• The chicken who wanted to be a star and other tales from a norfolk movie set

    By Andra Moss Secrets and small towns don’t often pair well, and Norfolk is a small town. Yet, for eight weeks this summer, a crew of nearly 100 people quietly transformed Tim and Paula Webster’s 1908 Norfolk farmhouse into a film set for a feature-length production, all the while staying under the local radar.  It […]

  • great blue heron rookeries

    working together to provide sustainable breeding habitats By Jude Mead Great Blue Herons are a familiar sight in Norfolk and are one of the largest of all North American herons, standing up to four feet tall with a wingspan of close to six feet. They are most noticeable in flight as they soar across the […]

  • Norfolk Then…

    Tennis at Town Hall? The building we know as Town Hall was originally the Eldridge Gymnasium, built in 1892. Located within easy walking distance of hotels and boarding houses in Norfolk at the turn of the last century, the Gymnasium was a popular gathering place for both residents and visitors. People played croquet on the lawn […]

  • Looking Back Over the Years

    The End of an Era for Norfolk Now By Colleen Gundlach After 10 years and over 30 issues, Ruth Melville has put on her Norfolk Now editor’s hat for the last time. In June, the paper marked the end of an era with the publication of Ruth’s final issue as one of the executive editors […]

  • A Look Into Norfolk’s Past

    Exhibit Explores Pupin’s Haven of Happiness on Westside Road By Patricia Platt The Norfolk Historical Museum graces Norfolk’s village green with the reserve and understated elegance of a New Englander well worth getting to know. Visitors who step inside will find exhibits that tell the stories of the town’s past, often with intriguing ties to […]

  • Norfolk Past and Present

    The Summer Chapel Eases Gracefully Into Its 130 Years By Elizabeth Bailey Ayreslea Rowland Denny began attending services at The Church of the Transfiguration in Norfolk in 1939 on the eve of World War II. A New Yorker, she was a student at the Chapin School in New York City, but her family had been […]

  • Church Steeple Shines Once Again

    Local dignitaries and friends of Norfolk’s Church of Christ Congregational gathered on Saturday, May 25, to formally celebrate the completion of the steeple restoration project. The Rev. Erick Olsen thanked the community for supporting the years-long effort and welcomed everyone to enjoy a splendid cake featuring an image of the steeple.

  • Making the Native… Personal

    Cheryl Heller Builds a Wild Garden in Norfolk By Joe Kelly Gardens are best when they’re personal, argued the late Fred McGourty, who remains Norfolk’s best- known plantsmen. McGourty’s 1989 book, “The Perennial Gardener,” recounts the gardens he and his wife, Mary Ann, created at Hillside, their home near Dennis Hill State Park. Were he […]

  • This Old Norfolk House

    Stevens House By Joe KellyWhen our Puritan forebears arrived on these shores in the early 1600s, they were no doubt surprised todiscover how the traditional thatched roof cottages they knew from back home were no match for thewind and cold of a typical New England winter. But it would have likely surprised them even more […]

  • Can wildlife safely cross Norfolk’s Roads?

    By Shelley Harms Where are animals crossing Norfolk’s roads? Are they making it across? Is it possible to make theircrossings safer? Julia Rogers, Senior Land Protection Manager at the Housatonic Valley Association (HVA), helped agroup of interested Norfolk residents explore these questions at a training session sponsored by theNorfolk Land Trust on March 22 at […]

  • Great Mountain Forest’s New Executive Director Returns to His Connecticut Roots

    By David Beers Mike Zarfos started his new position as executive director of Great Mountain Forest (GMF) at the end ofFebruary. It has been a lively time for Zarfos and his family; in addition to moving from Washington,D.C., to Connecticut, they are expecting a baby in April. Zarfos grew up in Deep River, Conn., where […]

  • Norfolk Then…

    In the late 19th century, the arrival of every train at the depot on Station Place was widely anticipated.There were freight trains, milk trains and passenger trains unloading throngs of summer visitors. Theattractive station pictured here was built in 1898, replacing an earlier modest structure. Constructed ofnative granite, it was designed by Hill & Turner, […]

