• Work to Resume on Route 44 and New Firehouse

    Warmer temps ensure concrete quality By Avice Meehan Two significant Norfolk projects that were put on hold because of below-zero temperatures this winter are expected to resume by mid-March: Reconstruction of two retaining walls along Route 44 and the construction of a new firehouse for the Norfolk Volunteer Fire Department. Engineers for the state Department […]

  • Richard Byrne Retires as Active Firefighter

    After 58 years, veteran status By Joseph Kelly He was a young Navy veteran, about to be married and ready to start a family in his hometown when, in February 1968, his older brother convinced him to join the Norfolk Volunteer Fire Department (NVFD). For Richard Byrne it was the start of an association that […]

  • Rock ‘n Roll House Party Circus Will Benefit Local Food Banks

    Three Grammy nominees to perform at Infinity Hall By Colleen Gundlach On April 11, Infinity Hall will be the setting for Rock ‘n Roll House Party Circus, a concert that will benefit Stock the Shelves, an outreach of United Way of Northwestern Connecticut. The Rock ‘n Roll House Party Circus will feature three Grammy nominees […]

  • Rom-Com Curling Film Released With Olympics

    To get the ice just right, filmmakers tapped Norfolk expertise By Joseph Kelly The underdogs who battle the odds—the washed-up boxer, the outclassed football team, the aging baseball slugger with one last homerun in him—are all Hollywood standbys. Ronald Reagan may be remembered as much for “win one for the Gipper” as he is for […]

  • How Botelle (Carefully) Uses AI for Learning

    By Avice Meehan For more than three decades, children visited the fictional town of Frog Creek, Penn., home to two children named Jack and Annie. With the help of a magic tree house, the pair are whisked away to distant places where they have adventures, solve problems and, perhaps, learn a thing or two. Like […]

  • Choral Singing Meets Bluegrass

    LCCU welcomes all ages to sing new styles By Andra Moss The Litchfield County Choral Union (LCCU) is entering its 127th concert year with decidedly youthful energy. Under the direction of Music Director Dr. Gabriel Löfvall, the LCCU will convene a youth choral festival in Norfolk in late spring; offer a series of choral seminars […]

  • Winter Weekend In Norfolk

    It was a cold and blustery weekend, but that didn’t stop the hardy from coming out on Feb. 21 and 22 for Winter WIN, the weekend for enjoying all things Norfolk in the winter season. The photos below show a story of a town that came together to strut its stuff for the world to […]

  • From Freeze to Flow: Extreme Temps and the Maple Syrup Season

    Reaching that ideal mix of natural conditions By Jude Mead The extreme cold and heavy snowfall this season has raised some concern among maple syrup producers. Reports of loud, cracking noises in wooded areas have set the stage for a phenomenon called “frost cracking.” During these periods of intense cold, the water and sap inside […]

  • Sit Right Back and You’ll Hear a Tale

    With Jude Mead at the guitar and with great enthusiasm, members of the Isabella Eldridge Club defied a threatened winter storm and entered Battell Chapel on Feb. 10 for a memorable performance of an episode of “Gilligan’s Island,” a daft 1960s television comedy. Despite the best efforts of the Professor (played by Marinell Crippen, left) […]

  • Cook For Goodness Sake

    America The Melting Pot By Linda Garrettson In celebration of the 250th anniversary of our Declaration of Independence, it seems appropriate to dedicate my food column this year to America, who we are, and what we eat. Get ready for some history lessons, and perhaps surprises that might enlighten you to what we call American […]

  • Be Careful, Very Careful

    An expert team from the Glass Source Stained Glass Studio spent nearly six hours in cold mid-January weather care-fully removing a cathedral stained glass window from Battell Chapel at the United Church of Christ before transporting it to their studio in Seymour for restoration. In this photo, Michael Skrtic balances one section of the window […]

  • The Week that Was

    First, frigid temperatures forced the relocation of Norfolk’s valiant Post Office staff to Winsted because of scheduled asbestos remediation, leaving box holders temporarily puzzled. Then, the big snow arrived on Jan. 25 and 26. Estimates vary widely: Russell Russ reported the official tally at the Great Mountain Forest weather station as 15.2 inches, but others […]

