Newtown’s History Reflected Through Women And The Church

Newtown’s history and the women’s contribution to it were highlighted by Caroline Stokes, who spoke at the Women’s Fellowship of Newtown Congregational Church at the Annual Dinner Meeting Tuesday night, May 24. Mrs Stokes is curator of the Cyrenius Booth Library and a longtime member of the Congregational Church.

Although there are few women’s names recorded in the history books of the town’s founding, Mrs Stokes stressed their importance in minding the family, bearing children, and in managing the home. Church and Newtown history were woven through her presentation in celebration of this tercentennial year. The current Newtown Congregational Church is built on land donated by a member of the Nettleton family.

She exhibited some of the linen, decorated samplers, and basket woven covers for wagon wheels (used to protect long dresses from tangling), made by Amy Littleton and Mary Hawley, both names well known to Newtowners.

 Women were in charge of carrying water from the wells and springs to the houses, making of tallow for candles, stooping to cook and can, digging, planting, and working in the fields, picking berries and making jams and jellies, preparing all the linens and clothes (growing flax, carding, spinning, weaving, etc), preparing and rendering the maple syrup, studying the Bible and teaching the children, among other chores.

The Indian territory known as Quonopaque, that would become Newtown, was purchased in 1705 when three white men negotiated with the Indians. No money was exchanged. Instead the natives were given four broadcloth coats, four blankets, four ruffled coats, four collars, ten shirts, ten pair of stockings, 40 pounds of lead, ten pounds of powder and 40 knives.

In 1708, the General Assembly in Hartford granted 36 petitioners “all that tract of Land lying on the West Side of Stratford or Potatuck River, bounded Easterly on Stratford and part of Fairfield; Westerly on Danbury and a line running from Southeast corner of Danbury parallel to ye East line of said Town of Fairfield, bounded northerly upon New Milford purchase and Potatuck River shall be one Entire Town called, Newtown.” (250th Anniversary Year 1914–1964, Newtown Congregational Church).

That same year, 1708, Peter Hubbell at a town meeting organized the first church in the Congregational pattern that was not as formal as the Church of England. In 1713 the first pastor, Thomas Tousey, was called. Newtown’s own Cliff Walker is a direct descendant. Mr Tousey served until 1724 when he became dissatisfied and returned to England. He left his family in Newtown, while he studied abroad. He returned to become the town’s first doctor. Church meetings up to that time were held in the homes of members.

In 1713 the first Meeting House, 32 by 40 feet, was built for services. Attendance was mandatory with services lasting all day. There was no heat, hard benches, and little light. Members often brought foot warmers. After the morning session, members went to the Sabbath Day Houses, small cottages by the sides of the roads that were furnished with fireplaces for warmth and to heat foods brought from home by the women.

The town was divided into three sections, Meadowland, just off Old Green Road; Fairfield Hills, which was swamp; and Boggy Land off Boggs Hill Road. People drew for the property. Some needed swamps or bogs for their particular kind of farming. Agriculture was the main product besides the sheep growing.

Farmers bought the sheep from the town and raised them. Women sheared the sheep, prepared the wool, spun, the yarn, and wove the clothe for clothes.

There was a gristmill on the Pootatuck to which the farmers carried their harvests. The first cemetery was established in 1712. In 1717 the first school was built on Main Street, then one on South Main Street. Eventually there were 23 school districts, the origin of today’s voting districts.

The current Meeting House was built on the site of the flagpole in the 1720s, but there is no record of the first church meeting there; however the building was added to and moved to its present location later. The second minister, John Beach, came in 1724 and served until 1732, when he left for England. When he returned to Newtown, he founded Trinity Episcopal Church. Town sympathies were divided about 50-50 between English Loyalists or Tories and those who would be American Patriots.

Mrs Stokes, who came to Newtown as a bride 1946, told how she had been called by the principal of one of the schools to be a substitute teacher. She said she couldn’t because she couldn’t drive. She had no car. The principal came and picked her up, put her on a school bus, and sent her to Lands End School, one of the remaining one-room school houses. After her children were old enough, Mrs Stokes returned to teach at Hawley School; many of the women at the dinner had known her as their teacher or their children’s teacher.

Mrs Stokes was introduced by Dolores Allen, co-president of the Women’s Fellowship, who first knew the speaker as a parent of one of her Hawley students.

Mrs Stokes bested that memory with hers of hearing Mrs Allen’s “beautiful soprano voice” at Newtown High School. Mrs Allen is still singing in the church choir.

 Ever the teacher, Mrs Stokes recommended two books by the late Alice Dalgliesh, Courage of Sarah Noble and Adam and the Golden Cock. She suggested that these books would be a fun way to get youngsters or oldsters interested in local history. Sarah Noble was the founder of New Milford.

Mrs Stokes also recommended Ezra Johnson’s History of Newtown and pointed out that Jane Johnson co-edited the book after her husband died. Susan Scudder, great-aunt of Bee Publisher Scudder Smith, was another Newtown woman of great accomplishment who had served as a missionary. Another reference for local history is the 1832 diary of Beach Camp.

Women’s Fellowship officers are Maria Barresi, co-president with Mrs Allen; Nancy Fansher, treasurer; Louise Baker, sunshine chairman; Jeane Roberts, program chairman; Marie Sturdevant and Dot O’Byrne, membership chairmen; Marie Walker and Jill Skidmore, hospitality chairmen; Barbara Field, ways and means chairman; and Marty Eastwood, nominating chairman.

Service Leaders are the Circle of Love members. Circle Leaders are Jane Landgrebe and Joan Tynan, Circle of Love; Peg Forbell and Margaret Phillips, Circle of Faith Leaders; Charlotte Kalley, Circle of Hope; and Barbara Field, Circle of Grace. These were installed by Betty Mounts, presented with tercentennial pins donated by Mae Schmiddle.

Mrs Barresi opened the meeting with a welcome and Jane Landgrebe said grace and asked for a special moment of silence in memory of Pat Soomaa and support for her husband, Arved. Peg Forbell gave the benediction.