July 11, 1997

A planning study that projects development possibilities for Hawleyville through the year 2017 drew both support and concerns from residents at a public forum Wednesday night. About 40 people attended the session where planning consultants described the Interstate 84 Exit 9 Hawleyville Transportation Study, which was prepared for the Housatonic Valley Council of Elected Officials (HVCEO) and the town.

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The Town Hall Board of Managers voted unanimously last week to eliminate two positions at Edmond Town Hall as a cost-saving measure. Due to financial restraints, the five-member board eliminated the town hall’s office manager position, as well as the building manager’s job. These two positions were replaced with two part-time jobs. The move is expected to save the board $54,000 through the reduction of salaries and benefits.

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Schools usually close in the summer, but they’re being literal at Newtown High School these days. Construction crews are hoping a large sign with the lettering CLOSED to the GENERAL PUBLIC, situated on sawhorses in the school driveway, will help keep out the curious public, which might want to get a glimpse of the progress. The NHS offices are located at the middle school during July and August.

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The staff and patients of Dr Henry Gellert’s office collected food for local food banks as part of PANDA: Prevent Abuse and Neglect Through Dental Awareness, a project of the Connecticut State Dental Association. The food was delivered this week to the Salvation Army Food Bank operated by Newtown’s social service department and to Emergency Food Aid of Southbury. The names of persons who contributed food were placed in a raffle, and Sarah Hemingway of Sandy Hook was the winner of a toy panda bear. Anyone who makes a $15 donation to PANDA also can receive a panda with adoption papers.

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Curtis Packaging Corporation is seeking a zone change which would allow it to prepare a proposal for construction of a new building at its Berkshire Road/Toddy Hill Road complex. Curtis wants to rezone eight acres it owns adjacent to its manufacturing plant from R-1 Residential to M-4 Industrial. The land which the company wants rezoned has been used for sand-and-gravel mining.

July 14, 1972

Newtown did not have time for motorcades, flags and parades to honor its young man of the hour, but Bruce Jenner, United States Olympic team member for the decathlon, was honored at a dinner at the Newtown Inn Wednesday evening, July 12. During the event, First Selectman Frank DeLucia presented Bruce with a proclamation declaring July 12 as Bruce Jenner Day in Newtown. One of the reasons there wasn’t a great deal of hoopla was that two weeks ago Newtown didn’t even know it was going to have a hero, and when Bruce became one on July 4, no one had any idea of when he would be coming home or how long he would be able to stay before having to take off for his journey to Munich.

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His many friends will be glad to know that Raymond Fosdick is home from Danbury Hospital where he underwent surgery and “a remarkable new treatment” for a broken hip. Mr Fosdick is making a good recovery and returned home in time to receive the first copy of his new book, The League and United Nations which, in his 90th year, this eminent social economist has just finished.

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Wednesday afternoon, July 12, the parking lot behind Edmond Town Hall was bustling with activity as Newtown youngsters and parents greeted the busload of Fresh Air Kids from New York City. The youngsters will be spending two weeks in the country with local families. A few were just a little bit apprehensive about all the new people, but most were all set for a real Tom Sawyer-Huck Finn vacation. The Newtown Jaycee Wives are seeking applicant host families to extend the hospitality of their homes to Fresh Air Children who will be visiting the area from August 10 to August 24.

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The Newtown Board of Education had a lively meeting on Thursday evening, July 11, with a great deal of public participation. The meeting, which took place in the Superintendent’s office at the Middle School, was the most well-attended one since the budget hearings in the earlier part of the year. The Board voted to have public participation moved up on the agenda, and the first heard were a group of parents whose children will be bused to Middle Gate School next year for kindergarten. These children would have ordinarily attended Sandy Hook School, but are being moved to Middle Gate because of the loss of a classroom for a library at Sandy Hook. Parents were not at the meeting to protest their children going to Middle Gate but to express concern about the safety conditions of the roads, particularly Hammertown and High Bridge, the buses would have to travel taking the children to school.

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Checks totaling $6,600,000 were dropped in the mail just before the close of business Friday, June 30, the last day of the state’s fiscal year. Governor Thomas J. Meskill had, earlier in the week, promised good news for local property taxpayers. The checks, addressed to the 169 state communities, represent final payments on a state-financed property tax relief grant. The checks had been withheld until the last moment in the event that a ruling adverse to the state was entered in pending capital gains tax litigation. According to Robert Dema, business manager for the Newtown schools, the money represents the ADM grants based on the average daily membership, the number of students in Newtown School each day, averaged out. An increase in the annual ADM grants was authorized by the 1971 legislature, frozen by the Governor, and is now made available. Newtown expects to receive approximately $41,820.

July 11, 1947

EDITORIAL INK DROPS — BONUS CHECKS SHOULD NOT BE LIGHTLY SPENT: The State of Connecticut is preparing to pay a soldiers’ bonus estimated at $50,000.00. This cash is being distributed at a time when prices are high and at a time when responsible people are anxious to prevent inflationary tendencies. It will be a step along the rocky road of inflation unless everything within reason is done to place just as much of this sum as possible into worthwhile channels. The veterans really earned their bonus the hard way, and no one should try to tell them just what they should do with it when they get it. In many cases the money will be put into much needed items, such as furniture or household furnishings. In other cases it will be salted away in Government Savings Bonds, so that the eventual reward will be greater, the bonds maturing at a time when it is reasonable to expect that prices will be down and goods will be better. In other instances, however, the cash will soon be spent, and no one will have gained, except perhaps some unscrupulous used car dealer. At least the soldier and his bonus will have been soon parted. And so a warning is given to those who would be foolish with their bonus checks, to be prudent in their use. The fever of inflationary spending can have serious ill effects.

