The Newtown bee., 1905-08-11
.o= NeWtOWn's Bi~Centennial, ,ooz
\ August 5.

August 5.

oSASA
that no other grist mill should b.
erected to the damage of said Sanford
so long as he would supply the towI
with good mill. The town also agreed
to give him 40 acres of land lying I'm
der Mount Pisgah together with the
land lying southwest of the mountain
to the farm known as the ''old farm. ,
So the first grist mill was located ir
Sandy Hook, now called. The mill OF
200 years ago is gone. Another stands
still forms the background. Genera
tions have passed away, but though
men may come and men may go, the
stream flows on forever"
In March, 1872, the town voted liber-
ty to build saw mill on Deep brook
and one was built, where w. Q. John
sons feed mill now stands. The fol-
lowing October liberty was given John
Hawley to set a fulling mill on the
Deep brook above the saw mill and
the use of half an acre of land above
his mill, providedIhe does not damnify
the saw mill so long as he maintains a
Sufficient fulling mill on Deep brook.
The place is known as "Fulling Mill
hole" to this day:
February L, 17l4, the town voted to
give liberty to Ebenezer Smith, James
Hard, jeremiah Turner, John Seeley
and Joseph Gray of Newtown to build
saw mill on Half Way River, north
west of Derby road, down near Strait
ford, on POOdertook river, and as much
land as shall be needful for said saw
mill as long as said persons shall erect
saw mill there, provided they will
saw to the town to the halves and all
such timber and logs as the inhabi
re- cHol hrin fn hot
mill for Is Cd per hundred, and also
shall have liberty of convenient pas
sage to the Great River.
February 2, 17l4, another town meet
ing. voted to give Thomas Bennitt,
John Burr and Peter Hubbell liberty
to set saw mill on PooderJook brook
anywhere near the Great River, within
80 rod of the Great River, provided they
build it any time within three years.
The foundations of the mill still stand,
short distance below the lover Rub
Der factory. So before l715 the town
was supplied with grist mill and
any inland town at so early date.
The records also speak of path that
goes from POodertOOk to Danbury as
early as TIA, but no road.
In l718 the town voted that town
house or .SchOOlhouse should be built
twenty-five feet square and eight feet
between the joints. 1t was built by
contract, the builders to furnish all
the timber, make the frame, get all
the shingles and clapboards, the town
furnishing the nails. They were to re-
ceive for their work ten pounds money.
The building stood on the highway
just north of where Trinity church
now stands and remained there until
1913.
In November, Ills, the first country
road was laid out by committee
chosen by the town, called the road to
Woodbury., commencing at the center
Of the town, running easterly to Poo
dertoOk brook, thence towards the
Housatonic river. The highway was
laid out 25 rods in width, with cart
bridge across the Poodertook. The
same is the highway now from the
town street to Sandy Hook, though
somewhat curtailed as to width. A
same month and Year, called the coun-
try road toward Stratford, running
south from the center three miles, to
what is now known as Cold Spring,
where the POOdertoOk was crossed by
cart bridge. A few years later a
highway was laid out, 10 rods in width,
nOrtherly to the New Milford line,
crossing Pond brook at the north end
of the town over horse bridge. An
other road. 10 rods in width, running
westward from the center past the
Great pond to place called Taunton.
These flour highways radiating from
the center of the town, as the four
points of the compass, with extensions
and branches as they now have, reach
ing out in all directions, have become
net work of lanes, highways and by
ways that are delight to the natural
ist, the artist and the botanist, and at
the same time a burden to the tax
payers and perplexity to the town
fathers.
In 1725 the town preferred a memoir
ial to the General Court, then in ses-
sion at Hartford, for relief from tax
alton for that year because of their
distressed condition. The Count voted
Colonial Records. Vol. 6, P. $50, cup
on the memorial of the town of New
town showing to this Assembly that
| said town is at present under pressing
circumstances occasioned by the re-
| moval of their former minister and
their settling another, being weakened
| by their diSunion in opinion which
hath been and is still among them, land
remarkably cut short in their crops
this present year by the frost, by all
which they are much straitened and
incapacitated to pay rate to the pub
lick. This Assembly therefore upon
| the special reasons aforesaid do see
cause TO free, and do hereby exempt
and free the inhabita ntS of said town
from paying any county rate for the
year next ensuing, provided the town
of NeWtOWn draw no money for their
schools nor send representatives to
this Assembly during their exemp-
tion.''
| In the early days of the Colony let
tiers and newspapers were delivered by
post riders, who, on horseback, went
over their respective routes as laid out
for each by the General Court, which
Court fixed the compensation for
travel from town to town, and also
fixed the price that might be changed
by the ordinary keepers in the respec-
tive plantations, who should provide
suitable accommodations for man and
horse, which should be, for the keep of
man by the meal, six pence, for the
horse at grass four pence night, and
for oats four pence half peck, and fol-
hay the night, four pence. Great care
was to be had by the ordinary keepers
that hired horses are not to be deprived
of their allowance
In 1873 the General Court voted that
Peter Hdbbell have liberty to set up q
ferry across the river running between
NewtOwn and Woodbury., at a place
commonly called Poodertook, ano that
the fare of said ferry be three pence
for single man or single horse, anc
eight pence for man, horse and load
the stating of the fare of said ferry tC
remain in the hands of the Court.
i In 1748 the Court changed the fare
and it was for man, horse and load fOul
and six pence: led horse one penny