In the mid to late 1800s, thousands of tourists took the New Haven and Northampton Railroad to Southwick Ponds to escape the summer heat and have a good time. Special trains stopped at the lake during the summer tourist season. In 1878, railroad officials, looking to capitalize on the growing popularity of the lake, announced their intention to build a handsome hotel on their grove near Middle Pond. The railroad purchased additional land in Southwick in 1879, on which they constructed a $6,000 dining and dancing pavilion. The railroad formally dedicated its new two-story pavilion on August 16, 1879. (In 1879, officials estimated that some 40,000 people would visit Southwick Ponds during the summer tourist season.) The Railroad Hotel at Southwick Ponds opened circa 1880. R. V. Cooley managed the hotel for the railroad. The hotel faced Middle Pond and was just a few short rods from the original location of what would become the railroad's Congamond Station. The hotel opened on a seas...

    THE INDIVIDUALS (chronologically by date of birth)   FRED L. ADAMS November 3, 1856 - March 24, 1944   AUGUSTUS S. WENTWORTH  February 26, 1860 - January 19, 1927 CHARLES FRED GOWEN September 6, 1861 - June 3, 1914 FLORENCE “FANNIE” (JORDAN) (WENTWORTH) (BATCHELDER) (WALLACE) TIBBETTS  August 12, 1867 - 1953 HARVEY EARLE ADAMS May 21, 1881 - December 21, 1918 CHESTER ARTHUR EMMONS February 5, 1882 - January 10, 1965 NELLIE ARLETTA (WENTWORTH) (ADAMS) WELCH September 20, 1890 - September 23, 1988 VICTOR STANLEY GOWEN SR. November 15, 1897 - December 9, 1961 FRANKLIN KING HURD April 4, 1901 - July 23, 1965 GRACE MABEL (JONES) (GOWEN) HURD September 7, 1902 - December 1962 PIERRE L. BLUTEAU September 30, 1909 - (body found March 13, 1975) CHARLES AUGUSTUS ADAMS November 28, 1910 - January 26, 1987 ALMEDA FRANCES (ADAMS) (TREW) HURTEAU April 2, 1916 - March 13, 1997 EDMUND "PHILLIP" LADD BADGER September 28, 1917 -  December 1, 1951 LAURA MAY (ADAMS) (...

 A sheriff noticed a late model car parked at a turnout in Tolland, Massachusetts, on Saturday, August 10, 1963. On Monday, the sheriff saw that the car had not moved, so he took the vehicle's registration and notified town officials. Selectman George Wolford checked the car at dusk. In the glove compartment, he found two suicide notes. Massachusetts State Police, Tolland residents, and members of the Tunxis Club searched the area. Joseph Clark of Burnt Hill Road found the body of a man in the woods about 50 feet from Route 57 near New Boston Road. Papers on the man identified him as 30-year-old Robert C. Ford of 157 Marshall Street, Torrington, Connecticut. He shot himself with a .45, believed to be a Colt. Robert's family, more than likely his wife, the former Dorothy Evelyn Webb, reported him missing on August 9. Robert was a salesman for Prudential Life Insurance Company. He was also a musician performing as part of The Four Specs. Robert served in the United States Navy be...

Southwick's Board of Selectmen held a special town meeting in Consolidated School's auditorium at 7:30 p.m. on December 20, 1950. Articles up for vote included authorizing the board to purchase roughly 10 acres of land on College Highway from the heirs of the late Walter Stenstrom to expand the town's cemetery. Walter's mother, Johanna Marie ("Maria"), his younger sister, Margit, and his older brother, Edward, had no use for the property since they lived in New York. Back on September 15, Edward visited Walter's home. Not finding his brother in the house, he checked the barn outback and saw his brother's body hanging from the rafters. The medical examiner estimated that Walter had been dead for about six hours. He ruled the cause of death as suicide by hanging. Walter was only 47. The vote to expand the cemetery passed. (The sale did not include Walter's house and barn.) In 1949, Walter's wife, Sophie Rose (Simcak), filed for divorce. Sophie cl...