Twinning

In 1993, approaches were made to Newburgh Parish Council by Newburgh Town Council, Indiana, USA, with a view to creating a ‘sister’ or ‘twin’ township.

Comparisons were made of local geographical features (rivers, canals, mining etc), historical events (Civil War battles), and local industries (Pilkington, Leyland Motors in the UK, and Alcoa in the US), and it was agreed that a ‘twinning’ or ‘sisterhood’ bond would be feasible. Documents were duly signed in January 1994. (These may be seen with other artefacts in Newburgh C of E School).

Newburgh had a pair of signposts erected at the village boundaries, recognising the US twin town. These were formally ‘opened’ by Cllr Mrs Clare Gillard of Newburgh Parish Council, and Councilman Bernard Gene Aurand of Newburgh Town Council.

 

Unveiling the Newburgh sign

Over the years, visits and exchanges have been made, with various items signifying friendship and ‘twinning/sisterhood’ passing between the two communities. Examples can be seen at Newburgh C of E School.

In 2003, Newburgh, Indiana celebrated the 200th anniversary of its Town Charter, registering the formal creation of a township called Sprinklesburg, later re-named Newburgh.

To commemorate the anniversary, Newburgh Parish Council sent a congratulatory illustrated address, which was delivered by Cllr Reg Porter.

A delegation from Newburgh Town Council in turn visited Newburgh to take part in the 2004 celebrations to mark the 700th anniversary of the granting of a Market Charter to the village

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Visiting delegation 2004

The delegation included Councilman Bill Kavanaugh (Council President), Councilwoman Mrs Anne Rust Aurand (Past Council President), and Town Attorney Tom Bodkin, who presented the village with a congratulatory address from Newburgh, Indiana, and another from the Indiana State Assembly.

Little Old Dam Band

Also taking part in the celebrations was a group of musicians from Newburgh, Indiana’s Old Dam Community Band, performing as The Little Old Dam Jazz Band under their President & Founder, Dan Schultz. http://www.olddamband.com

Newburgh Indiana Town Council

In 2006, as a guest of our twin town, Newburgh Parish Council Chairman Reg Porter attended the 'Sister Cities' 50th Anniversary Annual Conference in Washington DC. The visit also included attending the move of Newburgh Town Council to its new Town Hall.

For further information on Newburgh, Indiana click www.newburgh.org and www.historicnewburgh.org