Newtown Woman’s Club is formally launching the sale of its 39th annual Christmas ornament this month. This year’s design, based on an illustration by club member and local artist Michelle Rosenthal, continues not only the long-standing tradition of a holiday ornament by the local club, it also ties into the Semiquincentennial theme the United States has celebrated this year.

Rosenthal’s design features a bell, with a bow and sprigs of holly across its top and “250th” inscribed on its surface. Five stars are also inscribed on the lower lip of the bell. The words “Newtown Christmas” curve along the upper arch of the dual-sided ornament, while 1776-2026 complements the wording on the lower section of the ornament.

Woodbury Pewterers, Inc has again produced the ornament.

Former Newtown resident and retired history teacher Gordon Williams recently offered a brief history of bells in America when he was a special guest of Newtown Woman’s Club last month. Williams reminded those present during the September 17 meeting of local history that included the days when Patriots, Loyalists, and Tories could all be found in Newtown. He spoke of the early days of the Revolutionary War, including one of the most famous local incidents, “the arrival of Rochambeau’s army and his troops in town,” Williams said.

Williams noted some of the French commander’s officers stayed in the former Caleb Baldwin Tavern, “and that footnote has a real special meaning to me,” he said with a chuckle. Williams, his wife, and family lived in the Main Street location for more than 30 years.

With the country celebrating the 250th anniversary of the signing of The Declaration of Independence this year, according to Williams, Newtown Woman’s Club wanted to tie its annual project into that observance as well.

“They wanted to do something to celebrate this great anniversary,” he said.

In a brief essay that accompanies each ornament, it is noted that the music of bells “carries with it a sense of warmth and wonder, reminding us of the light, love and goodwill that make Christmas such a special time of year. This year, however, the sound of Christmas bells takes on an even deeper, more meaningful significance as our Nation celebrates its 250th birthday.

“In their joyful ringing, we can hear an echo of the bells of liberty that have long marked moments of celebration, freedom, and hope throughout our nation’s history,” the essay also notes.

While speaking to the club last month, Williams said bells are traditionally very important in America, “from school bells and church bells to fire bells, sleigh bells, and even ice cream truck bells,” he continued, drawing a laugh from the room.

Williams shared two interesting notes. The first had to do with sleigh bells.

“Those came about because sleighs are generally quiet, and if there was a lot of snow on the ground the sleigh would come around a corner silently, and it could hit you before you knew what had happened,” he said.

The second tidbit had to do with the country’s oldest bell maker. Bevin Bells, which has been crafting bells since 1832, is in its sixth generation of family ownership.

“Bevin Bells is the only bell maker left in the country, and it’s located right in East Hampton,” Williams stated. “They still make over 50 types of bells with different designs.”

The 2026 Newtown Woman’s Club ornament will be officially released on October 15.

They will be available for purchase at The Newtown Bee, 5 Church Hill Road; C.H. Booth Library, 25 Main Street; The Toy Tree, 32 Church Hill Road (Newtown location only), and — new this year — Sentimenti, 3 Queen Street.

The ornaments are $20 each, cash or check payable to Newtown Woman’s Club. Proceeds from sales will again be donated by the women’s club to local civic organizations.

Launched in 1988 featuring the town’s rooster weather vane as designed by Lorraine VanderWende, the Woman’s Club Christmas Ornament Project is an ongoing fundraiser for the club. A new design has been released each subsequent year, initially celebrating a place or entity related to Newtown. Previous designs have paid homage to the 9/11 Memorial Grove in Dodgingtown, Ferris Acres Farms, Newtown Meeting House, Newtown Police Department, the former Yankee Drover, and even the logo of The Newtown Bee, among many others.

That tradition changed last year, when the club shifted its focus to symbols of the holiday. Woman’s Club President Rosemary Rau designed the 2025 ornament, which featured a wreath.

=====

Managing Editor Shannon Hicks can be reached at shannon@thebee.com.