Full Text:

THE WAY WE WERE

APRIL 19, 1974

Newtown elderly persons may file for property tax relief under the new

"circuit-breaker" law at the office of the Tax Assessor. Elderly homeowners

may apply for these benefits between April 15 and June 15, and elderly renters

may apply between April 15 and December 31 of this year.

A grievance brought by Newtown's police against the Town regarding assigning

of sergeants to the dispatcher's desk, filed in December, was resolved at the

Selectmen's meeting on Tuesday night when First Selectman Frank DeLucia was

authorized to sign the letter of intent on the matter. The police, members of

Local 337 of the International Brotherhood of Police Officers, voted

unanimously to accept the grievance settlement on April 10. The grievance was

filed following the assigning of sergeants to the dispatcher's desk, beginning

last November, due to manpower shortages of both sworn and civilian personnel.

Since then funds have been provided for hiring additional officers and

dispatchers, by special appropriation, to ease the squeeze.

In conjunction with Newtown's "Rid-Litter Week," which will be April 22-27,

the Newtown Beautification Committee invited the elementary and middle school

children in Newtown to enter a poster contest. The posters, which were to

stress a clean-up campaign, were judged on Wednesday, April 17, by Leslie

Randall and Betty Christensen, both local professional artists and members of

the Society for Creative Arts in Newtown. First prize for best all around

design and best originality of thought went to Regina Clark of St Rose. Other

students from the school who won awards for their efforts included Brett

Richter, a second for well-thought out and most unusual design; Barbara

Reiner, a third for her excellent designing; Karla Pothanszky, Patty Seman,

Anthony Pantuso and Francoise Knight, honorable mentions.

On Wednesday, April 10, Meals on Wheels vice-president Arthur Scherer, Mrs

Fred Parrella, founder of the program, and Mrs Raymond Marcus, publicity

director, met with Mrs Helen Lingenfelser, president of the Newtown FISH, to

plan a program of cooperation between the two service organizations.

The Board of Selectmen have approved one application for vending permits and

rejected two others. Carl E. Powers, Beechwood Drive, Sandy Hook, got the BofS

nod to sell fruits and vegetables door-to-door, at its meeting on Tuesday,

April 16. Two vending requests for mobile hot dog stands, for Berkshire Road,

Route 34, were turned down. Carmel Arcuri, of Mile Hill Road South, and Ronald

Russo, of New Haven, sought these.

Newtown's four police dispatchers will meet Monday morning, April 22, in

Police Department headquarters to discuss union organization. If the four

dispatchers decide to unionize, they will be the fourth group of Town

employees to do so, following the recent unionization of the road crew.

Mrs Mary Williams of Taunton Lake Road sings in the Vestry Guard, a female

barbershop quartet which is part of the Sweet Adelines Association of Danbury.

Paul Dedell, son of Mr and Mrs Harry C. Dedell of Newtown, played Perre in the

Windham College studio theatre production of Big Klaus, Little Klaus, and was

co-designer of lights and preparer of sound for Tom Stoppard's The Real

Inspector Hound. One of Paul Dedell's instructors is Paul F. Nelsen, former

resident of Newtown and an alumnus of Newtown High School.

APRIL 22, 1949

A special town meeting has been called by the Board of Selectmen for Thursday

evening, May 5, at the Edmond Town Hall at 8 o'clock, legal warning of which

appears elsewhere in this issue. The meeting has been called for two purposes:

(1) To consider and act upon an ordinance regulating or prohibiting the sale

of fire works within the town of Newtown (2) To act upon a resolution

instructing the Board of Selectmen to enter into an agreement with the State

Highway Commissioner for the expenditure of funds available to the town of

Newtown for the construction and improvement of roads within the town of

Newtown.

On Wednesday evening the first anniversary of the founding of the Newtown Cub

Pack 70 was observed by a dinner in the Trinity Church rooms. In addition to

their first birthday, the Cubs, under the leadership of Donald R. McCain,

Cubmaster, were celebrating the fact that in one year's time their enrollment

had increased from an original 13 boys to the 40 who were present at the

dinner.

On Thursday evening, April 28, St Rose parish will sponsor a card and bingo

party at St Rose hall. Plans have been completed for this chief spring event

and the party will begin at 8 o'clock. Those assisting Miss Aloise Heller who

is chairman of the party are Miss Sally Carmody, Miss Ruth Mariott, Miss Mary

Keane, Miss Mildred Leavy, Mrs Noel Trudeau, Mrs Anna McMahon, Mrs Joseph

Ozanne, Mrs Ellis Walker, Miss Louie Rayan, Mrs George Bresson, Mrs Tony

Digilio, Mrs John Stefanko, Mrs Clara Jilson and Mrs Anna Maye.

On Tuesday, when a painter climbed the famous flag pole in the center of

Newtown's Main street, he found that the pole is in need of repairs which must

be completed before it is painted. As a precautionary measure, the flag has

been removed from the pole and will not fly again until the repairs are made.

First Selectman W.W. Holcombe has the matter in hand and the pole will be put

in proper condition for use as soon as possible.

The death of William Abel Upham, which occurred early Tuesday morning at the

New Haven Hospital, removed one of Newtown's prominent and popular citizens.

In January Mr Upham suffered a stroke and was a patient for nearly a month at

the Danbury hospital. His health improved after his return home, but he was

forced to enter the New Haven hospital on April 11, his death following a week

later...Mr Upham was born in Chicago, Ill. in 1880, the son of Frances Brown

Upham and Abel Putnam Upham, tea commissioner of the United States during the

Cleveland and McKinley administrations. Mr Upham came to New York in 1900 and

entered into partnership in the Upham Miller Company in 1904 for the packaging

of food products. His own firm, Upham Food Products, Inc, was started in 1909

in New York City and the business was moved to Hawleyville by Mr Upham in

1916, where it has since continued in operation.

A public hearing was held last Thursday evening by the Zoning Commission of

the Borough of Newtown on the application of Louie C. Lovell to have the

classification of his property, north of his present garage building on Main

street, changed from residential to business zone in order to erect thereon a

new International Harvester building. Judge Paul V. Cavanaugh, chairman of the

Zoning Commission, presided. The Zoning Committee met at the close of the

hearing and granted the change in the classification of Mr Lovell's property,

permitting him to proceed with the erection of his new building.

APRIL 18, 1924

On Tuesday, about 1 pm, an aeroplane passed over Newtown, going in a

southwesterly direction, apparently making for New York. It was traveling at

high speed and apparently at an elevation of 2,000 feet. Newtown is off the

"beaten" air lanes, and this plane was viewed with interest by many.

A fire, which probably started by sparks from an engine, burned over a tract

of about 20 acres of land south of the tunnel on Monday about noon. There was

a high wind prevailing at the time and it took a large force of men to put it

out.

There was a fine demonstration of the pupils' work at Huntingtown School last

Wednesday evening. They also had their speaking and spelling contest for this

district. Miss Marguerite Keating won in the spelling contest and Leon Nalevky

in the speaking. These pupils will enter the contest to be held later, at the

Hawley School.