The parents of missing Newtown woman Regina Brown are offering a $5,000 reward for any information regarding their 35-year-old daughter who was last seen on March 26. Emile and Ernestine Fontenot, of Liberty, Texas, said they will offer a $5,000 reward for any information about their missing daughter, a resident of Whippoorwill Road, who is a flight attendant with American Airlines. Mrs Brown was last seen by her live-in babysitter on March 26 at LaGuardia Airport in New York, when she dropped off her young daughter for a flight to Texas to see her grandparents.

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The State Department of Transportation wants to replace the decking of the bridge over the Pootatuck River in the center of The Hook. DOT has agreed to incorporate several Sandy Hook Organization for Prosperity (SHOP) suggestions into its design for the revamped bridge. Discussions between DOT and SHOP, however, hit a “brick wall” over the issue of sidewalks for the bridge. Dot proposed the normal concrete sidewalks. SHOP insisted on brick sidewalks. DOT gave in a little, agreeing to use earth-colored and textured colored concrete. SHOP proposed the use of a franchised product, a sort of colored concrete which could be stamped with a brick design. Daniel Coffey, DOT manager of bridge design, rejected that idea. Due to its inability to reach an agreement with DOT on this issue, SHOP will not withdraw its request for a state DEP hearing on environmental and aesthetic issues relating to the bridge.

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Last Saturday morning’s weather was of the kind only a fisherman could love. Rainy and raw, it did not deter the intrepid members of the Newtown Fish and Game Club from having their annual opening day of fishing breakfast at Taunton Pond. While the eggs and bacon and coffee were good, they weren’t as good as the fishing, as many members quickly caught their limit of five trout.

April 27, 1962

A rash of grass and brush fires that broke out Sunday afternoon kept Newtown firemen busy through the middle of Monday afternoon. The calls were coming in at the rate of one a minute for a while. The fires were mainly along the nine-mile stretch of New Haven Railroad right of way from Hawleyville to Botsford. In all, nine pieces of Newtown equipment, Vincent Gaffney and his portable equipment, and three pieces of apparatus of the State Forest Fire Control were used to combat the fires.

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The Newtown Park and Recreation Commission is pleased to announce that due to a second generous gift from Bertram A. Stroock of Dodgingtown, an additional piece of land adjacent to Dickinson Memorial Park has been purchased. The new property consists of seven acres and is across the road from the parking lot of the swimming pool. In 1954, Mr Stroock gave Newtown $50,000 for the purpose of creating a park with recreational facilities.

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Mrs John Dodds of Stamford, well known to television audiences as Vivian Vance, the “Ethel Merz” of the “I Love Lucy” show, will be at the Fairfield State Hospital next Tuesday afternoon, May 1, taking part in activities planned there in observance of National Mental Health Week, which begins this Saturday, April 28, and runs through Sunday, May 6. Mrs Dodds is chairman of Connecticut’s “Operations Friendship.” “Operation Friendship” is a program which endeavors to have people in the community visit their state hospitals.

***

Mrs Bertha G. Curtis and Miss Theodora George, owners of the lovely old antiques store, the Codfish Shop, on Berkshire Road, Sandy Hook, right at the entrance to S. Curtis and Son, are bereft by the theft from in front of their shop of an antique spinning wheel, which has graced the front porch of the little old building for the past 25 years. They have not reported the loss to the police, and their happiest dreams will be realized if the old spinning wheel is put back again as surreptitiously as it may have been taken.

April 23, 1937

This is the final week of the clean up of cornfields on account of the European corn borer. On April 26, 12 men under direction of M.P. Zappe of the Agricultural Experiment Station at New Haven will start a tour of inspection of farm premises throughout the infested sections of the State. Owners of land that has not been taken care of will be reported to the prosecuting attorney of their community. Persons brought to court and found guilty must not only clean up their gardens, but must pay the court costs and a fine, as well.

***

Fourteen members of the Hawley high school girls’ basketball team, with their guests, gathered in the social room of the Congregational church on Saturday evening, April 17, at 7:30 o’clock, to enjoy a banquet in honor of the winning of the Housatonic Valley League championship for the second successive year by the Hawley girls.

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Newtown was favored on Sunday by a visit of three highly respected authorities upon historical matters, particularly as pertain to the American Revolution. The three visitors were William L. Calver and Oscar T. Barck of New York City and Herbert B. Nichols of New Rochelle, N.Y. These three gentlemen made their visit particularly to inspect the rock piles in Taunton district, which for some time have caused discussion as to the probability of marking a Revolutionary camp site. It was the opinion of these gentlemen of authority, at the close of their visit in Taunton district, that the rock piles are not of French origin and so do not mark a French encampment. They expressed the hope that the matter might be carried further, not only to determine whether a camp was ever made in that particular locality, but also to locate exactly the spot where the French did camp in Newtown. For there is no doubt but that several thousand French soldiers passed through the town and camped here en route.

***

At a meeting of the Board of Education of the town of Newtown, last Friday evening, the petition of the Newtown Chamber of Commerce to the Board, requesting them to petition the State Board of Education for a building and curriculum survey of the schools of the town, was turned down. At the request of The Bee for a statement explaining the Board’s action, Raymond Hall, secretary, makes the following reply: The School Board has followed the policies advanced the past few years by the State Board of Education through the guidance of Mr Knight, our State Supervisor… Pupil testing programs have been carried out. Transportation facilities have been expanded…Last summer Mr Knight submitted to the Board an extensive curriculum offering, which the school board has approved in part… Consequently, the School Board feels that it is not necessary to have a school survey by the State Board. The board recently requested an appropriation for new school facilities. If and when this appropriation is approved by the voters, a building committee would have to be appointed.

 

April 26, 1912

Mrs Kemble of New York City is having a barn 25 x 26 feet, 12 feet posts, built at her summer home in Taunton. T.F. Brew of Sandy Hook has the contract. Mrs Kemble is also having extensive alterations and repairs made on the house on the Corbett place at the head of the Taunton Lake, which she has recently purchased.

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Yesterday afternoon the High school baseball team opened its session on the home field with the Sanford school team as its opponent. Owing to the damp condition of the Fair grounds the game was played in the lot by the school house. At the beginning of the fifth the rain caused everyone to beat a hasty retreat for shelter and consequently the game was called. The local team has good material but needs much more practice before a well-balanced team can be turned out.

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A fire broke out in the home of Dr Henry E. Waite on Friday evening, April 19, at 8 o’clock. An alarm was sent in for the Dodgingtown Fire Co., who arrived promptly at the fire. The cause of the fire was an overheated fireplace. The firemen put it out before much damage was done. Dr and Mrs Waite wish to thank the Dodgingtown Fire Department for their prompt and efficient services at the fire at their home.

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Vincent Denaro, who recently sold his place a Mulligan’s Crossing, Hanover, has moved the buildings several rods farther west on the road in front of the house, and is erecting them on a lot he owns there. Mr Upham of New York, who bough Mr Denaro’s place, is to erect a fine residence on the property in the near future.