Another fine program presented by one of our members was enjoyed at the Feb-ruary meeting. A capacity gathering viewed the slides of historic houses in the collection of Dorothy Woodward. Many homes in Our Town were shown and the most interesting aspect is that all of these are still standing, though most have been altered or added to. All homes shown in this program were e-rected during the first 100 years of Stoughton's independent existence. The oldest house represented was built in 1734 and now stands at 105 Canton Street, opposite the Immaculate Conception Church. Little tidbits of information regarding the homes or events occuring during the researching of them enhanced Mrs. Woodward's presentation. Our sincere thanks to Dottie and other members of the Historic Houses Committee.

FROM THE CALENDAR: March, 1692: Chief Justice Wm Stoughton presided at witchcraft trials; March, 1845: First railroad into Stoughton; March, 1874: Public Library opened in Morton Square; MARCH 6, 1976: MISS STOUGHTON PAGEANT will be held in high school auditorium; MARCH 15, 1976: Bob Benson will present movies of 1975-76 Bicentennial celebrations at regular meeting of Historical Society.

AN UNDERSTATEMENT . . . Recently, the British delegate to the UN said, referring to our Bicentennial: "You are celebrating — and we are tolerating -- certain events which occurred 200 years ago and, I hasten to add, we now recognize as probably irreversible."

WE CONTINUE TO RECEIVE many gifts from members and other friends. Irene Brady has sent a Massachusetts Bay Tercentenary medal; Ken Healy has given a number of almanac(k)s, some from pre-Revolutionary War days; rare photos and a lorgnette have come from Helen Pye; Dorothy Woodward has presented us with a wall case believed to have been first used in Dr. Faxon's office; some electric Christmas candles for our windows are the gifts of the Alan Molins and the Dario Bernasconis. Through the kindness of Eddie Ivaldi we have received some interesting items from the Bennett family and Wilfred Hooper's gift is a doll house with 100-year-old pictures on the walls. In response to our suggestion that we can use a cash register, Jacey's Restaurant (in the square) has loaned us a vintage model along with an illuminated display case. Mr. Berdos has also given us another useful display case. Many thanks to these friends of Stoughton.

IMPORTANT: The Board of Trustees and other officers of the Society will not meet on the first Tuesday in March. Rather, they are requested to meet at 6:45 on our regular meeting night, March 15.

HISTORIC FACT #4973: Envelopes for letters did not come into use until 1839.

YOUR SOCIETY STILL NEEDS folks to volunteer as hosts and hostesses during our regular open hours on Wednesday afternoons, and on Saturdays, Your duties will be light but important and you will be doing a service to Our Town. Call Ed or John Stiles at 344-2494 or 344-2249.

YOUR OFFICERS and yhe House Committee are preparing a fashion show on filmstrip and tape cassette covering 200 years of authentic fashion. The show was purchased from Butterick Publishing and covers the period from 1776 up to the 1970s. Not only does the program answer "What did American women wear?", it explains why they wore what they did and details fashion changes during the past twenty decades. We will view this program in the Spring.

A SURPRISE DRAWING found Eddie Ivaldi holding a box of note paper February 16.

GERANIUMS WILL BE SOLD again this year. We will offer RED ONLY for $ 1.40 a pot. An order blank will be in the April Newsletter for advance orders. The date of the sale will be announced at that time. Please remember us.

NEXT MEETING will be on March 15 at 7:30 p.m. (officers and trustees at 6:45). Program: movies of bicentennial celebrations, presented by Bob Benson. One of our members coming forward ... how about you? We are interested.

IN THE BEGINNING . . . there were no bathrooms in a house, but they were never missed, for no one in that era ever took a bath. Many ailments were ascribed to contact with water and washing with water was limited to the hands and face. This prejudice was extended to the drinking of water, which people generally avoided as a beverage. Babies were given beer and cider as soon as they were able to toddle. AND, IN THE BEGINNING . . . very few people cared to drink milk, for there was the general impression that it caused various diseases? and maybe it did, as it was handled in very unsanitary ways. Milk was peddled from house to house in those days and sold from open buckets at a penny a quart.

WE CONTINUE TO RECEIVE GROUPS during our regular open hours. Many Cub Scout, Girl Scout and Brownie troops have visited recently; and the Fieldbrook Young Woman's Club held their most recent meeting in our rooms as our guests. Other interested residents drop in frequently, giving the House Committee workers an excuse to interrupt their labors for a while.

INTRIGUING NAMES from old cook books: March meeting bread, kale cannon, ladies' cabbage, oatmeal soup, cheats, corn rabbit, cucumber catsup, eggernoggin, McKinley

flannel cakes, nuns, pork pockets, giffles, nasturtium salad, washday soup. And with that last one, ye ol' Ed lost interest.) Bon appetit.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY, STOUGHTON                    HAPPY BIRTHDAY, AMERICA                           HAPPY BIRTHDAY