Turning Back The Pages Jan. 6

Dear Readers: Sadly, once again, there is no “100 years ago� in this column because the microfilm roll of 1911 is missing from the library’s collection.

75 years ago — January 1936

SALISBURY — Raymond Knickerbocker, Walter Matheson and Miss Ethel Matheson went to New Haven on Sunday.

CANAAN — The vacant lot on Barlow Street is being prepared for automobile inspections. Trees are being cut down and the ground leveled. The location will be a permanent one and inspections will take place from time to time under the supervision of the state motor vehicle department.

SALISBURY — Miss Minnie L. Carroll resumed her duties at the Occy-Crystine Corp. on Thursday, after her recent illness.

LAKEVILLE — George H. Sylvernale is driving a new Olds Sedan.

50 years ago — January 1961

LAKEVILLE — A car that drove itself probably saved the garage of Paul Blackburn from burning up on Monday night. Roused from bed at about 11 p.m. by a blowing horn of a passing motorist, Blackburn discovered that his Volkswagen, parked in his garage, was on fire. In the meantime, the motorist, a policeman from New Paltz, N.Y., had backed two other parked cars from danger.

As Blackburn tried to move the burning car, it suddenly started to back out of the garage by itself, and kept going slowly toward the road. Blackburn managed to change its direction so that it hit a snowbank and stopped.

Meanwhile the fire department had been called but the motorist and car owner put the fire out by shoveling snow on it. An apparent short circuit started the fire and at the same time caused the starter to turn over. As the car was in reverse gear, it moved backward to leave the garage unharmed.

25 years ago — January 1986

Community Service, which lost its Lakeville store in a fire last week, will again sell paint, hardware and supplies sometime next week out of the Farnam Road building formerly used by Energy Resources and the Lake-ville Variety Store, according to company President Turnure.

First Selectman Charlotte Reid recalls that her grandfather, E.W. Spurr, headed the Lakeville-based company until it was purchased by Community Service in 1929.

FALLS VILLAGE — The great cat controversy seems to have settled down in Falls Village, according to Raymond Pomaski, chairman of the Planning and Zoning Commission.

Mr. Pomaski told the commission that a fence has been erected around the shelter for aged cats and that a feline roundup is now underway.

Taken from decades-old Lake-ville Journals, these items contain original spellings and phrases.