Highway Superintendent Robert L. Martin, Sr, said this week that the town is experiencing a lot of problems as water frozen in the ground during the winter is thawing, coupled with this week’s heavy rains. “Water and mud, that’s the whole thing in a nutshell,” the highway superintendent said. The highway department is responding to complaints and trying to keep roads passable wherever it can, but is being hampered by the amount of water on and under the town’s roads.

***

The Newtown Public Building Committee members agreed with member Harry Rishor Tuesday night that recurring leaks in the high school roof are “going to be a continuous headache” until the entire roof is replaced. Committee members approved final bill payments and closed out the high school repair project which began in December, 1977.

***

Fixed route bus service through the Housatonic Area Regional Transit District (HART) in Newtown appears to be a good three years or more away, but local interest in the HART system was spurred this week as the Board of Selectmen decided Tuesday to send an observer to future meetings of the transit district’s directors.

***

As a result of an eight-hour musical marathon, the members of the Newtown High School concert and symphonic bands raised the magnificent sum of $1,200 on March 3 for support of the two foster children they have adopted. The total will substantially cover funds necessary to support Angelica Partes of Bolivia and Efren Villarosa of the Philippines for two years.

***

The Public Building Committee has begun pondering what to do about noise problems in the room used by the senior citizens in the new community building, which opened February 12, and in the hearing testing rooms which will be used by the Visiting Nurse Association. Soundproof tiles in the multi-use section of the building, now used by the seniors, was eliminated from the project as a cost savings after the first bids for the project in 1977 came in far higher than expected. The acoustical tiles would have cost $4,000. Building Committee Chairman Joseph Borst Tuesday night said he isn’t convinced that installing the tiles now and boxing in beams will necessarily solve the noise problems. The building committee will consider other alternatives, such as sound “baffle” panels.

***

Dianne Leavitt of 18 Elm Drive, Newtown, is among 43 Southern Connecticut State College students who have been named to “Who’s Who Among Students in American Universities and Colleges” for the 1978-79 academic year.

***

The New Children’s Adventure Center on Riverside Road in Sandy Hook is a fantastic collage of color, light, and space. It’s roomy, bright, and still not quite settled into yet, but some of its young occupants have reportedly been worried that no one will be around to take care of their old school. They say they like the new building though, especially since there’s so much more space to run and play. Approximately 30 day care students have been relocated from the center’s former facility on Church Hill Road which had been rented from the United Methodist Church.

MARCH 12, 1954

This year’s Talent Show, presented by students of Newtown High School, played to capacity audiences both Thursday and Friday evenings of last week in the school’s cafeteria-auditorium. This was the second year that a Talent Show has been presented to the public and indicated, not only the varied talents of the performers, but the value of the music instruction being given in the local schools.

***

Town officials are holding the first of regular monthly conferences on problems of town government this Thursday evening, March 11, in Edmond Town Hall. The meeting was called by First Selectman A. Fenn Dickinson as a means to coordinate activities of the various departments of the town government and to provide a forum for the informal discussion of problems. Subsequent meetings will be held the second Thursday of each month.

***

Twenty townspeople attended the Tuesday evening meeting of the Newtown Chapter of United World Federalists to hear Sanford Person, Connecticut and Rhode Island field director of the UWF, discuss the UN charter and its revision. The meeting, held at the West Street home of Bradley Randall, Jr, also included the showing of the film, “Plan for Peace.”

***

Milton Lomask of Parmalee Hill Road is the author of an article in the March issue of Better Homes and Gardens on the subject of drinking among teenagers. He reports a survey made on Long Island which points up 1) that social pressure plays a minor role in influencing teenage drinking and, 2) that high school students tend to follow the drinking habits of their parents. The article is rough on those adults who believe that the younger generation is going to the dogs.

***

Thieves broke into Pat’s Log Cabin on Route 25, South Center District, early Wednesday morning and made off with a safe containing approximately $1,500. The theft was discovered at 7:45 am by James Hughes, day bartender. Patsy Albanese of Bridgeport said that the thieves broke into the restaurant by smashing a rear window, and broke down a door to the upstairs office where the small safe was kept.

***

After several years of inactivity, the Young Republican Club of Newtown was reactivated last Thursday evening, March 4, at a meeting held in Edmond Town Hall. With the announced objective of unifying and strengthening the Republican party in Newtown, the club will seek at the outset to instigate a change in the method of selecting members of the Republican Town Committee from appointive to elective.

***

Fred C. Bauer of South Main Street was elected president of the Newtown Rotary Club at their annual election held on Monday evening at the Stony Hill Inn, Bethel. Elected with Mr Bauer were: William K. Daniells, vice president; William H. Walsh, Jr, secretary; George Thompson, treasurer; Francis Hoffman and Robert Stokes, directors.

MARCH 8, 1929

The adjourned annual town meeting will be held on Saturday to hear and act on the recommendation of the Finance Board that a 19½ mill tax be laid. This is a reduction of one-half mill from last year.

***

The finance Board has recommended a 19½ mill tax for the ensuing year, which is one-half mill less than was laid last year. During the year $5,000 has been paid upon the debt. The decreased tax rate, in spite of increased expenses in the school budget, is good news to the taxpayers.

***

Judge P.H. McCarthy is slowly recovering from an attack of carbuncles.

***

While a party of eight young people were about to sit down to dinner at Upham’s Japanese Tea Garden Saturday night, the electric lights went out. Candles were brought on, and the young folks appeared to heartily enjoy the incident.

***

Road Supervisor W.C. Johnson, of the local state road force, had his men and trucks out at 5 o’clock Sunday morning, and by 8 o’clock had the state roads well cleared of snow. It was a whirling, wet, disagreeable snow storm while it lasted and traveling during the early afternoon and evening by auto was decidedly disagreeable.

***

The Upham Food Products Company, Inc took on ten or 12 new girls Monday. The company is now turning out 100,000 tea balls a day but Mr Upham has over a million on back orders.

MARCH 11, 1904

At the next regular meeting of Pootatuck Grange, April 5, General H.O. Averill, state cattle commissioner, has agreed to be present and give an address on “Tuberculosis in Cattle.”

***

While chopping wood Friday, John C. Beers cut his knee badly. He was taken to the office of Dr A.L. Schuyler, where his injuries were attended to.

***

Little “Miss Beautiful” Houlihan, daughter of ex-Senator Houlihan, is recovering from an attack of the measles.

***

Andrew C. Moore, E.M. Miller, C.L. Briscoe, A.W. and A.D. Fairchild, and J. Botsford Fairchild in Taunton have all signed contracts for telephones to be put in their homes, and three others in the district have the matter under consideration.

***

Allenson W. Ferguson of Canaan has taken a position as telegraph operator at the Hawleyville station.

***

Mrs John H. Blake, who has been suffering from erysipelas for the last two weeks, is now able to be about her house.

***

Fire destroyed the large residence of Martin Woolsey on his Eden Hill Farm near Hattertown, during the early hours of last Saturday. The origin of the fire is a mystery and probably always will be. No one had been in the house, and there had been no fire in any of the stoves since Tuesday when Mr Woolsey left his home for a short visit to New York.