• 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

Curtain Rises on a New Act at Infinity Hall

Dan Hincks sells business to GoodWorks Entertainment By Ruth MelvillePhoto by Bruce Frisch After months of uncertainty and rumors in town, it was announced in early April that owner Dan Hincks had sold Infinity Music Hall and Bistro in Norfolk and Hartford to Goodworks Entertainment, a concert promotion company based in Fairfield, Conn.  After extensive […]

Town Sets Lean Budget for Coming Year

Tax rates will rise By Wiley Wood Spring is when the bean counters at Town Hall reveal the budget for the coming year—and its consequences for taxpayers. This year the news is mixed. Town spending will go down in 2019-20, and the overall taxes the town will collect will drop by almost 3 percent. But […]

What Birds Can Be Found in Norfolk?

Volunteers in Connecticut Bird Atlas Project Collect Evidence By Shelley HarmsPhoto by Bruce Frisch: great blue herons nesting It is spring, and birds are raising their families, but which birds are bringing up babies here in Norfolk? The bird atlas project currently underway will reveal which birds are enjoying Norfolk alongside us.  Connecticut’s first atlas […]

Spring Cleaning for a Summer Garden

Small Seeds Need Volunteers to Help Them Grow By Virginia Coleman-PriscoPhoto by Hilary VanWright  On the afternoons of April 10and 11, The Norfolk After School Program (NASP) hosted a Community Garden Clean Up at the Botelle School Community Garden located in the southwest corner of the building.   Led by Botelle’s school nurse and healthy eating advocate, […]

Zinke’s Homegrown Knows a Thing or Two About Food Trends

Keeping the Family Farm Sustainable By Jeremy Withnell Photo by Bruce Frisch Bruce Zinke, owner of Zinke’s Homegrown, a farm and business just next door in Canaan, puts down his gardening shears and states, “You know, I’ve never had a full-time job in my whole life.” It quickly becomes clear that this doesn’t mean he hasn’t worked […]

New Salvage Shed at Transfer Station

Shed will offer opportunity for sharing By Kelly Kandra Hughes As a town of only 1,600 people, Norfolk has become a throw-away society. In 2018, Norfolk residents generated over 1,000 tons of waste. Included in this number is municipal solid waste (i.e., our garbage) from residential, commercial, and industrial sources, as well as bulky waste […]

When the Heart Speaks, the Lion Roars

Local Lions Club members plan medical mission trip By Doug McDevitt  We are living in a uniquely and distinctly contentious era. One only has to open the pages of the paper, tune into any network news broadcast, peruse your favorite blog or dare to voice an opinion at a favorite watering hole or eatery to […]

New Artisans’ Shop Opens in Canaan

Woodworking, iron works, yard art and more By David BeersPhoto by Bruce Frisch Jesse Morey wanted to experiment in the world of retail after 20 years of self-employment in construction. He opened a pop-up shop across the street from Stop & Shop in Canaan this past December to sell a variety of items made locally […]

The Psychology of Stuff

On April 15, as part of the Mondays at the Hub series, with a record-breaking 22 people in attendance, Dr. Kelly Kandra Hughes gave an engaging presentation on how to simplify one’s life by reducing one’s possessions. Working from the evaluations and feedback, Hughes will be hosting another session on getting rid of stuff later […]

Zoning Approves Agribusiness Proposal

By Wiley Wood Husky Meadows Farm applied for and was granted a special permit to operate a five-bedroom country inn on its Doolittle Drive property. At a public hearing on March 12 before the Planning and Zoning Commission, farm manager Tracy Hayhurst described the proposed inn as a place for weekend-long retreats that would combine […]

Artist and Arborist

By David BeersPhoto by Bruce Frisch Paul-Robert Blackman is very excited about his recent move to Norfolk. Blackman grew up in Torrington with a family that is intimately involved with the arts and the trades. Playing music, acting in community theater and creating art were part of growing up. Also part of growing up was […]

It’s Spring! Animals Awake From Hibernation

By Jude Mead Spring is the time to celebrate more sunshine and warmer days. Spring is also the time when many animals awaken from a long winter’s nap. After spending a season sleeping, they emerge hungry and ready to roam. Making it to spring, however, is not an easy task for some of these animals. […]