• Proposed Manor House Expansion Draws Large Crowd

    Many differing views on effect of change in town center By Susan MacEachron Norfolk residents filled the Botelle School Hall of Flags on a very cold evening on Tuesday, Jan. 14, to attend the Planning & Zoning (P&Z) public hearing regarding a modification to the special permit granted in 1996 to the property known as […]

  • From All Angels

    Throughout the month of February, Garet&Co will be returning to Norfolk to present their third annual performance in the Battell Chapel, where each piece will be set in the round.  In this presentation, titled “From All Angles”, the audience will witness the translation of three of the works presented at their fall show.   “Can’t Keep […]

  • Norfolk Then

    Pictured here is the house built in 1898 by Mr. and Mrs. Charles Spofford as their summer home. The son of Ainsworth Spofford, Librarian of Congress, Charles Spofford was an electrical engineer, who would be hired in 1902 to manage London’s underground railway system, converting it from steam to electricity. The Spoffords engaged the architect […]

  • 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 […]

Articles

Community Survey Reveals Notable Range of Opinions

Broad consensus and sharp disagreement   By Wiley Wood Imagine gathering a large, random group of Norfolkians to discuss what’s good and bad about the town and asking them to suggest one or two things that need doing in the next ten years. A recent community survey did essentially that, but gathered the responses online. […]

Following Budget Cuts, School Board Decides to Cut Botelle School’s Strings Program

Liz Allyn Is Resigning as Music Teacher   By Ruth Melville In response to a combination of rising expenses and a decreasing budget, the Norfolk Board of Education has decided to eliminate the strings part of music education at Botelle School. Until the upcoming school year, all Botelle students had, at the music teacher’s discretion, […]

Wood Creek Bar and Grill Is a Role Model for Town-Wide Involvement

A Community Anchor   By Colleen Gundlach The dream of many chefs is to own a restaurant of their own. It takes years of dedication, long hours and just plain hard work to achieve, yet is a goal that many never attain. For Heidi Dinsmore, co-owner of Wood Creek Bar and Grill, her hard work […]

City Meadow: Town Takes First Steps Toward Phase Two

  By Wiley Wood The dragonflies like it. Pairs of brightly patterned skimmers chase each other around the pools in City Meadow Park, before disappearing into the long grasses. A lone visitor approaches on the walkway. “First time here,” he says in greeting. “They told me two people couldn’t walk abreast, but they must have […]

Trail Runners Take to the Woods

  By David Beers If you have ever seen a blur of colorfully dressed people running through the Norfolk woods in the evening, it is likely the Hill County Trail Runners. This informal Norfolk-based club gets together at 5:30 every Tuesday evening to run the many beautiful trails in and near Norfolk. Each week features […]

Firefighting From Behind the Front Lines

  By C. J. Sosna On Saturday, June 30, a day when the temperature climbed into the 90s, the Norfolk Volunteer Fire Department (NVFD) was called out to a house fire on Torringford Road in Winsted. By the time they arrived shortly after 7 p.m., the entire roof was already in flames, and the heat […]

CT DEEP to Purchase 420-Acre Vagliano Forest in Norfolk

Creates unsegmented corridor to Blackberry River   By William Gridley The Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental Protection (DEEP) is in the final stages of a transaction with the Vagliano family to acquire 420 acres of Norfolk forestland, tapping funds from the federal Highlands Conservation Act. The property, which includes the cold-water stream Roaring Brook, […]

Getting Outdoors is Good for Your Brain

Scientific evidence that living in Norfolk is good for health and happiness   by Kathy Robb The summer solstice on June 21 means that summer is officially here, and with it the pleasure of being outdoors in the beautiful weather Norfolk offers. Humans know intuitively that being outside makes them feel good. This intuition has […]

National Iron Bank Holds Grand Reopening

  By Ruth Melville As part of a strategic plan to renovate all their branches, the National Iron Bank in Norfolk has spent the past six months refurbishing its building on Station Place. With the internal demolition and reconstruction mostly completed, attention has now shifted to exterior work, and the grand reopening is scheduled for […]

Firearms, Monoculars and Norfolk History

Antique arms and vintage posters on display at Icebox Armory   By Karen Linden Jack, a cute and friendly canine, is the first greeter you’ll meet at Ice Box Armory. Next is Hal Cannon, who has opened his cozy, well-provisioned arms shop right on Route 44 near the west end of Norfolk. Cannon was employed […]

Norfolk Artists & Friends Celebrates 10th Anniversary

Ten Guest Artists Invited to Take Part   By Ruth Melville Every year on the first weekend in August, the Norfolk Artists & Friends (NAF) holds an art exhibition in the Battell Stoeckel Gallery (known as the Art Barn). This year is the group’s 10th anniversary exhibition, and to celebrate, the members have decided to […]

Growing Shiitakes for Fun and Profit

  By Wiley Wood If you’ve come to the Norfolk Farmers Market looking for goat milk soap, French pastries, or zucchini blossoms, Andy Griffin’s stand is not for you. What he has is mushrooms, mostly shiitakes, which he sells by the pint or the half pint. Early on a Saturday morning, he might have a […]