When the railroad was constructed in Norfolk, it was necessary to build several crossings, such as the bridge over Litchfield Road seen in the background of this photograph. The house in the foreground, still standing opposite the entrance to Mountain Road, was the home of postmaster Leo Curtiss and called Twin Willows. The railroad route ran along the west side of Litchfield Road. Although surveyors had originally routed the tracks across the Village Green as the most direct route to Station Place, Rev. Joseph Eldridge, pastor of the Church of Christ, argued successfully that the railroad would ruin a beautiful park and make Norfolk a less desirable place to live. Trains therefore crossed Litchfield Road on the bridge south of Twin Willows and proceeded north behind the houses on the east side of the Green. They then passed under Greenwoods Road at the entrance to Maple Avenue before arriving at the station.

—Ann Havemeyer

Photograph courtesy of the Norfolk Historical Society.