• Inside the Yale Norfolk Summer School of Art

    A season of student and community activity By Patricia Platt For over 80 years, the Ellen Battell Stoeckel Trust has endowed Yale University’s summer music and art programs in Norfolk. The renowned Yale Norfolk School of Art opens the 2026 summer season on May 23, before the Norfolk Chamber Music Festival begins, and shares its […]

  • Trio Revives Local Farmers Market

    Northwest Farm to Fork launches at Norbrook By Andra Moss When Devin Grosso and her husband moved to Norfolk in 2024, she was disappointed to learn that the town’s farmers market had permanently closed just the year before. However, a chance meeting at the Botelle School garden with Lisa Auclair, who had managed the Norfolk […]

  • Tracing the Dudley Legacy

    Family history and the truth behind Dudleytown By Jude Mead The Dudley name, with roots stretching back to 14th-century England, carries with it a long and often dramatic history. For Susan Dudley of Winchester, that legacy has been a lifelong source of curiosity—particularly her family’s connection to Dudleytown, the long-abandoned settlement hidden within Cornwall’s Dark […]

  • Cultivars, Nativars and Natives: The Lowdown

    by Susannah Wood It’s May and gardening is in full swing. At nurseries and on gardening sites, beginners and enthusiasts often encounter plants labelled “cultivar” or “nativar,” as well as “native.” What is the difference between a cultivar and a nativar? If someone wants to support local ecosystems and biological diversity, are nativars a good […]

  • Noteworthy Natives: Arrowwood Viburnum

    By Jill Chase For some, a mass of viburnums in bloom on the woodlands edge rivals the beauty of any formal garden around. The fresh white flowers on green foliage let you know that the spring garden season is well and truly on. There are several good varieties of viburnum—some produce blooms like snowballs, while […]

  • A Town Hall Treat for Pollinators

    The Norfolk Nature Alliance sponsored a student native plant garden project at Town Hall. The Northwestern Regional 7 Agricultural Education Program/FFA arrived on a sunny Sunday to install the donated native shrubs and perennials.

  • Birds Now

    A view on the prose and poetry of spring By Cheryl Heller As I write, the red-winged blackbirds are partying outside my window. Goldfinches, in their bright almost-summer feathers, make yellow polkadots in the dogwood that will flower any day. The phoebe (or her daughter) who has nested on our hanging porch light for the […]

  • Happiness Is …

    Smiles and squeals greeted “Farmer John” Coston as he surprised the Merrymakers group of kindergarten and first-graders with a lamb visit at the Norfolk Library’s after-school program on March 23. Cuties and lambs—need we say more?

  • Greenwoods Puppet Festival Returns to Norfolk Library

    By Bina ThomsonThe Greenwoods Puppet Festival returns to Norfolk for a third exciting showcase of puppet magic. Children’s Librarian and Event Coordinator Eileen Fitzgibbons, who has coordinated the previous two festivals, is busy fine-tuning this year’s offerings. In addition to a full day of performances, a puppetry workshop for adults will also be offered. Festivities […]

  • Botelle Beat

    Power Goals and WIN Time Personalize Learning at Botelle By Lauren Valentino One of Botelle School’s SOAR expectations is to Achieve Your Goals. We believe that when students know their goals—what they are learning, why and what success looks like—they are more engaged and motivated. They are partners in the learning process and own their […]

  • Courtney Maum’s Comedic Take on Capitalism

    On June 2nd, Norfolk author Courtney Maum launches her new novel, “ALAN OPTS OUT” (Little Brown) at the Norfolk Library in conversation with WAMC radio’s Sarah LaDuke. The book is a comedy about an ad exec who bombs the biggest pitch of his career and decides to move into a backyard playhouse, opt out of […]

  • “You Shall Not Pass!”

    Gandalf and the state Department of Transportation have spoken. Mountain Road at Westside Road is now closed through November for the Spaulding Brook bridge replacement project. Traffic is being detoured off Route 44 via Westside Road. Cars can still reach the ball fields along the short stretch of Mountain Road.