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A meeting to consider plans for a Memorial Hall honoring World War II dead, called by the Veterans’ Memorial Fund committee, convened in the Alexandria Room of the Edmond Town Hall Monday evening at 8 o’clock. The project is sponsored by the Charles Howard Peck Sr and Jr Post 308, V.F.W., and William K. Daniels, post commander, presided. Attending were a group of veterans, members of the V.F.W. and of the American Legion, and Newtown business men.

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Miss June Wikstrom, daughter of Mr and Mrs G.E. Wikstrom of Dodgingtown district, arrived at LaGuardia Field in New York on Tuesday afternoon, to spend the summer with her parents. Miss Wikstrom was recently graduated with high honors from Shurz High school in Chicago, in a class of 520 students. Miss Wikstrom will enter Boston University in September.

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Following a short business meeting at the Grange hall on Tuesday evening, members of Pohtatuck Grange went on a “mystery ride” to Southbury, where they attended the meeting of Pomperaug Grange. An amusing skit was presented during the lecturer’s program by Mr and Mrs David Scott.

July 7, 1922

MUSIC IN THE FALLING RAIN, by Allison P. Smith: There’s music in the falling rain, / The thirsty earth lifts up its voice in praise, / The grass, the corn and every growing thing, / Rejoice in a thousand unnamed ways. / We fret and scold about the rain / And other things we cannot stop, / While like the grass and corn and / Flowers in field and wood, / Our voices should give praise to Him, the author of all Good, / And thus the mental burdens which we carry, drop.

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The Fourth of July was celebrated at the Newtown County club by a dinner gotten up solely by the men of the club. The ladies did not believe that the men could get up a dinner without consulting them and were very agreeably surprised at the result. L.C. Morris acted as chef and W.O. Pardee as headwaiter. With him he had G. Herbert Beers, John Beers, William J. Curtis, H. Carleton Hubbell, Wallace N. Mitchell, Sanford Mead, Raymond Hall and Arthur J. Smith. As helpers Mr Pardee had all his force decked out in the latest style with goatees, white hats and aprons, and they certainly did look fine. The menu was as follows: Clam Chowder, Pickles, Olives, Roast Beef, French Fried Potatoes, Onions, Rolls, Butter, Cantilopes, Ice Cream, Coffee. About 100 sat down to the repast and all pronounced it a “fine feed.”

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The concert by the Sandy Hook band, Tuesday night, in front of the Parker House, was enjoyed by a big crowd. Director Warner is to be highly complimented on the result, and it is to be hoped they will be encouraged by their success to give a number of concerts before the season ends.

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The Sandy Hook baseball team defeated the South Britain inne on July 4, at South Britain by the score of 15 to 10 in a 12 inning game. The timely hitting of Wilbur Griscom and George Ward saved the day for Sandy Hook. Sandy Hook fell back on the old sped merchant, Bill Conger. The Britain boys were quite sore over their walloping.

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St John’s church and St John’s rectory are taking on a new dress of paint. Taylor & Buckingham of New Milford have the contract.

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Mr and Mrs Harry Lane are the happy parents of a son, born on Friday.

July 16, 1897

Mr and Mrs Charles Wixom have been granted letters from the Congregational church in Newtown to the Methodist church in Redding.

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The preacher at the Congregational church Sunday morning was Rev W.H. Barrows of Turkey, who gave a thoughtful sermon on “The Golden Rule.” Rev Mr Barrows is a brother of Mrs W.B. Sniffen of Sandy Hook, whose guest he is.

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A month’s mind mass for the late Mrs Ann Cox was solemnized at St Rose’s church on Monday morning. Father Fox officiated.

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John L. Hughes is putting on a kitchen addition to his home in Taunton district.

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Marketman John H. Blackman now makes two trips weekly to Bridgewater, at the request of his many patrons in that section, Tuesday and Friday.

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Burton Sherman has sold his standing grass to parties who have bought the Priscilla Beardsley homestead.

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Martin Ryan of Zoar has been assisting his brother, William Ryan, in getting his hay the past week.

HATTERTOWN: Mrs George Thumshin and daughter of Brooklyn have been the guests of Mrs Edward Booth. | Mrs Pauline Taylor and Miss Louisa Beers of Norwalk have visited Miss Beers’ mother, Mrs Salley Beers. | Miss Josephine Briscoe, Miss P. Taylor and Carlton Hubbell of Newtown were here, last week. | William Trowbridge of Stamford and George Baldwin of Newark were guests over Sunday of C.D. Stillson. | Miss Emma Mellen of Danbury has visited her sister, Mrs J. H. Summers. | Mrs Sarah Crane, Mrs Cora Crane, with their children, have spent several days with William Fischer and family. | Dr C.M. Penny of Bridgeport has been with his father, J.W. Penny, for a week. | Mrs Monroe Hawkins and son, Miss Clara Foote and Miss Frances Barber of Danbury have been guests of Ralph Benedict. | Mrs Jane Summers has visited with relatives in Bridgeport.

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