Since 2023 I could have sworn this was the story: a woman from Italy immigrated to Globe, AZ & planted the night blooming stock that grows on the hills in spring after rainy winters, covering the hills in a dreamy pinkish purple/purplish pink bloom.
I wanted to photograph these flowers at sunrise, so I left my house at 5 AM. It was so cool driving towards the Superstitions seeing the faintest outline of the mountains at astronomical sunrise. Civil sunrise was at 6:47 AM. I got to Round Mountain at 6:46 AM. Phew. When I first got to Top Of The Hill, I was hit with the star anise fragrance of the flowers before I even saw them. The spicy licorice-adjacent fragrance seems to drift across town.
Back to that woman from Italy. When I first visited Round Mountain, I was so enchanted and came across a story online of a housewife, she was from Italy, she planted them to recreate some beauty from her country.
But now I cannot find that story at all. I searched a lot. I went down rabbit holes, as one does.
This is what I learned: Matthiola longipetala is from the Mediterranean and in the 1800s/1900s European seed companies were selling stock seeds to North American gardeners. Stock seeds bloom quickly, are easily scattered by wind and do well in dry, disturbed soils (like from mining.) There was a significant wave of Italian immigration to Globe, Arizona, driven by the mining boom in the 1800s/1900s. 13 percent of people in Globe report Italian ancestry. There’s no established “Little Italy” in Globe today. The closest you could probably get would be De Marco’s Pizzeria (I went there with my mom once.) And sadly there are no Little Italies in Arizona.
But are we absolutely certain there are no Little Italies in Arizona? I ask because I just rewatched the Northern Exposure episode where Dr. Capra discovers there’s a Little Italy in his Alaskan town! And here’s the thing: it’s only 2 families/2 houses/2 restaurants, but it counts! It’s a very little Little Italy. Ever since I first watched that show, I have kept some hope alive that someday I would come across a Little Italy in my own neighborhood; just neighbors who’d have a tiny restaurant in their basement or backyard – there’d be candles & checkered tablecloths and I would be in the know and pop by whenever I liked.
Going down this line of thinking, I searched online and found the smallest Little Italies. I’ll copy/paste that in the comments. Let me know if you know of any super secret Little Italies here in AZ! And if you want pics amongst these pink-purple flowers, DM me! They won’t be around for long.
(Pics are Round Mountain flowers & downtown Globe. Peep the cats & La Luz del Día.)
I looked up Little Italies in the US. Here are some of the smallest in size:
*****Very Small / Tiny Little Italies (1–3 streets)*****
Little Italy, Niagara Falls
Roughly just a stretch of Pine Avenue
Only a few blocks long
Known for the Niagara Falls Italian Festival
Mostly restaurants, bakeries, and bocce courts rather than a full neighborhood.
Little Italy (Madison Avenue)
A small corridor around Madison Avenue
Historically Italian but now mixed
One of the smallest historic Little Italies still recognized.
The Village
A very small section of downtown Jersey City
The Italian area historically centered on Brunswick Street
Known mainly for church feasts and festivals rather than a large enclave.
Small Little Italies (a few blocks to one district)
Little Italy (Corydon Village)
Essentially one commercial strip on Corydon Avenue
Filled with cafes, gelato shops, and restaurants.
Little Italy
A small historic district near the Missouri River
Bounded by a few streets (Pacific–Center).
Brier Hill
Often called the city’s “Little Italy”
Mostly centered around St. Anthony’s Church
Today only a small pocket of Italian heritage remains.
