Wholesale Newtown

Included in this collection are some of the earliest photographs ever taken of Newtown. In addition, Newtown shows some of the earliest views of the outlying farming and industrial communities such as Berkshire, Botsford, and Hawleyville. Many images also recall the town's career as a resort town--from the earliest Main Street hotels to the teahouses that sprang up as the automobile grew in popularity. We also visit the summer recreation communities that developed on Lake Zoar in the 1920s and 1930s. A whole chapter deals with the pivotal role that the railroad played in the growth of Newtown. In addition, there is considerable coverage of the War Maneuvers of 1912, which were conducted all over the eastern portion of the town and finally centered on Castle Hill just west of Main Street. Newtown includes many photographs newly developed from glass negatives and several recently discovered photographs of great significance. These are all being published here for the first time by Mr. Cruson, a trustee of the Newtown Historical Society, town historian, and president of the Archaeological Society of Connecticut.