Articles

Norfolk Early Learning Center Celebrates 10-Year Milestone 

Supporting Norfolk’s Children Text By Jude MeadPhoto By Bailee Robinson When your work brings joy and you share a commitment to children, a decade can pass quickly, as Kailyn Nadeau and Paige Corey have discovered since opening the Norfolk Early Learning Center (NELC) in 2013. Nadeau grew up in Norfolk. She babysat, cared for children […]

Invasives: What To Do When Good Plants Go Bad

By Jill Chase  Here’s a little secret: not all plants are good guys. Some are very bad actors indeed. It’s not their fault; they were good plants minding their own business, growing in their own native habitat, until someone introduced them to our homeland. Here, with a climate that suited them and no native insects […]

Return of the Cranes 

It’s Only Natural Text By Shelley HarmsPhoto By Savage Frieze Some special summer Norfolk residents have returned from their winter sojourns in the south. Sandhill cranes have always migrated through Connecticut, stopping here briefly in spring and fall, but in Norfolk, two pairs have decided to stay for the summers. Last year, both pairs succeeded […]

Litchfield County Choral Union Call for Singers

Text By Jude MeadPhoto Courtesy of Harold Shapiro Local singers take note—the Litchfield County Choral Union (LCCU) is seeking voices to join them for the Aug. 19 season finale concert of the Norfolk Chamber Music Festival, featuring Mendelssohn’s jubilant symphony-cantata “Lobgesang (Hymn of Praise).”  Dr. Jeffrey Douma, professor of choral conducting at Yale’s Institute of […]

The Healing Nest Is Planning a Full Season of New Programs 

Around Station Place Text By Ruth MelvillePhoto Courtesy of The Healing Nest In the two years since Dianna Hofer took a leap and opened the Healing Nest in Station Place, she’s faced several challenges in running her fledgling business. The pandemic was a major one, of course, but also life intervened. She decided to accept […]

Tom Hodgkin and Tom Vorenberg

Saluting Norfolk’s Volunteers Text By Janet Gokay MeadPhoto By Jon Reideman The Norfolk Lions Club Ambulance may be on the small side, but its volunteers are remarkable for their dedication. Many of the ambulance’s 30 active volunteers sign up for a six-hour shift and, off-hours, use a system of two-way radios, pagers and emails to […]

The Buzz of Spring

Beekeeping in the Northwest Corner  By Avice Meehan The moment has come to embrace the dandelions in your lawn and all those early flowering plants and trees that attract some of the 378 species of wild bees that call Connecticut home—in addition to the beloved, nonnative honeybee that brings such golden sweetness into our lives. […]

“My Norfolk” Photo Contest Winner Announced 

Congratulations to Elizabeth Hilpman, winner of the Norfolk Photo Contest!  Her evocative photo of Tobey Pond was selected from over 220 submissions by judges—and distinguished local photographers—Savage Frieze, Katherine Griswold, Christopher Keyes, Christopher Little and Babs Perkins. The images were evaluated on how well they represented the theme of “My Norfolk” and the quality of […]

Seasonal Foraging

In Search of Spring Wild Edibles  By Tracy Hayhurst  While we eagerly await the first lettuces, spinach and arugula from the garden, Mother Nature has provided us with many nutrient-rich wild greens and herbs to sample now.  Stinging nettle, garlic mustard and dandelion, for example, are often maligned as weeds but can be used in […]

New Residence Awaits Arriving Summer Artists

Eldridge Barn renovation nearly complete Text By Andra Moss  Photo By Peter Chaffetz The Yale Norfolk School of Art is set to receive an impressive present for its 75th birthday in May. When the 26 students and seven faculty arrive in Norfolk on May 20, they will find a completely new residence building on the Ellen […]

Spring Snowstorm Surprise

By Russell Russ The first two weeks of March were fairly normal, with normal temperatures and even several days with snowfall. Due to this winter’s prevailing weather patterns, southern New England had not seen any big nor’easter-type storms. That all changed on March 13.  The storm began slowly with light snow showers during the day […]

Gas Spill Repercussions Month Five Months On

Disruptions, disputes and microbes By Joe Kelly Five months after a tanker truck crashed on Route 44, Norfolk continues to grapple with the impact of the 8,200-gallon spill that drenched the center of town. The disruption and dislocation that began in the early morning hours of Nov. 5, 2022, also continue for residents closest to […]