Rohleder-Carlson Family Buys A Seat At Edmond Town Hall Theatre

Generations of people have been entertained by plays, minstrels, dance productions, concerts, graduations, and mostly the movies on the stage at the Edmond Town Hall Theatre.

But before the town hall was erected, the property contained the home of the Carlson family.

“My mother, Emily Elizabeth Carlson, was born on September 17, 1913, and grew up at that address along with her sister, Sarah, born 12 years later,” Martha Rohleder Dayton said.

The Carlson family was active in Trinity Church. Ms Dayton’s grandfather, John Carlson, was on the Board of Realtors, served as town tax assessor, and was a 37-year member of Hiram Lodge. He and his brother Henry owned the Liberty Garage where the Newtown Ambulance Association building stands today. Two of his other brothers, Oscar and Gustave, and his wife, Minnie, were early staffers at The Newtown Bee.

Much of the history of the Carlson family was shared at the celebration of historical families that was held at the Cyrenius H. Booth Library on December 4.

“When Elizabeth Hawley bequeathed money to build the town hall, my grandfather sold the property to the town and bought the house on lower Main Street across from the library,” Ms Dayton said. “From that address, my mother Emily Elizabeth graduated from Hawley School, Class of 1932, valedictorian, along with her cousin, Charles, salutatorian. The commencement exercises took place on the stage at Edmond Town Hall. Emily’s commencement address was ‘Newtown, Past and Present.’

“In later years, my father, Stuart C. Rohleder, graced the stage in minstrels and live productions with the Town Players, along with my sister Susan and myself,” Ms Dayton said. “I played violin at Newtown High School Orchestra and we had concerts on the stage. So many fond memories come to mind, all the wonderful movies that entertained our family for so many years.”

Because of those memories, Ms Dayton, who now lives in Southbury, along with her sister, Susan R. Dayton, and their brother, John Rohleder, donated a seat at the Edmond Town Hall Theatre for Christmas in honor of their late father and mother.

Ms Dayton shares a line from a song written by a student in 1932:

“The marvelous Edmond Town Hall, of the street it is the crown. It’s the center of attraction, in the lively Old Newtown.”

The seat replacement project was sponsored by the Newtown Lions Club as a Tercentennial Year project. It involved the planned replacement of all 411 seats on the main level of the theater.