Science in the Park: Plants

Newton Ancarrow (1920-1991) was a boat builder who located his business on the south bank of the James River in Richmond in 1962. In 1965, he opened a large boat ramp for his business and public use, and quickly discovered the river’s poor water quality. Ancarrow was enraged when oily, polluted water and sewage coated his ramp and the bottom of his boats after a heavy rain. He began a crusade to force city, state, and federal authorities to clean up the James, the legacy of which still resonates with us today. Ancarrow’s Landing is his original boat dock in the James River Park System and was named in his honor.

As Ancarrow prowled the banks of the James looking for raw sewage outlets, he discovered wild flowers and began learning photography and botany. He knew he could persuade people to his conservation cause with beautiful images of flowers. He photographed all parts of the plants, and photographed them in all seasons. Ancarrow was a popular speaker on the topics of restoration and conservation of the James River. He developed Flower Show #2, with over 300 images, lengthy narrative to describe each flower, and a sound recording of his talk. The digital archive is a presentation of Flower Show #2, along with other content from the Ancarrow archive.