captions, page 1:
Old style-ish base, socks and footwear
Sean "Nails" Connor waits for the throw while a Boston Union player hustles around third.
Jennifer Owen plays the fiddle in between at-bats. Linda Lemmon photos.
captions, page 4:
The Woodstock Hilltoppers (Courtesy photo)
Bats behind the backstop.
Blank chalkboard (scoreboard).
Jesse "Pillbox" Owen pitches, underhanded. The burlap backstop is held up by sticks.
Kinder,
gentler
'base ball'
By Linda Lemmon
Town Crier Editor
WOODSTOCK — “It’s a purer version of base ball,” was how Sean “Nails” Connor described vintage base ball.
The Woodstock Hilltoppers are a vintage base ball team. Vintage base ball follows kinder, gentler rules from the 1860s.
Despite the heat the Woodstock Hilltoppers took on the Boston Union base ball team. No one was keeping score on the chalkboard on the table this time. Kinder, gentler indeed — there’s no arguing. Players have nicknames because in the 1860s it was rude to call someone by his first name. And your teammates pick your nickname — you don’t. Competition is way down the list. Joking around and fun are high on the list.
The boundaries were marked by old time American flags. One player was barefoot. The ball is softer than a modern ball. The bats are skinnier. And you can catch the ball on one bounce. There are no gloves.
Two hands means two outs. Spectators are “cranks.” The “backstop” is a piece of burlap held up by sticks. The pitching is underhanded.
And yes, English majors, base ball as two words was correct in the 1860s.
For Connor it all started in the early 2000s when he attended a vintage base ball game in Hartford on the 4th of July. “I saw that and said to myself ‘that’s really cool’.” Later he attended an open house and joined a team that played on Saturdays. That team dissolved in 2010. He founded the Woodstock Hilltoppers in 2014. He had played Little League when he was young. No high school or college base ball.
His son, Seamus “Spider” Connor and his daughter Claribel “Scribbles” Connor, are members of the team.
Why does he like it? “It’s unusual. People who like history.” He added, “You do your best and people don’t get into arguments.”
The season runs from early April through September, sometimes into October.
Jennifer “Cleanup” Owen and her husband Jesse “Pillbox” Owen were playing Aug. 6 on their 23rd anniversary. Between innings Jennifer played the fiddle. She made parts of the uniforms and some of the hats, including the pillbox style had her husband wears.
The team’s next home game is at 11 a.m. Sept. 24 in the Woodstock Common across from Roseland Cottage.
Connor said they are always interested in players and in spectators. He can be reached by cell phone: 617-943-2717, email:
Team members include: Sean “Nails” Connor, Seamus “Spider” Connor, Claribel “Scribbles” Connor, Steve “Soles” Bernard, Mike “Anvil” Johnson, Tom “Tomcat” Morris, Jennifer “Cleanup” Owen, Jesse “Pillbox” Owen, Sam “Flame” Hanson, Dave “Goose” Macuga, James “Sweet Baby” Flynn, Oliver “Chit Chat” MacFadden, Adrienne “Meatball” Owen, Jared “Diamond” Palumbo, Mike “Mozart” Palumbo, Scott “Spaghetti” Ciprari and Josh Rilla (no nickname, hasn’t played this year.)
..
The following charges were listed in the Putnam Police Department logs. The people charged are innocent until proven guilty in court. The Town Crier will publish dispositions of cases at the request of the accused. The dispositions must be accompanied by the proper documentation. The Putnam Police Department confidential Tip Line is 860-963-0000.
July 26
Daniel Person, 55, South Main Street, Putnam; disorderly conduct.
July 29
Jaldeir Cezar De Paula, no age listed, Powhattan Street, Putnam; operating without a license.
..
Cause of fire
undetermined
PUTNAM — The cause of a minor exterior fire at Pomfret Street home has been classified as undetermined pending further investigation, according to Deputy Fire Marshal Scott Belleville.