Articles

Help! My Friend Hit an Owl

A smalltown wildlife rescue in the age of social media By Heath Hughes BAM! Something hit my car as I was driving home on Route 44 one night last fall. The sun had just crossed the edge of the trees and it was almost completely dark. I caught a glimpse of large, white wings.  I […]

Town Looks at Creating Solar Farm

Takes first steps to creating solar array at town landfill by David Beers On the same 149-acre town property where the transfer station is located, the town farm was established by the town in the 1800s to provide food and shelter to Norfolk’s indigent population. This was a town-run residence where destitute people were supported […]

Iconic Church Steeple Set for Temporary Removal

Judged unsafe in high winds By Kelly Kandra Hughes On September 8, after its Sunday worship service, the congregation of the United Church of Christ, Congregational voted on whether to remove the church steeple. Engineers had determined that even after recent repairs, the steeple was not guaranteed to be safe during winds greater than 40 […]

A Weekend of Puppets, Marionettes and Stiltwalkers: The Greenwoods Puppet Festival

A busker walks out from behind the puppet stage, ukulele in hand, and sings a brief history of the art of puppetry. There was Punch and Judy, of course, but also Pulcinella, escaped from the commedia dell’arte; Guignol, of the sharp wit and heavy cudgel; Karagöz, the Turkish shadow puppet; and Kaspar and Gretel, originally […]

Is Broadband for the Whole Town in Our Future?

By Andrew Thomson A few weeks ago, I sat at the counter in the Berkshire Country Store drinking my morning coffee and was approached by Norfolk Now to write an article about the initiative to bring a fiber optic connection to every house in town. As a millenial, I have realized that my age has […]

Convenience at Its Best

Berkshire Country Store to Launch “Norfolk Store 24” By Doug McDevitt We all enjoy convenience. While fishing the Housatonic River for many years, one of my convenient stops afterward was at a little corner store in Cornwall where I could enjoy a hot beverage or sandwich. It was warm and quaint inside and finished my […]

New Town Plan Imagines Downtown as ‘Campus’

Takes hard look at parking and pedestrian access By Wiley Wood With little fanfare and to sparse public attention, the Planning and Zoning Commission adopted a new town plan on Sept. 9. The document, which builds on earlier plans and a community input process that started eighteen months ago, is intended to guide growth and […]

Marty the Robot Arrives at Stop & Shop

Technology Report By Jude Mead If you shop at Stop and Shop in Canaan you might encounter Marty, an autonomous robot that roams throughout the store using image technology to notify store employees of any spills, debris or other potential hazards that may impede the safety of the customer. Stefanie Shuman, the communications manager for […]

Discussing the Future of Farming with Presidential Hopeful

Amanda Freund raises awareness of ecological advantage of farming By Colleen Gundlach The future of the farming community, and of northwestern Connecticut farmers in particular, was brought into the national spotlight when Amanda Freund of East Canaan had the opportunity to question a potential Democratic presidential candidate about his thoughts on the matter. Freund, whose […]

New Program to Bring a Little Wild Into Your Life

By Ruth Melville For the past few years, Norfolk resident Angela Luna Grano, a federally licensed wildlife rehabilitator, has been offering presentations on nature and animals for children at local schools and libraries. But recognizing that adults, too, might need a little wildness in their lives, she developed a new program, called “Wild Magic,” that […]

Bibliomania: The Passion for Books and for Collecting Them

New exhibition opening at the Historical Society Museum By Ruth MelvillePhoto, top, of curator Lucy Mookerjee at the Norfolk Historical Society, by Bruce Frisch.In the late 18th century, a popular hobby, especially among English gentlemen, scholars and clergymen, was collecting books. In his 1809 book “Bibliomania; or Book Madness,” the English bibliographer Thomas Dibdin satirized […]

Maria Horn Discusses Education at Norfolk Forum

A statewide cooperative to stabilize special education costs is being considered By Wiley Wood State Representative Maria Horn recently addressed a group of Norfolk residents about education and education funding. The meeting was held at Botelle School on Aug. 1, with about 45 people in attendance. Horn reported that a task force delegated by the […]