August 4, 2000

HOMETOWN NEWSPAPER of Barbara Bigham

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Newtown’s bobcat appears to be back. Every morning, Carlin Zeno looks out of his kitchen window into his back yard to see what wildlife is active. Sometimes, the flock of wild turkeys that makes its home in his back woods are out for a dawn snack. Other mornings, a family of deer ambles across his lawn on its way to open pastures. Last Friday morning, Mr Zeno saw a new visitor: a bobcat. “It was shocking,” he explained about the encounter.

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Town workers later this week will begin dropping briquettes containing bacterial larvicide into local catch basins in an effort to cut down on the mosquito population. The mosquito-killing mission is a preventative measure against the West Nile Virus, which was detected in Stamford late last month.

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The Newtown Volunteer Ambulance Corps announced this week that its membership had reached an all-time high of 64 members. And that’s good news since local EMTs responded to a record number of calls during the first six months of this year. According to Corps Chief Kristin Peterson, the ambulance corps responded to 849 calls from January through July of 2000. It is on pace to hit 1,700 calls for the year, which would far surpass 1999’s record year of 1,506.

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In a memorandum to Judge Dale Radcliffe, attorney John Kelly, representing former Newtown police chief James E. Lysaght, Jr, argues that the judge should thoroughly review the record of Mr Lysaght’s termination hearing, and then, based on the evidence, should reverse an arbitrator’s finding that the Police Commission had “just cause” to fire Mr Lysaght as police chief.

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The foursomes of Ed Sidlowsky, John Piorkowski, Charlie Walsh and Bob Melvin (gross) and Jack Paulin, Austin Schraff, Elmer MacDonald and Bill Hamilton (net) were the winners of the Newtown Country Club’s recent one-day member guest tournament. The low gross winning score was 61 while the low net winning score was 48. The winners took home $55 each.

August 1, 1975

As a result of a shooting which took place shortly after noon Thursday, July 31, on the spot police reports indicate that three people are dead. The shooting took place in Sandy Hook Center. Details were sketchy as The Bee went to press, and the identities of the victims were unavailable according to preliminary reports. The police were on the scene at the site of the shooting, in and around the Village Cafe on Church Hill Road.

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Sam Scott of South Center Newtown retired June 1 after 33 years and nine months with the Connecticut State Highway Department. When Mr Scott began his job, the crew worked out of Amaral’s Garage, then moved to the garage on the former Stefanko property in Sandy Hook. For the past few years his division has worked out of the State Garage in Southbury.

Eight members of Newtown Boy Scout Troop 270, with Scoutmaster Raoul Camejo and a Scout each from Brookfield and Redding, have returned from a two-week trip to the Philmont Scout Ranch and Explorer Base in northern New Mexico. Leaving Newtown July 8, the Scouts traveled by plane to Denver, Colo., and then by bus to the Scout Ranch, arriving after 15 and a half hours of traveling.

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The Newtown Board of Realtors has selected two outstanding local realtors to be the recipients of the annual Realtor of the Year and Real-Associate of the Year Awards. Joseph T. Chase is the Realtor of the Year and John F. Klopfenstein is the Realtor-Associate of the Year.

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It was a nasty surprise for John Rowins of Rowledge Pond trout hatchery this week when the alarm was given on night and he rushed out to find two huge bags of his trout left dead on the road by fleeing thieves. Over 216 pounds of prime trout plus a few large bass were destroyed; at $2.50 a pound, about $540 worth of damage. The trout ranged from ten inchers to four pounders, all being held-over past the regular selling season to fatten up for special customers.

July 28, 1950

EDITORIAL INK DROPS — HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO MR NETTLETON: Too much in this world is taken for granted. Those of us who have known Arthur T. Nettleton intimately, have looked up to him for a very long time as a fine gentleman, a bulwark of strength in local financial affairs and a person of unlimited loyalty to Newtown. We expected him to go on forever. But somehow the infirmities of age play few favorites, and Mr Nettleton has been an unwilling patient in the Danbury Hospital since May 15th. Saturday, July 29th, will be his 88th birthday. The Bee hopes—in fact, asks—that all his friends send him birthday cards and personal messages, so that the day will be a happy one for him.

