One of the earliest photographs of Norfolk was taken in 1878 from the location of the present post office. It shows a barren village center. Visible in the background are familiar Norfolk landmarks: the Congregational Church and Whitehouse. On the far right is the stone building, still standing, that housed the Norfolk Bank. To its left, the building known as the Bellows Block would be moved to Maple Avenue to make way for the construction of the Royal Arcanum building on Station Place in 1904. In the foreground, the Norfolk Depot welcomed the visitor arriving in town by the newly constructed railroad. The Connecticut Western Railroad was chartered in 1868 to run from Hartford west to the New York state line in Millerton. Ground was broken in Winsted in 1869. The route to Norfolk brought the line through Grantville in southeast Norfolk to Litchfield Road and north to the town center. From there the tracks ran around Haystack and Bald Mountains on the way to East Canaan. 

Text by —Ann Havemeyer
Photo Courtesy of the Norfolk Historical Society