June 1, 2001

EDITORIAL INK DROPS — BIG DECISIONS FOR THE FAMILY OF NEWTOWN: Newtown is a growing family. The combination of the quality of life here and the availability of large tracts of land for development over the past ten years set the stage for a growth spurt of 20 percent. And while the town has become more vital and interesting as a result, it has also become more crowded and demanding of services. The highway department has taken on miles of new roads, the police department has added patrol officers, but nowhere has the demand been more pressing than in the schools.

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HOMETOWN NEWSPAPER of Jack Tanner.

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Danbury Superior Court Judge Gary White this week ordered Ruperto Lugo, 21, of Stratford to serve a life sentence in his felony murder conviction in the July 1999 street corner shooting of 15-year-old Jason Gowdy of Sandy Hook. A life sentence in Connecticut equals 60 years of time served. … Judge White sentenced co-defendant Alejandro Melendez, 21, of Bridgeport to a sentence of 10 years. That sentence includes eight years in prison, followed by two years of heavily monitored special parole, based on convictions on two weapons charges in connection with the Gowdy murder.

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Residents who spoke at Wednesday’s public hearing of the Charter Revision Commission urged members to push forward with their proposed changes to town government. The board was praised for its creativity and effort in proposing a new government that provides a better system of checks and balances, more accountability, and a stronger chief executive.

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Most would agree that the idea of racing rubber ducks down a river in the rain is a bit silly. Organizers for this past weekend’s event could have just as easily pulled one of some 1,500 tickets out of a hat, like the lottery. Still, everyone had a great time at the inaugural Great Pootatuck Duck Race in Sandy Hook on Saturday afternoon. And, most importantly, the charity event raised money for the Treadwell Park Playground and drew still further attention to an ever-improving Sandy Hook Center. More than 200 people lined the banks of the Pootatuck River to watch the race. They cheered in the rain as 1,448 rubber ducks floated their way to the finish line. The event was put on by the Newtown Lions Club.

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“Art of the Northeast USA,” the 52nd annual juried competition in painting, drawing, sculpture and mixed media, is on exhibit through June 15 at Silvermine Guild Galleries. This year’s juror, Bill Arning, curator of the MIT List Visual Arts Center in Cambridge, Mass., culled through over 1,000 entries from New England, New York, New Jersey and Pennsylvania, selecting 142 works for exhibition and designating 24 awards. Among Mr Arning’s selections for awards was “Okno,” a mixed media sculpture installation by Adam Niklewicz of Sandy Hook, which won The Grumbacher Award.

May 28, 1976

One thousand ninety signatures on petitions calling for reversal of the $10,746,184 budget for 1976-77, which was approved by the town meeting on May 19, were turned into the Town Clerk’s office Tuesday. The signatures were gathered by a group calling themselves the Concerned Citizens of Newtown Committee. Two of the members, John D’Addario of Meadowbrook Road and John Ryan of Dinglebrook Lane, announced immediately after the town meeting that a petition move would begin.

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Attempted arson at the Sandy Hook Hotel shortly after midnight on Wednesday is being investigated by the police and fire marshal. According to the police, Deputy Fire Marshal George Lockwood reported to headquarters at 12:15 am that a fire had been started at the hotel. Police report that there was little damage because of a quick alarm turned in by an alert resident who noticed a flash from the hotel. A search of the building revealed two glass bottles and one metal container with gasoline in rooms on the lower floor. Gasoline soaked rags were also found in areas on the same floor.

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SANDY HOOK WOMEN’S BOWLING: High scorers for May 18 were: high single, Barbara Trosan, 149; high three, Mae Hein, 381; high no-mark, Pat Roberto, 88. Team high scorers were: high singe, Aces and Jokers, 458; high three, Aces, 1,300. Other high scorers were Bette Genova, 135; Pam Hein, 133; Anne Skelty, 128; Lois Mathews and Dawn Mehlin, 127; Diane Lautenschlager, 123; and Rita Nagy, 122.

