November 16, 1990

Winds of up to 70 miles per hour ripped through Newtown during the night of November 11, tearing the tarp from the roof of the Newtown Meeting House, and wrapping it around a transformer. Northeast Utilities reported 474 homes were without power at the peak of the storm, at 6:30 am, Monday.

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With the increase in accidents at the intersection of Botsford Hill Road/Route 25/Meadowbrook Road, residents have demanded that the state replace the blinking signal light with a regular stop light. On Monday morning, November 12, the intersection claimed two more vehicles. Both drivers were transported to Danbury Hospital. Newtown Manufacturing has made a complaint about the increase in traffic and Middle Gate Elementary School has requested a stop light at the intersection of Cold Spring Road and Route 25.

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Residents expressed a vehement opposition and conditional support for a revised permit that would allow a photolab in Sand Hill Plaza. Conservation commissioners are considering whether to grant the revised permit, based on a clean process but also the potential for contamination to the underground Pootatuck aquifer and nearby Newtown Water Company wells.

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In mid-September, 95 letters from Newtown Middle School students were sent overseas to American service men and women. The letters, part of an interdisciplinary social studies/English project, spoke of sports, families, and schoolwork. They also asked some hard questions about the validity of the American position in Kuwait. A month later, one of the students, Matt Rostafin, was delighted to report he’d received a letter from one for the servicemen. The letter speaks of the war effort, comparing the actions of Saddam Hussein to those of Adolf Hitler, and what he sees as a need to oust Hussein and to keep him from overtaking other countries. “You… asked me if I was scared, especially about chemical warfare. You better believe I’m scared. Everyone over here is scared. But we still must to on,” he said.

November 19, 1965

The original score of “Silent Night,” handwritten by the composer, will be on display this Friday evening and on Saturday, at the Cyrenius H. Booth Library. With it will be the guitar which played the accompaniment on that Christmas Eve of 1818 when the song was first sung in the little church at Hallein, Austria. These Austrian treasures are shown through the courtesy of Carleton South, president of the National Arts Foundation and a Newtown resident.

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Groundbreaking ceremonies took place on Sunday, November 14, at the site of the new Bible Baptist Church on Sugar Street. Greetings were received from other Baptist churches in the area, and Newtown’s First Selectman, Carl M. Schutz, brought good wishes from the town. Work is to begin at once by the W.C. Smith Company of Lorain, Ohio, specialists in church construction.

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On Tuesday evening, Martin Callahan, chairman of the Newtown Conservation Commission, appeared before the Board of Selectman to propose that the town consider the purchase of a 790-acre tract in the north end of town, under the open space program. The tract lies north of Sanford Road and east of Hanover Road, and has four miles of waterfront on Lake Lillinonah. It would be used for hiking, fishing, hunting, and horseback riding. No action was taken on the preliminary discussion.

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At its November 5 meeting, the Newtown Planning and Zoning Commission took action, following its public hearing of October 8, and voted to change from Residential and Farming to Industrial classification a portion of the area lying east of the present M-1 Zone in Hawleyville. This leaves unchanged a strip 300 feet deep to the to the west of Tunnel Road and, by doing so, retains the natural screen of large trees in the Residential and Farming area which, together with the setback requirement for an M-Zone, would cause any industrial building to be kept at least 600 feet from the west boundary of Tunnel Road.

 

November 15, 1940

Plans are now complete for the Harvest Dance, under the auspices of the Sandy Hook Fire Department, which will be held at St Rose Hall on this Saturday evening, November 16. Tickets at 40 cents are now on sale. A feature of the evening will be the contest for Harvest Queen, this honor going to the young lady receiving the greatest number of votes for popularity. Modern and old-fashioned dancing will be enjoyed to music furnished by the Woodbury Boy Strummers. Work on the new Sandy Hook firehouse is progressing rapidly, but additional funds are needed to complete the new structure.

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The Newtown Athletic Club will sponsor its first evening of indoor athletics on Monday, November 18, at the Edmond Gymnasium at 8 pm. Thornton Gibbs, Physical Education instructor at Hawley School, has consented to take charge of the program. The program, planned for every Monday evening, is being substituted in place of the regular basketball team in order that more persons may derive the benefits of healthful recreation.

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The most disastrous fire in Newtown during recent years completely destroyed “Hartsease,” the beautiful, nine-room Colonial home of Mr and Mrs Harry L. Hart, located on the Sandy Hook-Stevenson road in Half Way River district, Monday night. The fire, which evidently started in the chimney, was discovered shortly after 8 pm, by Mrs Hart, who was alone in the house. She summoned the Newtown and Sandy Hook Fire Companies and her husband. The whole rear section of the house was a raging mass of flames when the firemen arrived. Hose was hastily laid from a well. This supply was exhausted in less than five minutes, leaving the firemen helpless. A high wind scattered sparks over a wide forest area in the rear of the building and firemen were kept busy extinguishing small blazes.

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Fire of an undetermined origin destroyed a large stable on the estate of Mrs Grace Hale in the Codfish Hill section of Dodgingtown on Thursday evening. By the time the Bethel and Dodgingtown Fire Companies arrived, the building was a mass of flames. The firemen directed their efforts toward saving nearby buildings. The water supply was not sufficient to keep the booster tanks on the fire engine filled and it was necessary to cart water from the Briary Hill Dairy, about a half mile away.

 

November 19, 1915

Adv. — There is a reason for the disagreeable and fretful nature of many children. Think of the unrest when the child’s body is possessed by tiny worms sapping its vitality and clogging its functions. Whatever may be the cause — “that children have worms is a fact.” Your child’s peevishness and irritability has a cause. Give Kickapoo Worm Killer a chance and if worms are there this humanly harmless remedy will eliminate the annoying parasites. 25 cents a box.

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Paul V. Cavanaugh and Robert W. Tiemann have bought out the moving picture concern from Mr Collins. As neither of these boys are of age, H.N. Tiemann, Sr, has kindly offered to act as their advisor and operator. An item appeared in Wednesday’s edition of The Farmer, stating that Mr Tiemann had bought the business. Naturally, the boys would like this mistake corrected. They also hope for a continuance of the public patronage.

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Seven auto truck loads of machinery have been transferred from Southport to the Harris Wire Corporation, who have leased the Niantic Mill at Sandy Hook. They now have their machinery set up and will be in active operation by Monday at the latest. The factory was lighted by electricity for the first time on Tuesday night. The firm are said to have enough orders booked to keep them busy through 1916. They make brass wire in all sizes and as fine as a hair.

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An unfortunate accident befell Miss Margaret Cavanaugh, daughter of Mr and Mrs Thomas Cavanaugh, of the Boulevard, who fell off a chair at the Lower school, Monday, while in the act of cleaning off the blackboard. She was taken to the office of Dr F.J. Gale, who attended to her injuries. Later Dr Gale took her to the office of Dr Brown in Danbury, in order that the arm might be put under the X-rays. The arm was dislocated at the elbow and a bone fractured.