There just ain’t nobody gonna rush a turtle. Along with being slow, a turtle may also be a little stubborn. At least those are the qualities the shelled invader of the Town Park pool displayed last Thursday. Discovered around 12:30 pm, a local snapping turtle caused the quick departure of most midday swimmers. Initially, he settled down in a position about 30 feet off shore. Led by park foreman Hank Kinese, a group of volunteers armed with a prodding stick and shovel waited patiently as the tortoise seemingly made his way towards dry land. Every five minutes or so the turtle would break the surface, sticking his head up for air and revealing his whereabouts. After repeated attempts to prod him out of the pool, Shelldon (we took the liberty to name him) decided that he could wait until the gathering crowd had dispersed, and so waded out towards the center of the pool. Finally, around 8:15 pm he decided to seek freedom again, this time without so many onlookers to deter him.

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In response to Park & Recreation commissioners’ concerns about misconduct and a “serious problem” with alcohol and drug use by gangs of youth at Dickinson Town Park, the Police Department now has a patrolman on duty there from 3 to 11 pm, seven days a week.

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With just one vacancy still to be filled on the Zoning Board of Appeals, the Democratic Town Committee endorsed an otherwise full slate of candidates at their July 12 meeting. The slate was accepted as presented with just one name placed in nomination from the floor. Incumbent First Selectman Jack Rosenthal won the unanimous endorsement of the committee, as did Jack McAuliffe who is seeking a second term on the Board of Selectmen.

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The Lake Lillinonah Authority has taken down its “not safe for swimming” signs this week, and a member of the Lake Zoar Authority said she was “encouraged” by test results from last week showing cleaner water.

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It’s keeping cool, not getting warm, that normally occupies most people during the summer. But increasing numbers, including First Selectman Jack Rosenthal, are worrying now about the latter. During the past weeks there have been implications through the news media and other sources that fuel supplies might be tight this winter. Recently Governor Ella Grasso met with President Carter to ask that he do whatever possible to help prevent a heating fuel shortage here.

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State Transportation Commissioner Arthur B. Powers announced the award of a contract for repairs to the Stevenson Dam Bridge carrying Route 34 over the Housatonic River in the towns of Oxford and Monroe.

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First Selectman Jack Rosenthal happened to be thumbing through the Newtown charter Monday afternoon a little after 5 pm, when he “discovered” a little remembered section of the charter which turned the town meeting Tuesday night on an appropriation to reroof Sandy Hook School into a frantic effort to find enough warm bodies to cast votes. The town meeting was scheduled to act on the Legislative Council’s recommendation that $270,000 be appropriated, funded by four-year bond anticipation notes to be succeeded by a 20-year-bond issue.

JULY 23, 1954

An outburst of vandalism early Wednesday morning left a trail of broken windows through town which local and State Police are busily following up as The Bee goes to press. The greatest damage was done at Amaral’s Service Station, where a plate glass window valued at $250 was smashed, and at Bill’s Service Station, South Center District, where a smaller plate glass window, worth $50, was broken.

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The Sandy Hook Fife, Drum and Bugle Corps won a cup in a competition in Harrison, N.Y. on Wednesday, July 14. The corps has added to its honors earlier this month, a second place in the meet in Hartford on July 10.

The Newtown team in the new Berkshire Boys’ League, operating under the auspices of the Newtown Rotary Club, found the going rough as it played its opening game Wednesday evening at Taylor Field against the New Milford Lions’ entry. Against the pitching of New Milford’s Yapockwickz, the local guys never got started and only registered two scratch hits. The final score, 11-0.

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Doodling is a kind of national pastime, but “kadoodling” is strictly a local product, invented and put on the market a few years ago by Ed Cullen, the cartoonist and commercial artist of Toll Gate Hill. The gadget that makes kadooling possible is the Kartoon Kadoodler, a plastic stencil device that makes it simple business to combine any number of patterns to produce cartoon drawings. It is now sold in local stores.

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The Newtown Heating and Plumbing Company will hold “open house” at their newly remodeled show room on the Newtown-Sandy Hook Road, this Saturday, July 24, from 2 to 5 pm. The open house party will be held in conjunction with the C.A. Durham Company of Chicago, who are sending a mammoth trailer to Newtown showing the latest line of heating and air conditioning equipment.

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Charles M. Goodsell, chairman, F. Robert Mount and Norman Fedde, members of the Newtown Board of Assessors attended the four-day assessors’ course at the University of Connecticut, Storrs, last week.

A large number of patients of Fairfield State Hospital participated in the annual field day on the hospital grounds Tuesday, making it the largest event of its kind ever held here. Some 800 witnessed and participated in the morning pillow fights, sack races, ball throws and other events, while about some 600 watched the afternoon softball game between the patients and attendants. The attendants won, 11-4.

JULY 19, 1929

Dr Gesner spent a part of Monday visiting with the Boy Scouts at their camp on Mt Tom Pond. The boys are having a great time but seemed glad to see the face of someone from Newtown.

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Nancy Fell, who was staying at Camp Nonticido at the Lake Zoar Girl Scout camp, was found suffering from measles.

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H.G. Warner on July 4, while playing ball at Pine Grove Park, was struck by a fast ball on his ribs. He thought nothing of it but seven days later he paid a visit to the office of Dr W.F. Desmond, who found he had two cracked ribs.

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John Stillman of Hawleyville was so unfortunate as to fall off a hay wagon one day last week, fracturing three ribs.

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Arthur E. Brinton has one of the most beautifully laid out old-fashion flower gardens in these parts.

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Edrick Durgy in some way fell on to the tine of a pitchfork one day last week, slightly puncturing one of his lungs.

JULY 22, 1904

William A. Watts of New Haven passed Saturday night at the Newtown Inn. He started out with his automobile to ride to New Milford Saturday afternoon. When he arrived at P.F. Crowe’s near Botsford, his machine refused to work. The machine was stored in one of Mr Crowe’s buildings, and Mr Crowe carried Mr Watts to Newtown Street. Mr Watts went to New Milford by rail Sunday morning.

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Leonard Nicholson and George R. Wilson are harvesting the hay crop on the farm of John B. Wheeler.

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P.L. Ronald has generously given $20 to the support of the Gospel wagon work of the Congregational Church.

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On going to the poultry house Monday morning at F.E. Gilbert’s, they found between 40 and 50 young chicks, about three weeks old, that during the severe rain Sunday night were in water a little too long for their health. A few of them were revived; 30 were dead.

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Paul Morrow moved the first of the week from Stepney Depot to Botsford, where he is employed in Frank Conger’s blacksmith shop.

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The finest string of bass we have seen this year was that caught on Tuesday by ex-Senator Houlihan in Taunton Lake. He caught 17 all told, one tipping the scales to over four pounds and another over two. Hanging up in the cooler at the hotel, the four-pounder looked immense. The fine two-pounder Mr Houlihan generously presented to the editor.