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Mr and Mrs John F. Holian of Main Street returned home last week from a visit to England.

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Peter J. Ruffier, a graduate of Newtown High School and resident of Great Hill Road, achieved a “straight A” average during the winter term at Michigan State University, East Lansing, Michigan.

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Mrs Malcolm McClintock and Mrs John Mulholland attended the 50th reunion of their class at Smith College at Northampton, Mass. Festivities started Thursday, May 13, and continued through Sunday for the commencement of this year’s graduating class.

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Carol Wejmeyer of Newtown was graduated from Russell Sage College in Troy, N.Y., on May 23 with a bachelors degree.

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This year Newtown dogs will also get into the Bicentennial Spirit by sporting Liberty Bell tags. All dogs and their masters are cordially invited to the Town Clerk’s office to make application for their 1976 licenses. Licenses will be on sale during the month of June and are mandatory according to State law by July 1. The fees are still $3.50 for a male or spayed female and $7.70 for an unspayed female. … After July 1, there will be a late charge and effective October 1, unaltered males will be charged the same fee as unspayed females.

May 25, 1951

EDITORIAL INK DROPS — SOMETHING NEW IS ADDED: A new era begins for Newtown on Monday, when the shopping center on Queen Street, built by George Wheeler, officially opens for business. Quite obviously, the town has been growing at an accelerated rate for the past decade. More and more, people have been coming here to make their homes, with the result that there has developed an urgent need for the services of a commercial bank and a demand for the range of goods to be found in a variety of retail outlets. The urgency of the situation will be met in large measure on Monday when the Wheeler Block comes to actual life. The Newtown Branch of the First National Bank & Trust Company of Bridgeport will open its doors at that time, and more than half a dozen retail merchants will invite local patronage in stores well stocked with a diversified assortment of merchandise, ranging from radios to shoes, clothing and hardware.

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Climaxing their training at the Marine Corps Recruit Depot, Parris Island, S.C., Pfc. Robert J. Qubick, son of Mr and Mrs John J. Qubick of Hall Lane, and Pfc. Kendall E. Granniss, son of Mr and Mrs C. Edward Granniss of Glen Road, recently received promotion to their present rank and won the silver badge of Marine Marksmen. They have now been transferred to Camp Joseph H. Pendleton, Ocean Side, Calif., where they are receiving advanced training. At Parris Island they completed training in field tactics and precision drill and also received classroom instruction in field sanitation, first aid, Marine Corps history and military courtesy. They fired other infantry weapons in addition to the Garand rifle with which they qualified, and observed operation of the machine gun, mortar and flame thrower.

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A Court of Awards ceremony for Girl Scout Troop 37 of Newtown was held at the Girl Scout Cabin on Monday evening, May 21. Guests included the Newtown Mothers Club, sponsors of the group, members of the Troop Committee, and mothers of the girls in the troop. The program included the distribution of awards that the Scouts have earned as a result of the year’s activities.

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A capacity audience in the Edmond Town Hall theater greeted the Lowell Thomases, father and son, Wednesday night and viewed the technicolor film, “Out of This World,” showing a land, a people and a mode of living that might well have been located on another planet. The program was sponsored by the Newtown Rotary Club in cooperation with the Newtown committee of the Connecticut Society for Crippled Children and Adults, of which Mrs George M. Stuart is chairman, through the efforts of Howell Wright, past president of the club.

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Mr and Mrs Edward L. Beardsley of Chestnut Tree Hill, Half Way River District, were hosts last Sunday to more than 100 friends and relatives who came to offer congratulations on their 25th wedding anniversary. Guests were present from Newtown, New Haven, Bridgeport, Norwalk, Ansonia, Huntington, other nearby towns, and from Sarasota, Florida. The couple was married May 13, 1926, in Immanuel Episcopal Church, Ansonia, with the Rev Thomas J. Shannon, then rector, and now retired, officiating. Many of the attendants at the wedding were present at the anniversary celebration.

