• Sweets on the Green

    A Decade of Decadent Desserts By Andra Moss How is your naughty versus nice rating? Those needing to influence Santa with an especially impressive treat should grab their stockings and head to the Norfolk Historical Society (NHS) for the 10th Annual Cake Auction on Saturday, Dec. 7.     Now a Norfolk holiday tradition, the event was […]

  • Artist Tom Burr Brings His Torrington Project to an End

    Performances celebrate studio closing By Stephen Melville Norfolk resident and artist Tom Burr organized a day of performances and exhibition at his studio in Torrington on Oct. 26, marking an end to what he has called “The Torrington Project.” For the past three and a half years, Burr has rented a vast—15,000 square foot—former industrial […]

  • New Meanings for a Monument

    Light Shines on the Memorial Green By Joe Kelly On Monday, Nov. 11, Veterans Day, a crowd of about 100 gathered for the rededication of Norfolk’s World War 1 memorial, artfully restored under the auspices of the Norfolk Community Association. It was sunny. Temperatures in the low ‘60’s. Another day of no rain. Everyone talked […]

  • Norfolk Then…

    This 1920s postcard shows Memorial Green just after the War Memorial, designed by Alfredo Taylor, was built. It was Taylor’s wife Minna who first proposed that a memorial “heroes grove” be planted on the small lot of land known as the Triangle opposite the Catholic Church. The lot had been left empty with the demolition […]

  • Restored war memorial to be celebrated on veterans day

    plaque now honors all who served By Patricia Platt A World War I monument, designed by Alfredo Taylor and erected on Norfolk’s Memorial Green in 1921, bears the inscription, “for those who gave and those who offered their lives for liberty, the people of Norfolk have built this monument and crowned it with the Liberty […]

  • NLT Tail Ablaze with Runners

    More than 120 runners enjoyed perfect fall weather as they wound their way through picturesque Barbour Woods in the 11th Annual Norfolk Land Trust Trail Race. Some chose to add a challenging loop over Haystack Mountain, while the half-marathoners just kept moving on up—topping out at over 2,000 feet of elevation gain. *photo by June […]

  • Can you spot the Real Curler?

    There was movie magic ice to be made, and the pros of the Norfolk Curling Club were the first to get the call. In October, NCC’s Jon Barbagallo, Lou Barbagallo, Rachel Barbagallo, Mark Walsh, Harvey Chalmers and Phill West were hired by a production company to make curling ice at a Rhode Island hockey rink […]

  • Norfolk Then…

    This 1917 photograph is a timely reminder of the long struggle fought by many dedicated women for basic civil liberties, including the right to own property, hold public office, sit on juries, participate in public assemblies and vote. The group of 25 suffragists—20 women and five men—gathered on the porch following their meeting with Congressman […]

  • 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 […]

Articles

Norfolk’s April 2018 Weather

Seventh Wettest April on Record  By Russell Russ  April is the transition month between winter and spring. It can have traits of both winter and spring, and that is what Norfolk saw this April. It was warm enough early in the month to end the maple syrup season in the Norfolk area, but the remainder […]

Closely Watched Budget Approved at Town Meeting

Botelle parents protest flatfunding of school By Wiley WoodPhotos by Bruce Frisch A large crowd of about 75 Norfolk residents gathered for the annual town meeting on May 13 in the Hall of Flags at Botelle School. Although normally a humdrum gathering at which the budget is passed with little comment, there has been more […]

Joe Hurst: “We Need to Pull Together”

By Gordon AndersonPhoto by Savage Frieze Joe Hurst lives on Mountain Road, in the last house before the road is absorbed into Great Mountain Forest. He says that every day when he turns the corner heading home, he is overcome with gratitude and delight at the miraculous quality of his life, or as he puts […]

Asphalt Plant in Canaan Raises Concerns

Outcome of lawsuit still uncertain By Colleen Gundlach The prospect of a new asphalt production facility in East Canaan has created controversy, pitting Ben Metcalf, whose colorful ads for driveway repair sprinkle the North Canaan landscape, against a group of concerned citizens and neighbors. Metcalf is currently suing the town of Canaan for turning away […]

Silent No More

Local photographer Christopher Little publishes his first thriller By Courtney Maum Affable, witty and generous with his time, local photographer and EMT volunteer Christopher Little is the last person Norfolkians would call “frightening,” and yet his new book, “Ever So Silent,” is one scary ride. The first in a series, this spiffy murder mystery focuses […]

Fishes & Loaves Food Pantry in Canaan Raising Money to Repair Pilgrim House

By Ruth MelvillePhoto by C. J. Sosna Since 1992, the Fishes & Loaves Food Pantry in Canaan has been abiding by its motto, “Feed the community you want to live in.” The pantry, part of the mission of the North Canaan Congregation Church, serves 70 families a week, mostly from Canaan, but they also welcome […]

African-American Civil War Soldier Remembered in Winsted

Righting a Historical Wrong By Wiley Wood The African-American community in northwestern Connecticut responded strongly to the call for volunteers during the Civil War, according to local historian Virginia Shultz-Charette, and at least seven black men from Winsted served in the Union Army. Until a few days ago, six of them had their names inscribed […]

Electric Bikes Take Off in Norfolk

By David BeersPhoto by David Beers On the evening of May 20 there were a bunch of cyclists going up hills in town while giggling—part of the ebike workshop at the Norfolk Hub, organized by West Lowe and Berkshire Bike and Board. The bicycles looked a bit different and certainly the cyclists were acting strange. […]

The Thin Red Line of Volunteers

Norfolk Lions Club Ambulance By Doug McDevittPhoto by Bruce Frisch The anticipated knock at the door was greeted with a quick step while the guests were greeted with smiles and the aroma of roast turkey, stuffing and fresh baked pies. Mouths were watering on both sides of the door as family and friends were reunited […]

Acupuncture for Horses? Of course!

Results-based alternative therapies for pets By Kelly Kandra Hughes Mexico, a horse with a big personality, wasn’t too sure about Dr. Andrew Flint, DVM, of Litchfield Hills Mobile Veterinary Clinic, the first time they met. Now, he greets Dr. Flint every time by sticking his head out of his stall and making all sorts of […]

Enriching Talent at Botelle

By Virginia Coleman-PriscoPhoto by Kailyn Nadeau          On Friday, May 3, Botelle Elementary School hosted its fourth annual Talent Show to a large and enthusiastic audience. Botelle parent and talent show producer Kailyn Nadeau pointed out how “great it is to see Norfolk residents who are without kids in the school attend the talent show and […]

Norfolk Farmers Market

A Proud History and a Bright Future By Jude MeadPhoto by Bruce Frisch When the farmers market began to make a slow comeback about 13 years ago on the West Coast and in urban areas, Norfolk’s Economic Development Commission took notice of the trend. They also paid attention to the clean food movement and saw […]