photographs Kriss! There is something effortlessly beautiful about wild flowers. Stunning.
Beautiful photos – I absolutely love finding places that have been left to grow wild and beautiful, so much prettier and more interesting than places where everything is placed perfectly!
Your photos are absolutely stunning. I always find it so wonderful to find patches of wild beauty around in the area that you live. 🙂 x #pocolo
I love your photography, and totally agree with your point, I think though that patches of wild flowers are becoming more … fashionable? Hopefully that means we will all see many more in our surroundings! #pocolo
Wow, what lovely flowers and pictures. What a find #pocolo
I love everything here! The flowers, the colors, the trees! I can already imagine how delicate they are and yet resilient =) Thanks for always sharing your photos. They are different and always awesome =) #hdygg
Gorgeousness – and not unlike here for plants, I’m in Southampton, UK ! I especially love the lupins with the daisy backdrop, what a great contrast. Just all so very beautiful Kriss – thanks for sharing x
Such beautiful flowers, and your photos really do them justice. Interesting history, too!
That first photo is stunning, love it. Such a lovely collection of pics, I love wild flowers they always settle in just the right place
Thanks Gemma – I had fun spotting all the different varieties although I wish I could have identified more of them!
What a beautiful place! I have a soft spot for ‘wild’ land because you get such a variety of plants and flowers. Lovely photos!
Wouldn’t it be wonderful if all development paid it’s respects to the surrounding area. Please indulge away, those images are wonderful to look at and enjoy 🙂
Thanks Iona! Luckily the developers of this area had the money to make it happen – but am so glad they chose to turn the area into a wild meadow.
oh goodness your picures are just the best i have seen today really lovely, i love the historic story too you really painted a great picture as well as taken several. i do love your lead ox eye daisy shot.
I love wild flower gardens. When the kids have left home I dream of turning our back garden (small patch of grass) into a wild flower meadow. Fab photos, we have lots of ox-eye daisies flowering at present too.
I so agree – kids need a lawn but wild flowers are just so natural.