NHS Yearbooks Sought For Town Library’s Collection

In an effort to expand its local history holdings, C.H. Booth Library is seeking donations of Newtown High School yearbooks to complete its collection. The library currently has more than 100 yearbooks (some duplicates), the earliest being the 1907 edition covering the first five years in the new building (now Hawley Elementary School).

The first graduating class, in 1905, had six students; the number increased to ten in 1924 and 12 in 1930. These early yearbooks had room for a few paragraphs on each student. We learn, for example, that Helen Veronica Casey was a “gossipy girl” who did “more than her share of yelling” at the football games. And that Charles William Phillips’ “tendency toward procrastination and his absentmindedness in regard to assignments” put a damper on his natural ability.

Most of the yearbooks have been donated by kindhearted graduates over the years, and, while the amount of books in the collection is impressive, some volumes are missing. The library is seeking the following Newtown High School yearbooks: 1908, 1909, 1910, 1911, 1948, 1949, 1953, 1954, 1956, 1957, 1958, 1959, 1969, 1970, 1973, 1974, 1977, 1978, 1979, 1981, 1982, 1985 through 1995, 2000, 2002, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, and 2009.

Contributions are greatly appreciated. Anyone wanting to donate a volume included in the years listed above is asked to contact reference librarian Andrea Zimmermann at the library, 203-426-8552.