Turning back the pages

100 years ago — January 1915

CANAAN — Mrs. Esther Williams fell down a stairway at her home last week and received bad bruises.

LIME ROCK — Mr. Scully is on the sick list, and Mr. Crowley is not so well.

CANAAN — Jerome Root has been ill with lumbago several days.

LAKEVILE — George Joynes is recovering after a severe attack of indigestion.

50 years ago — January 1965

Norfolk firemen, hampered by sub-zero temperatures, fought a blaze Friday morning which brought almost complete destruction to the town garage on Curtiss Road. The alarm was sent in by Joseph Pallone from his pharmacy at 7:35 a.m., and firemen battled the fire for over two hours before bringing it under control

George P. Milmine of Lake-ville, who has taken on the job of lake-watching, includes the following in his annual “ice-in” report of the freeze-over of Lake Wononscopomuc: “This date, Jan. 12, is accordingly taken as the “ice-in” date for the winter of 1964-65. At the time of this writing, this last remaining (50 yard diameter) hole has shrunk to some 15 yards in diameter, and virtually all day long is literally filled solidly with ducks (mostly mallards and coots -- so far as can be determined.) Perhaps the number of birds present is responsible for keeping the hole open during the sub-zero weather for the last few nights.”

CANAAN — About 300 people were present at the Adam home on the Lower Road last Sunday afternoon to pay final tribute to Dr. Forbes Sampson Adam, who died last Thursday night, Jan. 14, in St. Francis Hospital in Hartford, after a short illness.

25 years ago — January 1990

LAKEVILLE — The Northwest Connecticut Older Woman’s League hopes to open a food bank here in March. The store, OWL’s Kitchen, will be staffed by volunteers, some of whom may be people served by the food bank.

SHARON — Former First Selectman Bill Wilbur wants the Planning and Zoning Commission to investigate designating the entire town as “open space.” It would allow some residents to have open land assessed at a lower tax rate.

These items are taken from decades-old Lakeville Journals and contain original spellings and phrases.