Articles

Board of Selectman April Meeting

By Ruth Melville Because of the Covid pandemic, the Cemetery Committee, which oversees Norfolk’s three municipal cemeteries—Grantville, Pond Town and South Norfolk—hasn’t met in over two years. At their April 6 meeting, the Board of Selectmen (BoS) appointed Linda Perkins to replace on the committee Pete Mulville, who died last July. Also on the committee […]

Botelle Students Swim into “The Little Mermaid, Jr.” to Waves of Applause

By Kelly Kandra Hughes The Botelle Elementary School PTO had one goal in mind when they decided to stage a production of The Little Mermaid Jr. the first weekend in April – to provide positive experiences for the children. As an audience member opening night, I can unequivocally attest they not only met their goal, […]

Living with History at the Wilcox Tavern

This Old Norfolk House This is Part 2 of this history. Part 1 can be found here: https://nornow.org/2022/04/12/the-wilcox-tavern-house/ By Michael Selleck The era of the Wilcox Tavern had come to an end with the death of the widow Wilcox in 1815. Her children were all established in their own lives and her son was ready […]

Honoring Our Military Heroes

Two names to be added to memorial remembrances this year By Brian Hutchins Have you noticed that the plaques of the World War I monument at Memorial Green have been missing? The Norfolk Veterans Affairs Office, with help from all veterans in town, are adding a name to the memorial plaque this year, and also […]

Farmers Market Makes Plans for the Future

New generation of market planners needed for continuity Text by Jude MeadPhoto by Lisa Auclair As the weather warms and gardens get planted, thoughts naturally turn to the Norfolk Farmers Market. For the past 16 springs, the community has looked forward to the excitement of opening day, knowing the season will bring plenty of fresh […]

Well-Known Norfolk Author Publishes Her First Memoir

Text by Patricia PlattPhoto courtesy of Courtney Maum Norfolk’s acclaimed author, Courtney Maum, will launch her first memoir, The Year of the Horses, at the Norfolk Library on May 3, 2022, at 5:30 p.m. During the event, she and author Elisa Altman will explore how Maum’s love of horseback riding helped her regain physical and […]

Grassroots Group Continues Opposition to New Asphalt Plant in Canaan

Organization has new name and new funding By John Coston Residents fighting a proposed asphalt plant in East Canaan have a new name, a broader mission and a dedicated funding source.  The Blackberry River Valley Protection Alliance, Inc., (BRVPA) is the new name for Stop the Asphalt Plant (STAP). With a wider focus and newfound […]

Meet Jen Pfaltz: The New Manager of the Norfolk Hub

A Fresh Face in Station Place Text by Patricia PlattPhoto by Kelly Kandra Hughes After four years in operation, the Hub has a new manager, Jen Pfaltz. “When the Hub first opened, no one knew just what it would become,” said Dawn Whalen, the executive director of the Norfolk Foundation. “Since then the Hub has […]

The Norfolk Community Art Space Is Coming Back at Botelle School

Art for Everyone By Virginia Coleman-Prisco Trends come and go, but art endures. When Botelle School needed some upgrades in the 1990s, Norfolk community members decided to work together on a project that would benefit all of Norfolk, not just Botelle students. And so they created the Norfolk Community Art Space. According to former PTO […]

“No Mow May” Movement Wants to Protect Spring Habitats of Local Pollinators

It’s Only Natural By Kelly Kandra Hughes The Norfolk Conservation Commission, the Church of Christ and the Land Trust have a request this coming May: Please don’t mow your lawn! The initiative known as “No Mow May” is a growing movement across the United Kingdom and the United States. The reason behind it is simple—not […]

The Wilcox Tavern House

This Old Norfolk House Text By Michael SelleckPhoto Courtesy of the Norfolk Historical Society It’s probably not a good idea to fall in love with a house, but that’s exactly what I did when I first visited the Wilcox Tavern in 2016. I was searching for an 18th-century house because I was looking for a […]

Norfolk Child Care Celebrates a Decade of Learning and Fun

Caring for Our Most Precious Assets By Colleen Gundlach A lot has changed since Donna Adams opened her Norfolk Child Care (NCC) nine years ago, but the basic tenets on which the center was built have remained consistent. Adams says the main focus of guiding each child toward independence and preparing them for preschool will […]