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In recent weeks plans have been drawn and preparations made for a much-needed addition to The Bee office. Work began in earnest on Saturday morning, when John C. Stefanko, general contractor, who has been given the contract for the job, cleared the land and removed one or two trees which stood in the way. The addition, plans for which have been drawn by John B. Gill of Brushy Hill Road, will provide storage space for newsprint in the basement and space on the ground floor for the composition room and job printing equipment, as well as a small room for stereotyping.

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Not only Newtowners but people from many surrounding towns will regret to learn that the Newtown Orchestral Society, for so long an integral part of summer activities here, has recently been dissolved. After long deliberation, the officers of the Society came reluctantly to the conclusion that the difficulties of maintaining such an organization are in these days so great, especially in regard to costs, that they must cease activities.

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Billy Canfield, son of Mr and Mrs George G. Canfield of Newtown, will return home on Saturday after spending two weeks at Camp Mohawk, Litchfield.

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Mr and Mrs Mortimer Smith and family, left Monday for a stay of three weeks at Lebanon, Me.

July 31, 1925

The Premier Manufacturing Company of Sandy Hook, Conn., which has been in receivership before the Honorable Superior. Court for Fairfield County since February, 1924, has been finally wound up by the receivers, Attorney J. Robert Beecher of Newtown, Conn., and Joesph S. Porter of Portland, Conn.

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We wish to thank Miss Abbie I. Peck for four copies of the Bugle, Newtown High school, 1912, 1913, 1914 and 1915. We would like to get 1908, 1909, 1910, 1911, 1916, 1917 and 1919, as we have none of these years.

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Commissioner Philo T. Platt and John A. Carlson motored to Hartford and returned on Tuesday.

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The dance under the auspices of the Hawleyville Volunteer Firemen’s Association, at Wilbur’s Inn, Monday night, was a wonderful success, with over 1000 in attendance, and one of the biggest successes of the year. Mr Upham has generously donated a building lot for the Fire House and subscriptions for the same have been received to an amount exceeding $175. Ground for the new fire house will be broken next week. The Hawleyville firemen are to be praised for their energy and their public spirit.

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The All Stars will play in Roxbury, Sunday afternoon. Each team has won one game, and an exciting contest is expected on Sunday.

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The Walnut Tree Hill Special made its daily run all last week. It is expected new cars will be added on the coming week.

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Mr and Mrs John Mahoney and children of Bridgeport are guests of Micheal Mahoney.

August 3, 1900

The Congregational church was filled, Sunday evening, with an audience all eager to hear Mrs Margaret Bottome, noted as a speaker and because of her connection with the King’s Daughters movement. The opening exercises were brief, owing to the warm evening, Mrs Bottome wishing to close as early as possible. After the opening hymn and prayer by Rev O.W. Barker, Miss Daley rendered a solo, “The Holy City,” which in itself was a treat to the assembled audience.

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Clark Page’s son is quite seriously ill with scarlet fever.

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Homer Clark’s baby boy has been very seriously ill with meningitis, the past week.

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Mr and Mrs Albert V. Bennett of Sing Sing, N. Y., are guests of Mr and Mrs Eugene M. Miller of Taunton district.

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[FROM THE NEW HAVEN REGISTER] Newtown, July 24.— Everybody took a half holiday in this village yesterday afternoon and turned out to witness the corner stone laying of the new public library which is being erected on one of the principal sites on Newtown street. The weather was just right for such a proceeding and long before 3 o’clock, the hour for the ceremonies to commence, people swarmed the street and grounds surrounding the foundation for the new building. All were in good humor and hand shaking was in order. A large company looked upon the building which was being erected to the memory of an old and respected citizen and rector of the first Episcopal church in Newtown during the time of the Revolutionary war. The gentleman in question was Rev John Beach, who has long since died and is resting in the Episcopal burying ground in Newtown. The building, which will cost $800 or more, was donated to the Newtown Library association by Miss Rebecca Beach of New Haven, a direct descendant of John Beach, formerly of New Haven.

Do you have photographs of people or places in town from a bygone era? The Way We Were is the perfect landing spot so that your photographs can be enjoyed by readers of The Newtown Bee. Images can be e-mailed as attachments to shannon@thebee.com, subject line: Way We Were photo. When submitting photographs, please identify as many people as possible, the location, and the approximate date. If you live locally and would like to loan a photo/photos, please give us a call (203-426-3141) to let us know when you will be visiting.