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North Branford Recognizes Sports Complex Namesakes with New Sign

To help honor a family's legacy of some major contributions shaping North Branford's sense of community, town leaders gathered three generations of the extended family of Earl and Burton Colter to help unveil a new sign that once again recognizes Park and Recreation's combined Memorial Field, Colter Little League Field and Reigeluth Tennis Courts at 654 Foxon Road.

The tri-named complex beside the North Branford high school/middle school campus first opened in 1963 with prominent signage and a ceremony hailing the new Parks and Recreation space on 10 acres, which was brought about at a cost of $85,000 at that time. The park includes Memorial Field (softball), named for all North Branford deceased war veterans; Reigeluth Tennis Courts, recognizing former New Haven Trap Rock chairman Ray J. Reigeluth for the company's assistance with helping to develop the parcel; and Colter Little League Field, in honor of brothers Burton C. Colter and Earl Colter for their contributions to supporting and promoting athletics in town.

The sign fell away over the decades and for many in town, the site simply became known as "Memorial" park. Last year, extended Colter family member Doug Harrison asked the Town Council, together with the Parks and Recreation Commission, to find a way to help residents recognize the names connected to the complex.

Town Manager Michael Paulhus remained in contact with Harrison as well as gathering information from his wife, Vicky Harrison, a granddaughter of Burton Colter, to learn more about the history connected to the naming of Colter Little League Field and information about the sign that used to stand at the site.

Paulhus said the timing was also right, as North Branford was entering into a town wide sign replacement program funded by existing tourism grant dollars.  In addition to a series of "welcome" signs, the program developed new town park signs, and the complex was added to the list. The first new town signs arrived and were installed in August.

On Wednesday, Oct. 3, Paulhus, together with North Branford Parks and Recreation Commission members John Onofrio and Michelle Provencher, Recreation Director Lauren Munro, Deputy Mayor Rose Marie Angeloni and Town Planner Carey Duques gathered with extended family members and descendants of Earl and Burton Colter for a brief ceremony to unveil the new sign.

"Without the commitment of the Recreation Commission and the Town Council this wouldn't have happened," said Paulhus. "But thanks to them it's all come together; and this is a great opportunity for us to showcase not just the court but the sign, to let everybody know it's here."

Paulhus also shared information from a July, 1963 newspaper article with a photo showing the original sign at the opening of the town's new playing fields and tennis courts. Paulhus said the article provided a  "...great history about how it all came together, and how proud this community was to dedicate the sign."

On Oct. 3, family members of both Colter brothers said they were delighted to see all of the names on the new sign, and also happy that the sign unveiling gave them a chance to catch up and reminisce. The group included one of Earl Colter's sons, Ralph Colter, who will be 96 next month. He talked a bit about his father and uncle, who both worked at the New Haven Trap Rock quarry (now Tilcon Connecticut Inc.) and contributed much to the town in the form of recreational baseball as well as other areas; such as founding North Branford Fife & Drum Corps. (now defunct) and even establishing a grange for local farmers.

"In 1920, North Branford was very primitive," said Ralph Colter. "We didn't have electricity in the houses or indoor plumbing. Both my father and my uncle moved here from New York in the city; so it was quite a contrast. They came here to work at Trap Rock, because after World War I, it was hard getting employment in New York."

Ralph Colter's grandson, Doug Colter, described the brothers' idea of a travel team – walking to games in other towns.

"After working all day at the quarry, the team would walk to North Guilford or walk to Wallingford, and come home in the dark," said Doug Colter.

Earl Colter's grandson, George Linsley, was a huge fan of the steam locomotives his grandfather ran and repaired at Trap Rock for 40 years.

"I ate lived and slept those steam engines," said Linsley. "He lived right across the street from the quarry, and I was there during the day watching those engines go up and down the yards [and] watching the big engine take it down the line to Juniper Point," said Linsley, who caught more than a few rides with his grandfather down to the point in Pine Orchard, Branford.

Vicky Harrison and her sister, Leslie Potter, recalled the extended family lived in homes near the quarry and the area which became the playing fields. They remember trees coming down and fields being readied for town recreational use.

"There were no schools here," said Potter. "I used to go play in the field when they bulldozed the trees."

Even before that time, Vicky Harrison recalls boarding her horse in some of the fields and playing in the area.

"We used to go sleigh riding on the hill where the Catholic church was," said Harrison.

Ralph Colter said the quarry was "very instrumental in filling in a lot of this land," to create the original sports complex. Potter noted the Colter brothers ran the town's first Little League baseball program together.

Vicky Harrison added that Burton Colter also served as prosecutor for the Town of North Branford and "...at one time, the town purchased Grandpa Colter a car for all he did for the town. Going back, the two Colter boys did so much for this town, both with sports and the Fife and Drum Corps, which became national champions, and starting the grange for farmers," said Harrison.

The extended family recently continued that legacy of giving back to North Branford, noted Harrison's daughter, Sandy Faulkner.

"They just gave the Harrison property -- all that land and trails -- to the town, because they wanted to preserve that for the town," said Faulkner, of her parents, Dudley and Vicky Harrison. "They had a farm there for years. So this stuff matters a lot to them."

According to a 2018 article provided by North Branford Land Conservation Trust president David Sargent to Connecticut Land Conservation Council here , the property is part of the 21.5-acre parcel now know as the Harrison Farm Preserve parcel off North Street. It includes over two miles of walking trails established by the Harrisons, and now under the stewardship of NBLCT as part of the preserve.