Home for the Holidays
Center Street, Wallingford, Connecticut
I went back to my hometown, Wallingford, Connecticut, for the holidays this past year and decided to photograph downtown, curious to see how much had changed from what I remembered. Strange to see so much had changed, and yet it was still the same….
Railroad Station - Built 1871
Police Department - Originally Connecticut State Armory, Built 1920
Main Street
This section of Main Street was where my favorite bar, aptly titled Main Street, used to be. I never realized how historic my former watering hole was. The Episcopal church at the far left was built in 1868. The next building, where my favorite bar was housed on the first floor, known as the William Wallace Block, was built in 1857. The building on the far right, which is now a restaurant, was the first First National Bank in Wallingford, built in 1921.
These Still Exist?
Original Bank of Wallingford - Now Bank of America
The Center Street Cemetery, which is located, surprise, in the center of town, on Center Street. (You can see the outside wall of the cemetery in the Center Street image, top of the page.) The cemetery dates back to the late 1600′s. Some notables found here: Lyman Hall, signer of the Declaration of Independence, Mose Y Beach, founder of AP, and Thomas Yale, founder of Yale University.
Lyman Hall, Signer of the Declaration of Independence, Gravesite
Tombstones from the Early 1800's
This is only a small sampling of the wonderful history & historical sites in this town. Looking back on this trip, strange how much of this history I never even noticed growing up there. I could probably spend days photographing everything, but that’s probably true of most small towns in New England.
Walking Up Center Street
Finally….a Hummingbird!
My first sighting of the summer. It was raining and of course, my camera was no where near, when the hummingbird appeared. And then he was gone. When he returned, about 20 minutes later, I was ready. No fancy setup. Handheld my camera and shot through the window. A few quick frames and he was gone again. Checking my birding book, this is an immature female Ruby-throated Hummingbird. If that’s not correct, please let me know.
Large Cow Gassing Up
Sometimes you just “happen” upon things. I’m a big fan of the ridiculous scene, like a yard filled with Christmas inflatables. My daughter, I’m sure, tired of the numerous cell phone pictures she received of blow-up yard ornaments while in class. So when we drove by the large Turkey Hill cow at this Tom Thumb on Navarre Beach, I couldn’t resist.
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