September 7, 1984

Cruising up Lake Lillinonah on a late August morning, the water is clear as you leave the Newtown boat launch. As you travel toward New Milford, residential areas give way to brush along the shore. The Housatonic River gets cloudier, with streams of green algae reaching through it like strains in marble. Soon the green slime coagulates on top of the water and becomes a solid mass. Officials, apparently, are puzzled as to the source of the excessive algae growth. Fred Leuthauser, spokesman for the Lake Lillinonah Authority, said he has received calls. Some complained that water near the Still River “looks like an open septic tank.”

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The Board of Selectmen is considering a $16,875 plan for making changes to the heating system in Town Hall South, where heat has not been evenly distribute. In addition, the board has authorized a $900 study to determine how the air condition system in the building can be improved.

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OSHA has fined the Charles Batchelder Company $800 for not providing a safe workplace at the time of the April 1 explosion which killed a furnace operator and resulted in about $500,000 in damage. Fire Marshal George Lockwood believes the explosion was caused by the presence of water in the scrap.

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Newtown School Library Media Specialists attended a workshop on Managing with Microcomputers at the Taft School in Watertown. The workshop was to enable participants to select suitable microcomputer software and hardware for managing library media centers.

 

 

September 11, 1959

The Newtown Schools opened this Wednesday, and James F. Hinckley, superintendent, reports that despite the customary first-day confusion, the opening of some of the Junior High School classrooms, and the addition of one more school bus to the routes covered, all went comfortably and smoothly. The first day enrollment this year was 1,555 compared with last year’s 1,457.

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The Park Commission wishes to announce that as of Labor Day, September 7, the season is officially over. After that date there are no Life Guards on duty, and also the Park Ranger has been dismissed. The park will continue to be opened for the public, to be used for picnics and swimming. The two tennis courts will be ready sometime the week of September 14.

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Selectmen and Board of Education requests for a record high budget of $1,248,850.15 drew only a sparse attendance at the annual public hearing on the budget. About 75 persons braved the humidity to hear the budgets introduced and explained, compared to a turnout of about 600 citizens last year.

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Construction for the month of August totaled $186,274 covering 33 permits, according to Earle H. Megin, Building Inspector. These permits covered 11 homes, one factory addition, one swimming pool, and various alterations.

September 7, 1934

Martin J. Lynch, local plumbing contractor, has recently finished reroofing the buildings with copper at the Frederick Luf farm in Taunton, and the installing of three bathrooms in Trumbull district and is now working at the Wilton Lackaye residence, the parsonage, in Sandy Hook.

James B. Nichols of Mt Pleasant district, who has conducted a mil delivery route in the village for over 25 years, retired from the business on September 1st and has rented his entire equipment to the Karcheski Brothers who have been Mr Nichols’ assistants for the past year.

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Over the weekend and Labor Day there were 16 auto accidents in Newtown. Three cars with foreign registry got in a mix up near the Hawleyville garage and three other cars were in a jam on Mt Pleasant. Two drivers crashed in the Liberty pole and there were minor accidents hardly worthy of note. If this isn’t an argument for a town force of paid officers, then we do not know what we are talking about. William Sedor, driving a car belonging to William Gradowich, went head-on at a terrific speed into the Liberty pole about Midnight, Sunday. Sedor was knocked temporarily unconscious and was laid out on the lawn in front of Trinity Church. The night before a driver from Danbury ran his car into the pole. The Gradowich car was said to be pretty thoroughly wrecked.

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Newtown was stirred to the depths by the news, early Saturday morning, of a terrible and unfortunate automobile accident, in Woodbury, when the cars of Ralph Perkins, teacher of mathematics in the Hawley High school of Newtown and Andrew Rosenbeck of Waterbury came together near the junctions of Routes six and 14. Mr Perkin’s injuries were feared to be serious. It may be a week, it is said, before he regains consciousness. Both cars were badly wrecked.

 

 

September 10, 1909

There was an enjoyable “Cousin Club” picnic at C.D. Stillson’s on Labor Day. Sixteen cousins of the host upon his paternal side were present. A large table was spread under the trees south of the house and it was filled with a bountiful supply of good things to eat and drink.

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The union harvest home service of Trinity and St John’s will be held on the evening of the last Sunday in September at St John’s, and at Trinity the first Sunday in October.

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The High School opened Tuesday with an enrollment of 101, and several additional pupils to come in. the High School committee found it necessary to provide 18 new desks and seats.

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Quite recently there has been some rather indefinite talk and agitation concerning an Automobile Club for the mutual benefit of the automobile owners and road users of Newtown. With the object of crystallizing this movement into a well-organized association, Messrs Henry G. Curtis, H.N. Tiemann, G.F. Taylor, and C.S. Cole have held a preliminary meeting and extend a cordial invitation to participate in the affairs of the club. About 20 automobile owners met at Glover’s Hall last Thursday night and organized the Newtown Automobile Club.