July 25 a neighbor smelled smoke and noticed flames the side porch of 224 Pomfret St. The neighbor and good Samaritan was able to extinguish the flames using two fire extinguishers from his home while his wife called 911. As fire crews arrived, they found that most of the fire had been extinguished, investigating further to confirm that there were no hidden fires, and all hot spots were thoroughly wet down.
An investigation revealed the fire began between the porch railing and the homes exterior siding. The cause remains in question. A resident reported burning a beehive above where the fire was located at 11 the evening before but it’s unlikely it could have smoldered for that long. All adult residents are cigarette smokers and cigarette butts were found in numerous locations around the exterior of the home. All contributing factors create a reasonable doubt surrounding the cause. Thus, the fire has been classified as undetermined.
If anyone has any information concerning this incident, they’re asked to contact Deputy Fire Marshal Scott Belleville at (860) 963-6800 X112.
Scott E. Belleville CFEI, Deputy Fire Marshal; Cell 860-336-7054;
.
Javin Catherine Hammond prides herself in the fact that take whatever she is given and make something special out of it.
And that is what the Putnam native is planning to do at Putnam Science Academy as the school’s new director of Dance.
“We’re here and we’re going to build,” she said. “You have to start somewhere. It’s going to have to evolve. The goal is to get some kids who want to go on to dance either professionally or in college, or just want a good education and want to continue dancing during the day and be part of a great team.
“I don’t know how it’s going to evolve but I know there is a lot of opportunity to do different things here and in the world of dance. And I am excited about that.”
Hammond — whose extensive resume includes performance, choreography, competition judging, and education — will teach dance classes at the school and is looking to bring in dancers to form a team. The construction of an on-campus dance studio is in the final stages.
“Putnam Science is known for having these wonderful and elite athletic programs,” she said, “and these athletes can do a basic dance class, at the very least, for an Arts credit. I have awareness of sports science and yoga and stretching, so none of those things can hurt.
“It would be really cool to start a dance team. Can I just walk in and say ‘OK, you dance, you dance, you dance’? No. We probably don’t have that. So, I’m going to have to actively find dancers who want a private-school education but also are interested in going to the next step, whether it’s a college dance program or whatever the case may be.”
And that especially is where Hammond, a former member of the Connecticut Sun dance team and cruise ship dancer, wants to help. She knew early on in her high-school years that she wanted to get into some kind of dance major, but she was the only one there taking that path and her guidance counselors were unequipped to really help her.
“It’s different than guiding a student through the regular admissions process,” said Hammond, who also owns her own studio (Taylor Studios in Danielson) and is the assistant director at another (Cathy Taylor School of Dance in Auburn, Mass., where she started training when she was 3 years old). “But now I have helped my students through that. I have experience sending kids the way they want to go.
“Some dancers right out of high school just want to go and audition, and I know the avenues and what would be a good way to start for each dancer once I work with them. I have connections in colleges. It’s not the end-all-be-all, but it’s to say maybe they’re a good fit for commercial dancing and L.A., or they’re more of theater because they can sing and should go more the New York route. That’s the guidance I wish I had, and that I want to give to young dancers.”
Hammond’s former students have been New England Patriots cheerleaders, Boston Celtics dancers, worked on cruise ships and for professional dance companies and theaters around the world. She also stressed that this endeavor is not an attempt to take dance students away from their studios, but rather an opportunity for them to have a private-school experience and supplement their dancing during the day, then continue at their regular studios in the evening.
Hammond, a mother of three young boys, envisions introductory classes in which students learn the fundamentals of ballet, jazz, and modern dance, and also broader dance-movement classes. And as the program builds, opportunities for specific trainings will become available.
The dance team would do community appearances, perform at PSA basketball games, and eventually go to regional and national competitions. “What I’m going to be doing here is what I’ve been doing for years,” said Hammond, who added she intends to host open houses and offer free master classes in the school’s new studio. “It’s just an extension of all the other dance things that I do and love.”
By Stephen Nalbandian
Sports Information Director
Putnam Science Academy
.