May 28, 1926

Mr and Mrs George Parker of Hawleyville announce the engagement of their daughter, Bessie I. Parker, to Howard I. Hine, son of Mr and Mrs Walter Hine, of New Milford.

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Old Ferry Inn at Dodgingtown has opened for its second season and will made a specialty of $1.00 blue plate dinners, light lunches for after theater and dance parties and afternoon teas. The Inn will be open from 1 p.m. to 1 a.m. In connection with the Inn, this year, will be a studio having on display hand painted hats, slickers, parasols, collar and cuff sets, and many other articles. Orders will also be accepted for Spanish galleons, clipper ships, and any other articles desired hand painted.

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PICTURES AT BLACKMAN’S — SATURDAY NIGHT — TWO SHOWS— 6 AND 8, STANDARD TIME. Reginald Denny in “California Straight Ahead.” Seeing Denny is just like putting Old Man Gloom in mothballs. Here he is in his maddest, merriest comedy drama — in the rollicking, laughing sensation of the season. Here is the real blues-chaser, an exuberant and merry comedy that will banish all your cares and flood you with mirth. Handsome, hilarious Reginald Denny in a riotous romance of wildly beating hearts and snorting racing cars. 3000 miles of laughs, laughs, laughs.

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Martin Francis Connors, who had been ill for a long time with a pulmonary trouble, passed away in the early hours of Wednesday as dawn commenced to streak across the sky. He was 27 years old, the son of Mr and Mrs Marcus Connors, and is survived by his parents, two sisters, Mrs George E. Bennett and Miss Anna Connors, and a brother, Michael Connors. He bore his long illness with rare patience and fortitude and was happy in the thought that his last days were in the loving care and companionship of his parents, sisters and brother. He longed to live, and made a brave fight, but was ready to exchange the mortal for the life of immortality.

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Mr and Mrs S.B. Budd and children and Miss Marguerite Beecher have arrived at their home on the Street for the summer.

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Misses Marie and Eda Meyers of Dresden, Germany, arrived in Newtown on May 11. They are the daughters of the late L.O.P. Meyers, who at one time lived in Newtown, making his home at the Grand Central Hotel. The Misses Meyers are making their home in Miss Mary Hawley’s house just south of the Newtown Inn annex so called.

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The Jolly Sewers’ Club of Dodgingtown district held their regular meeting on Friday evening at the Old Ferry Inn, the home of Miss Nina Lane.

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Mrs Charles F. Cavanaugh is passing a week in Waterbury, the guest at the home of her mother, Mrs Mary Morley.

May 31, 1901

A brilliant social event took place at the Newtown Inn on Thursday evening, May 23, when Attorney and Mrs William J. Beecher entertained their many friends at a progressive whist party. Over 200 invitations were sent out, a large number of which were accepted. The evening was all that could be desired, and the parlors of the Inn, which were prettily decorated with lilacs, the flower of the season, were well filled.

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Friday evening, May 17, a very well attended and interesting meeting of Olive chapter, O.E.S., of Seymour, was held in Masonic hall. Jephtha chapter of Sandy Hook had been invited to be present and sixteen of their number drove the sixteen miles to attend. They were served with refreshments, as were also the grand officers present, before the meeting of the chapter was held.

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Miss Ina Benedict, who has been visiting her sister, Mrs Will B. Glover, for several weeks, returned to her home at South Salem, N.Y., on Monday, making the journey with her own horse and carriage.

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James H. Lewis, the veteran horseman, and his son, are at the Fair grounds with a string of eight horses, and are at work getting them ready for the fall races. Some of these horses are very promising ones and bid fair to make some fine records.

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Fred Tripp captured what is known as a goslin turtle in Warner’s pond, Tuesday, which weighed 32½ pounds.

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Henry Bourquenez of Botsford has traded horses with Paul Black of Newtown.

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.